Originally Posted by
RanRan79
Please stop saying Flo didn't want it. That lady knew she was born to sing. Al Abrams was not Florence's manager. He was her publicist. On her own, with Tommy of all people acting as her manager, Florence secured the ABC deal. [[I think Flo's lawyer was also involved.) The deal itself wasn't a bad deal. She got a hefty signing bonus and I have not yet heard that she had to sign her life away to do it. Was ABC a good fit? Probably not. Not to mention that the timing of her recording and touring again coincided with her pregnancy with twins, which isn't easy for any woman, but especially one with so much going on as Florence had. Her initial bookings were low rate, which shouldn't have surprised anyone knowing that Tommy was Flo's manager. The good thing is that Flo did wise up that Tommy was over his head and she was soon being managed by the Joe Glaser Agency which resulted in much better bookings, including the Latin Casino which was also a place where the Supremes had already or would eventually play. [[Unfortunately Flo pulled out of the Latin Casino gig right before the date, but no one has ever given a reason for it. I believe it was late in Flo's pregnancy so that probably had something to do with it.)
While people around the Supremes have all pretty much agreed that there were times when Florence complained about the touring schedule, none of Flo's most volatile moments in the group seem centered around complaints regarding touring. Flo seems to have been extremely upset by Diana's ego and attitude and Gordy's shenanigans. Show business can be a cruel place, sometimes more or less cruel depending on the players involved. Florence's troubles in the group, by all accounts, started in 1966. For seven years this lady, along with Diana and Mary, went after stardom and it wasn't a problem. Then after she was fired from the group, she still went after a career in singing. And then shortly before her death she was still talking about having a career in music. That's not the identity of someone who wants no part of showbiz. If that was the case she would've gone into the antique business after the Supremes like Diana once claimed, and she definitely would've found some other kind of work in the 70s instead of telling people she was ready to get back in.
Saying Florence Ballard didn't want to be a singer or be successful at it allows the narrative to skip over what was really bothering her about the Supremes.