Mary Wilson In Legal Trouble

[BayouMotownMan]

https://theblast.com/supremes-mary-w...lties-lawsuit/

[jobeterob]

Some things never change - more bad choices

[vgalindo]

How much Royalty money are they looking for? Mary hasn't sold hardly anything on her own. Or is this for the Supremes royalties.

[BayouMotownMan]

How much Royalty money are they looking for? Mary hasn't sold hardly anything on her own. Or is this for the Supremes royalties.

Apparently Mary felt she wasn't being given adequate royalties on the sale of Supremes music from UMG so she hired a collection agency to get more from them.

[sup_fan]

Apparently Mary felt she wasn't being given adequate royalties on the sale of Supremes music from UMG so she hired a collection agency to get more from them.

hmmm - wonder how many more Expanded Editions she'll be helping with going forward

[TheMotownManiac]

Mary is so avoricious that she can’t tell right from wrong - it does suck big time that she had to resort to hiring a company to get her royalties. She should sue UMG for all fees and percentages associated with having to get what should have been hers anyway. Mary, nor any artist, should have to spend a dime to collect what they are owed. This is The a Trump/Republican way of treating the little people.

[thanxal]

Apparently Mary felt she wasn't being given adequate royalties on the sale of Supremes music from UMG so she hired a collection agency to get more from them.

Does anyone know ball park figures? It simply can't be that much money. Or am I wrong and is UMG raking it in from recent Supremes releases? I have a hard time believing that to be the case.

[milven]

I think just Diana and Mary did not sign away their future royalties from Supremes records. So, is Diana also suing UMG, or did they specifically just pick Mary to screw?

[jobeterob]

I think just Diana and Mary did not sign away their future royalties from Supremes records. So, is Diana also suing UMG, or did they specifically just pick Mary to screw?

I bet you Mary gave some of it way in some lump sum deal previous to this and it’s another big mess

[Roberta75]

I think just Diana and Mary did not sign away their future royalties from Supremes records. So, is Diana also suing UMG, or did they specifically just pick Mary to screw?

Id venture to say there both getting the same. The difference is one lady has a ton of money and the other one doesnt.

[TheMotownManiac]

Miss Ross got a new rate when she returned to Motown so her numbers are are far in excess of Mary’s - but I doubt that Mary ever signed anything away. Plus, when she left, I think only Anthology was in print - maybe Greatest Hits was still in there, but nothing else.nothing from the new Supremes at all.

[BayouMotownMan]

If I'm not mistaken Mary started receiving royalties when she sold her share of the name to Gordy in 1990. I think that was part of the deal. I don't think she collected prior to that. Mary left Motown at a time when the company simply did not grant royalties after an artist was gone. Most signed away future royalties for a lump sum to get their release. I could be wrong on this one but that's the way I remember it. As far as Supremes CDs still selling, Greatest Hits always sells as does the two part Millenium collection.

[PeaceNHarmony]

Sad to hear but the lady can't get out of her own way, despite her ... college degree ... I do wish her well.

[TheMotownManiac]

If I'm not mistaken Mary started receiving royalties when she sold her share of the name to Gordy in 1990. I think that was part of the deal. I don't think she collected prior to that. Mary left Motown at a time when the company simply did not grant royalties after an artist was gone. Most signed away future royalties for a lump sum to get their release. I could be wrong on this one but that's the way I remember it. As far as Supremes CDs still selling, Greatest Hits always sells as does the two part Millenium collection.

I know Berry loves to get royalties stopped, but I had no idea Mary agreed to such a stupid move - especially after knowing what Flo lost out on. She said in her book that she got 85k a year, but not everything in her books is.........accurate. Motown can’t stop royalties just because someone leaves - it has to be agreed upon.

You are right about the Supremes collections selling but I was referring to what was selling when Mary left Motown. I believe onlybAnth9logy and Blue Greatest Hits was in print but nothing else - including At Their Best which was a cut out when Red Hot cane out.

In in any event, it sucks that any Supremes suffered anything with all the millions they generated and work they did. I know Mary went through a lot of money in the 80s and 90s for party favors, but she had decent income and the Book money which should have given her a nest egg even with a platinum short straw.

[BayouMotownMan]

Consider also Motown Maniac that while Mary was negotiating her release from Motown, 1980 and possibly part of 1981, Diana Ross was white hot. The success of the diana lp and Endless Love brought back interest in her back catalog. It's hard to remember but Mary may have gotten a small royalty from her 1975 contract which had that funny stipulation that she had a shared percentage of the marketing rights of the name, no one really knew what that meant I don't think. Then in 1983 the movie Big Chill gave a major renewal of interest to the Motown catalog. By the time Mary renegotiated her percentage by giving her partial ownership of the name Supremes back to BG a lot of this momentum had been lost. In recent years the Dreamgirl movie also brought a big rush in sales to the Supremes but in today's world, bootlegging is so out of control that I can't imagine Mary or Ross get much.

And it shouldn't be so hard to understand why Mary or any other Motown artist would settle for a cash amount and sign away royalties. In each case Motown attorneys would drag on the litigation for years in some cases with restrictions on use of name, music etc until a full agreement is reached. Remember after leaving the Supremes Motown virtually starved Mary Wilson out. She lost her home. Went from a mansion in Hancock Park to a two bedroom apartment in a not so great part of LA. That was tough on her. She was probably quite anxious to get any kind of monetary settlement she could get out of Motown.

