Just a few photos of The Marvelous Marvelettes

[robpc77]

Thought I'd share a few photos...sorry for any repeats.

Barney Ales, Georgeanna, Wyanetta, Gladys, Dick Clark, Katherine, Wanda and local promotion man Buzz Curtis. From Motown The Sound of Young America by Adam White with Barney Ales.

[detmotownguy]

Thought I'd share a few photos...sorry for any repeats.

Barney Ales, Georgeanna, Wyanetta, Gladys, Dick Clark, Katherine, Wanda and local promotion man Buzz Curtis. From Motown The Sound of Young America by Adam White with Barney Ales. Is there a link please? Can't wait to see em.

[TomatoTom123]

Is there a link please? Can't wait to see em.

Hey detmotownguy, I believe the image is attached to the post, here it is:

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[robpc77]

Tom, would you help me out here. How do I embed the photo as you have done? Thanks.

Never mind, I think that I figured it out.

[detmotownguy]

Hey detmotownguy, I believe the image is attached to the post, here it is:

13347 Thanks! Dang IPhones! Great photo thanks for sharing.

[robpc77]

ok. I'll try again...I think this is Marv Tarplin flanked by the lovely ladies. Doesn't Georgeanna look like Mary Wilson in this picture?!

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[robpc77]

The Marvelettes on their first UK tour.

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[robpc77]

The gorgeous Wanda Rogers.

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[robpc77]

A few photos from the Soundblast '66 concert at Yankee Stadium.

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[robpc77]

With Otis Redding in '67. Looks like Gladys and Kat are having a great time!

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[robpc77]

"Sophisticated Soul" photo session.

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"In Full Bloom" photo session.

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[robpc77]

Photo from the Marvelettes' tour of Army base in Germany '68. The guy standing next to Wanda looks like Bobby Rydell.

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[reese]

Photo from the Marvelettes' tour of Army base in Germany '68. The guy standing next to Wanda looks like Bobby Rydell.

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And it looks like Johnny Tillotson standing between Ann and Katherine.

[TomatoTom123]

Great pictures rob! Thanks for sharing. You didn't even need my help, heehee :D

[marv2]

Thought I'd share a few photos...sorry for any repeats.

Barney Ales, Georgeanna, Wyanetta, Gladys, Dick Clark, Katherine, Wanda and local promotion man Buzz Curtis. From Motown The Sound of Young America by Adam White with Barney Ales.

Robpc, thanks. Where was that taken? Philly?

[robpc77]

Robpc, thanks. Where was that taken? Philly?
Marv, I believe it was taken in Philly when they made their appearance on Bandstand.

I didn't actually scan the photo from the book. Someone else posted the photo online, which I copied just before I received my copy of the book. When finally looked through pages and saw the picture, I was so disappointed that I had already seen the photo online. But the book has a lot of nice pictures [[not of the Marvelettes).

[marv2]

Marv, I believe it was taken in Philly when they made their appearance on Bandstand.

I didn't actually scan the photo from the book. Someone else posted the photo online, which I copied just before I received my copy of the book. When finally looked through pages and saw the picture, I was so disappointed that I had already seen the photo online. But the book has a lot of nice pictures [[not of the Marvelettes).

I think you're right about Philly. They broadcast AB up until 1964 from the studio right next to the train stop I use to take at 69th and Market in Philly. Thank you for all of the great pictures.

[johnny_raven]

With Otis Redding in '67.

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I was 2 days old!!

[marv2]

I was 2 days old!!

Wow Johnny Raven!

[BigAl]

Barney Ales, Georgeanna, Wyanetta, Gladys, Dick Clark, Katherine, Wanda and local promotion man Buzz Curtis

In Marc Taylor's book, she's consistently referred to as Wyanetta Cowart, but in album liner notes from the period and just about everywhere else, she's referred to as Juanita. Does anyone know what gives?

[reese]

In Marc Taylor's book, she's consistently referred to as Wyanetta Cowart, but in album liner notes from the period and just about everywhere else, she's referred to as Juanita. Does anyone know what gives?

I think Wyanetta is the correct spelling, but it is pronounced the same as "Juanita," so that is probably where the confusion came from.

[robpc77]

I think Wyanetta is the correct spelling, but it is pronounced the same as "Juanita," so that is probably where the confusion came from.

