Originally Posted by
RanRan79
I don't think Flo would have ever abandoned the Supremes for the Marvelettes, not in 1962. Okay, maybe there's a chance because the Marvelettes were already where Flo and the Supremes wanted to go, but I still doubt it. Remember Flo said she didn't think the Marvelettes could really sing and she fancied the Supremes the real deal where singing was concerned. I've always thought Flo was a driving force for the group in the early days because she really believed in the Supremes' ability to succeed, no matter how good any other girl group was. [[And I imagine if she truly thought of the Marvelettes as less than, it probably fueled her opinion even more that if a group like that could make it big, why not the Supremes?) Plus she doesn't appear to be unhappy as a Supreme until sometime in 1966. Now had Gordy asked her to take over for Gladys when she left...
Florence did pick herself up and get on with it. Some folks fall and hop right back up. Others lose their way for a time longer. I think it shows the strength of Flo's character that her story doesn't end with welfare and bitterness or drugs. Flo said it herself, she was ready to get back into the business, and Jack Ashford confirmed that he and Flo talked about doing something together. She said she made a lot of mistakes. What I took from Flo's various quotes prior to her death is that she took responsibility for her own actions but also refused to let others off the hook for their actions. I respect that so much because IMO neither Ross nor Gordy have ever done that. They've pointed the finger at Florence- and rightly so- and the things she did but they never say "but I could've handled the situation differently" or "I too said things and did things I shouldn't have". I've never heard them say that. No doubt in my mind that if not cut down by her health issue, Flo would've staged a comeback, and undoubtedly did it on her own terms.