Mary's situation was quite dire when Dreamgirl came out. When Robin Leach interviewed her for Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, the house she showed as her own was indeed not hers, but that of her good friend Mark Bego.

[marv2]

OOoooo Mary you're in such big trouble! LOL!!!!

[BayouMotownMan]

With you constantly defending her and speaking on her behalf, she has been in trouble for years

[helga]

I don't know the whole story in order to make a fair judgment, but it seems there is a repeating pattern of bad business decisions on Mary's part. It's sad because you'd think she would have learned by now. She fights for her own fair share and wants to get paid, but does not seem to believe in extending that same fairness to others, even when she is bound by a contract. This isn't the first time. Times are hard for lots of people in this world but you also need to act with integrity. She owed money for services rendered, plain and simple. Unfortunately this is not the first time.

[luke]

I find it strange that some people like to judge Mary even before they know the whole story. We are talking about the woman who single handedly kept the Supremes legacy alive for five decades. She deserves respect. Paul McCartney, Brain Wilson, etc etc have had their share of lawsuits.

[jobeterob]

I find it strange that some people like to judge Mary even before they know the whole story. We are talking about the woman who single handedly kept the Supremes legacy alive for five decades. She deserves respect. Paul McCartney, Brain Wilson, etc etc have had their share of lawsuits.

I find it strange that two people like to judge Diana based on one of them making up stories

[marv2]

I find it strange that some people like to judge Mary even before they know the whole story. We are talking about the woman who single handedly kept the Supremes legacy alive for five decades. She deserves respect. Paul McCartney, Brain Wilson, etc etc have had their share of lawsuits.

Exactly. Now if I didn't know better, I might think these "Supremes Fans" actually wish Mary ill will.

[milven]

Exactly. Now if I didn't know better, I might think these "Supremes Fans" actually wish Mary ill will.

"Supreme Fans" do not wish Mary Wilson ill will.
"Supreme Fans" do not wish Mary Wilson FANS ill will.
"Supreme Fans" probably do wish Mary Wilson FANATICS ill will.

[BayouMotownMan]

"Supreme Fans" do not wish Mary Wilson ill will.
"Supreme Fans" do not wish Mary Wilson FANS ill will.
"Supreme Fans" probably do wish Mary Wilson FANATICS ill will.

Well said Milven

[RanRan79]

"Supreme Fans" do not wish Mary Wilson ill will.
"Supreme Fans" do not wish Mary Wilson FANS ill will.
"Supreme Fans" probably do wish Mary Wilson FANATICS ill will.

I don't wish Mary Wilson or Diana Ross fanatics ill will, including the one you replied to. I do wish the most rabid of the fanatics would seek help for their psychosis...including the one you replied to. But he isn't alone. He has at least two other counterparts on the Diana Ross side in this very thread who are as psychotic as he is.*Raising a glass to their mental health*

[midnightman]

Mary didn't have a smart attorney at all...

[PeaceNHarmony]

"Supreme Fans" do not wish Mary Wilson ill will.
"Supreme Fans" do not wish Mary Wilson FANS ill will.
"Supreme Fans" probably do wish Mary Wilson FANATICS ill will.

Not necessarily ill will, just a true desire that the Mary-maniacs would be a tad more realistic in their reportage about Wilson and a lot less conspiracy-fixated about other members of the group.

[captainjames]

OUCH !!!!
I hope Ms. Wilson can clean this up soon.

[jobeterob]

Total sales of cds in all of Canada last year were 4.5 million; probably 4000 of them were Motown cds

Royalties for Mary Wilson and many others have dwindled to nothing

[LoveSupreme]

..........

[LoveSupreme]

..........

[TheMotownManiac]

It makes a good headline, but I hope it’s not true. Guilty or not, things like this can go south just because the money involved to fight it isn’t there. I hate to think of Mary dedicating funds for a shitty lawsuit, but, if she did it, hopefully she’ll just pay up whatever it is and avoid court. The few times I’ve been involved in lawsuits, they’ve always settled before we got to court but it still cost me thousands in money so randomly invoiced, I either had to laugh or cry.
‘Hopefully this November New York gig will be a success and she can play a few tines per year. The room seats 88 but the Tix often begin at $150 and sometimes go as high as $300 or more depending on the act and day of the week - so she could gross around 13k per night and walk away with 6-12k per night if it sells out. Please tell all interested parties that this venue is the ideal showcase for Mary’s talents and will be worthy extravagant night out in The Big Apple.

[jobeterob]

You have to net a minimum $30000 in a claim or it’s not even worth going to a small claims court with a lawyer

[mwmr]

Mary stated in her book she never signed her royalties away and it was also stated by Randy in call her miss Ross that she still got royalties
after being told ‘trust me’ by BG and then to find out you hadn’t made the millions you were led to believe it’s not surprising she finds it hard to trust she’s not getting her dues

[daviddh]

I do remember a big mess when Mary apparently demanded a payment up front for her OOH CHILD song and and album that never happened. she took the advance and ran. the owner of the company had nothing nice to say regarding Mary... will have to find his rant to share it.