Reese, your explanation sounds extremely plausible. Besides, in Marc Taylor's book the author published their photos from the high school year book. So the correct spelling of her name would probably be listed.

[marv2]

Here are some very rare photos of the Marvelettes. They were just young girls. I'm curious, why has there not been much mention of Georgia Dobbins who co-wrote "Please Mr. Postman"?

http://www.history-of-rock.com/marvelettes.htm

[robpc77]

Here are some very rare photos of the Marvelettes. They were just young girls. I'm curious, why has there not been much mention of Georgia Dobbins who co-wrote "Please Mr. Postman"?


Marv, those are the same photos that are in Marc Taylor's book. They are from the 1959 Inkster High School Yearbook.

Georgia had to leave the group prior to the recording of Postman because her father refused to sign the contract. She left before they were officially renamed the Marvelettes. So maybe that's why she isn't mentioned much. She was featured on the Unsung episode though.

[marv2]

Marv, those are the same photos that are in Marc Taylor's book. They are from the 1959 Inkster High School Yearbook.

Georgia had to leave the group prior to the recording of Postman because her father refused to sign the contract. She left before they were officially renamed the Marvelettes. So maybe that's why she isn't mentioned much. She was featured on the Unsung episode though.

She was always listed as a member of the Marvelettes from way back. I use to get her mixed up with Georginna. I don't have Marc Taylor's book, but I met him. I saw the Unsung episode and the interview they did with Georgia.

[marv2]

By the way, the last picture on the page I provided a link to came from our own Franjoy.

[robpc77]

She was always listed as a member of the Marvelettes from way back. I use to get her mixed up with Georginna. I don't have Marc Taylor's book, but I met him. I saw the Unsung episode and the interview they did with Georgia.

I know. It can really get confusing because some authors would write about a group member named Georgeanna Dobbins [[unaware that Georgia and Georgeanna are in fact two different people.) When Georgia drop out, she was quickly replaced by Wanda. Then Gladys, Wanda, Kat, Georgeanna and Wyanetta recorded Postman. And they are officially considered the five original Marvelettes.

[marv2]

I know. It can really get confusing because some authors would write about a group member named Georgeanna Dobbins [[unaware that Georgia and Georgeanna are in fact two different people.) When Georgia drop out, she was quickly replaced by Wanda. Then Gladys, Wanda, Kat, Georgeanna and Wyanetta recorded Postman. And they are officially considered the five original Marvelettes.

Beans Bowles us to call Georgeanna "Georgette" LOL!

[robpc77]

Beans Bowles us to call Georgeanna "Georgette" LOL!

Now that's a new one LOL!

[kenneth]

Thanks for the great photo sharing, robpc77! My favorite group! I had not seen most of these photos before. That Wanda sure was gorgeous!

[robpc77]

Thanks for the great photo sharing, robpc77! My favorite group! I had not seen most of these photos before. That Wanda sure was gorgeous!

Kenneth, you're welcome. I loved Wanda's voice.

[kenneth]

With Otis Redding in '67. Looks like Gladys and Kat are having a great time!

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Aside from Johnny Raven being only 2 days old when this photo was taken [[show off!) what I find unusual is, is Wanda in this montage at all? The girl on the lower right looks like Katherine opposite Gladys again. I guess there may be other photos from the concert in the book...just found it odd Wanda doesn't appear here!

[LoveSupreme]

I've always been a bit confused with this group - - - were there 4 or 3 girls in it because some photo shoots show 4 and some only 3.

These two photos are from the same photo shoot:

https://longshotsblues.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/marvelettes.jpg


http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GhYIQDJ3Xrw/U9vL2zrbu-I/AAAAAAAAAso/dE_pKtp2IL4/s1600/Marvelettes+[[Gladys+Horton,+Wanda+Young,+Katherine +Anderson)+7.JPG

[kenneth]

It's always been a bit of a mystery to me how that photo shoot ended up with some pairings of 3 and some pairings of 4 Marvelettes. The trio in this case [[Gladys, Wanda, Katherine) were also photographed for the back cover of the Greatest Hits LP in different outfits and the foursome [[adding Georgeanna) appeared in the same outfits on the cover of the Anthology LP. So it appears that at that same photo shoot they photographed the 2 different lineups in 2 different costume changes. We used to joke that the other 3 locked Georgeanna out of the room as a not-subtle way of getting rid of her and then completed the photo shoot without her! But the real story is probably fascinating. Even though they certainly could have regrouped in the same outfits and all in the photos above and in those on the Greatest Hits/Anthology covers, the girls' styling and wigs in the groupings of 3 are just too identical to have been photographed on a different day than the groupings of 4.

