Smark:
In fairness, I can't see what anyone's written here as "trashing" anyone. In fact, when you compare the worst comment in tis thread to what's usually written about The Supremes, David Ruffin or Berry Gordy, the responses here are quite measured in nature.
The only thing that was said was that Theo was fired. No one gave the specifics as to why, no one got into detail. All that some WHO KNOW are saying is that it was done, perhaps in haste, perhaps without considering the past, the difficulty there was when fans realized that Levi wouldn't be returning, as well as the effect of the passings of Levi & Obie.
It took quite awhile for The Tops to recapture many of their fans & Theo won people over to where he was accepted & embraced by many of the same fans who'd previously shunned him.
That has a huge effect on their business & considering what they endured to get back on that path, why mess a successful business model?
THAT is the point.
That & the fact that there's nothing, as you put it, "melodramatic" about a man being unfairly stripped of his livelihood. And if ANYONE here is guilty of "trashing" anyone as you assert, please show us the offending words.
Perhaps you, Webster & I have different definitions for the phrase.
There's nothing here that's remotely resembling a Supremes thread. No name calling, none of that. NOTHING has been deleted from this thread, so, you should be able to find plenty of evidence here in order to substantiate your claim.
I await to read your findings.