I suppose in the Anthology/Greatest Hits photos it's possible Georgeanna was just cropped from the photo, as she's sitting a little lower than the other 3 in the arrangement. But that certainly couldn't have happened in the photos that LoveSupreme posted. The photo of the 3 is obviously a photo of a trio.

If anyone has a theory, I'd love to hear it! Did they know Georgeanna was leaving at the time? How can you explain the different lineups being photographed on the same day?

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PS I always thought that Gladys' wig in these photos looked to be the same wig that Wanda wore on the In Full Bloom cover [[see the photos earlier in this thread). Very similar style, anyway!

[BigAl]

I don't know the real deal, but I always assumed that Georgie's illness made her appearing with the group a little iffy on any given occasion, so I supposed that they must have shot some with her and some without her at the same shoot to cover all bases. Gladys said that it was a long time before they discovered exactly what her health problem was [[lupus, I believe), and that she had simply been fainting from time to time and thus was not always well enough to perform all the time. The trio photos really don't appear to have been altered in the darkroom or elsewhere, and this was decades before the advent of photo-editing software.

[marv2]

The reason they did that is because Georgeanna had just become pregnant. They used the 4 Marvelette photos up until she had to leave the group.

[kenneth]

Both interesting theories. Thanks guys.

Marv, did Georgeanna have more than one child?

[BigAl]

The reason they did that is because Georgeanna had just become pregnant. They used the 4 Marvelette photos up until she had to leave the group.

Great info! Someone in here almost always has the answers to even the more perplexing questions.

I had always thought Georgeanna left the group due to her illness rather than a pregnancy, so now we know the real story. Since her departure was actually planned for a while in advance and they evidently weren't planning to replace her, it naturally stands to reason that they would get pix both with and without her during the same shoot. Kriegsmann's was a very high-end, high-cost photo studio. Scheduling another session probably would have cost a pretty penny, when it could all be done easily enough in one go.

[kenneth]

@BigAl and Marv2, and perhaps that's why Georgeanna is posed that way in the Anthology photo, kind of like Mary on the cover of The Supremes [['75?) although in that case the other girls were in front of her while she was lying on the couch and in this case perhaps they just made sure to only include Georgeanna's upper torso in the shot. Although she's certainly not showing in the set of photos which LoveSupreme posted so maybe it's just my imagination.

By the way, in my opinion that photo studio was top notch. They really defined how the artists were thought of by the public. A lot of "old Hollywood" in that studio's style...the lighting reminds me a lot of the George Hurrell portraits from the 30s Golden Age of Hollywood. Motown chose well...very nicely done for all the groups' portraits.

[johnny_raven]

Detroit Free Press [[Jan 12, 1980)

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[kenneth]

Detroit Free Press [[Jan 12, 1980)

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The Detroit Free Press got the name of their first record wrong? Say it ain't so!

Thanks for posting Johnny.

[marv2]

Both interesting theories. Thanks guys.

Marv, did Georgeanna have more than one child?

I think she only had the one son Darnell, with Billy Gordon of the Contours who still lives in Detroit. I saw him once.

[marv2]

Her son said that Georgeanna did not want to leave the Marvelettes permanently, but she did become ill later on. He said she cried and cried about having to leave show business.

[kenneth]

Thanks Marv. Your vast storehouse of knowledge is impressive!

[luckyluckyme]

Another James Kriegsmann photo:
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[luckyluckyme]

And another:
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[luckyluckyme]

And yet one more:
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[luckyluckyme]

Is this also by Mr Kriegsmann?
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[marv2]

Thanks Marv. Your vast storehouse of knowledge is impressive!

You're most welcome Kennth, Have a great weekend. I'm off to my old high school for a Sock Hop! LOL

[kenneth]

@luckyluckyme - Must be. Looks like the same day as the other 3/4 different pairings from the styling and the hair.

I like threads like this. Fun to try and figure out what transpired [[at least anything other than a Diane & Mary feud topic!). LOL

[kenneth]

You're most welcome Kennth, Have a great weekend. I'm off to my old high school for a Sock Hop! LOL

Ha! You got more guts than I do, my man! LOL