A podcast interview with J. Randy Taraborelli concerning the Dreamgirls
issue.
denounced the Broadway musical -- will she destroy the film's Oscar hopes?
Tom O'Neil, The Envelope
October 18, 2006
The Oscar race for best picture may come down to what just one academy member thinks of one film.
If "Dreamgirls" is truly the best-picture frontrunner, as many pundits claim, this year's biggest awards cliffhanger may be the answer to this question: Will Diana Ross, the original Dreamgirl, finally embrace the fictionalized story of her career 25 years after it debuted on Broadway or, now that it's immortalized on film, publicly disapprove and turn on it like a true diva?
If the latter, "Dreamgirls" could face an Oscar nightmare and there could be an uproar in the best picture race not seen since director Ron Howard got caught sugar-coating the real-life story behind "A Beautiful Mind."
Some sources insist that Miss Ross -- as she likes to be called -- has finally accepted the show that may define her career, so much so that she, secretly, inquired about securing a role in the "Dreamgirls" film, but scoffed when all she was offered was a cameo as her own mom.
A longtime friend and colleague disagrees. While conceding that Miss Ross may briefly have flirted with the if-you-can't-beat-them-join-them approach, he says, "She hates 'Dreamgirls' because she feels like she's been ripped off, like its creators changed just enough key elements of her story so they didn't have to pay her royalties and then refused to give her any input on how her story would be told."
But that's showbiz, others say, and Ross is savvy about how it works.
J. Randy Taraborrelli, author of "Call Her Miss Ross," adds: "I think that Diana has decided that there's not much she can do about this and she wisely knows that there wasn't much Billie Holliday's estate could do about her when she did 'Lady Sings the Blues,'" a film that resulted in Miss Ross being Oscar nominated for best actress in 1972.
However, Miss Ross has taken digs at the Broadway show in the past, once telling the New York Times, ''The truth is that no one asked me for my permission, my involvement or anything. And though I'm happy that the girls in it are doing so well, I hope it's not a ripoff. I don't want people to walk away thinking it's the truth because I don't think they know what the truth is.''
But there's reason to believe she's mellowed since those words were uttered seven months after "Dreamgirls" debuted on Broadway. One year later she performed one of its songs, "Family," at her concert in Central Park.
There are conflicting reports about whether she ever saw one of "Dreamgirls'" 1,522 performances on Broadway or even half of one.
Now, the next plot twist: Will she attend the movie's premiere when it opens in December?
Her former Supremes singing partner Mary Wilson plans to be there, which may be another reason Diana may wish to dodge it. The two divas have feuded for years.
Or will Ross publicly oppose the movie?
If she does, and her disapproval is expressed passionately or, worse, with outrage, she could hurt it financially and even derail its Oscar hopes. Or will she be neutral and remain quiet about it?
Twice "The Envelope" asked these questions of Miss Ross in emails that were forwarded to her by her agent, but she did not respond. A message requesting comment about the film was left on her home business phone, but the call was not returned.
Whether she ever attended a full performance of "Dreamgirls" on Broadway is a fascinating mystery. She maintains she did not, often telling the press, "I didn't want to validate it in that way."
But some sources say she snuck up to a side balcony of the Imperial Theatre one night where she watched the show, unseen by the masses below. Another oft-repeated account claims she attended just the first act, then, horrified, stormed out at intermission.
"I think it would be very hard for Diana to resist seeing it," says Taraborrelli. "It's likely that she did sneak in and take a look at it. It's also likely, if that did happen, she would not have made a spectacle rushing out during intermission. But, officially, she maintains that she did not see it."
For the most part she's remained mum about her displeasure over the stage show since she's had close personal ties with people associated with it -- most notably, one of its original producers, David Geffen, who is now chief producer of the film.
"In the 25 years since the show opened, Diana has remained good friends with Geffen and has never mentioned it to him," reports her longtime colleague and pal. "She didn't want them to have an argument, so she's avoided the topic completely."
Ross was also best friends with Suzanne de Passe, who managed Jennifer Holliday, who played the Florence Ballard/Effie role. De Passe was a Motown exec who managed many of Ross' concerts and TV shows, too -- she even cowrote "Lady Sings the Blues."
"Because of the relationships she had with Suzanne and David, Diana felt that something should have been worked out" about "Dreamgirls," Taraborrelli adds, "and I'm not saying in a financial realm. I'm just saying in terms of her participation or cooperation or at least running it by her. She really had no pre-warning that the show was going to be so close to her life story."
The key difference between the "Dreamgirls" story and the Supremes in real life is what happens to Effie/Florence Ballard, the girl group's chubby lead singer who was pushed aside in favor of the slender/sexy Deena Jones/Diana Ross.
In real life Ballard suffered from such chronic depression that she was eventually dropped from the group.
Afterward, she failed to launch a solo career and died in poverty at age 32 in 1976. In "Dreamgirls," Effie rebounds after the split, has a hit music record and reunites with her ole galpals for a final farewell concert.
Some observers believe that "Dreamgirls" wasn't created as a fictionalized account of the Supremes in order to stiff Diana Ross and Mary Wilson out of financial compensation and story control, but because such tinkering with history was necessary in order to create a story that would work better on stage and screen.
That's a compelling argument and one that's forced Ross to be cautious about how strongly she expresses her disapproval of "Dreamgirls."
"Diana's really got to walk a fine line as not coming off as being against the film or being unreasonably angry about it," says Taraborrelli. "By the same token making it clear that one day she should, and hopefully will, do her own life story on her own -- like what Tina Turner did with 'What's Love Got to Do with It.'"
Meantime, Ross must decide how she'll respond publicly to the "Dreamgirls" film since journalists are certain to hound her for comment.
"She'll never support it," insists her longtime colleague and pal, who claims Ross may even be tempted to blast it publicly. "I wouldn't be surprised if she just finally blurted out what she really thinks about 'Dreamgirls' and let everybody have it. Remember who we're dealing with here -- a great diva!"
If that occurred, Hollywood might be tempted to side with the real, wounded veteran star over the fictitious film, thus derailing its Oscar hopes.
But one source close to the film insists that everything's fine, even claiming that Ross and Geffen have held private meetings behind the scenes during which they worked out all of their differences.
Reps for Geffen and Ross will not confirm that, and, eerily, decline all comment.
One hopeful sign that harmony may be ahead is the personal affection Ross feels for Beyonce Knowles, who portrays her on film.
"Diana has told Beyonce, 'If you need me for anything, if you have any questions or you need help with anything, I'll be there to help you,' which is a lot more than she did in 1982 with Sheryl Lee Ralph, who played the role on Broadway," Taraborrelli notes.
Ralph frequently tells the story of a nasty run-in with Ross, which occurred at the Russian Tea Room in New York. A furious Ross marched up to her, glared at her and pointed, raging, "I know who you are!" Then stormed off.
Perhaps Ross cares so much about Beyonce because she's the former lead singer of Destiny's Child.
"Beyonce really was born to play this part," says director Bill Condon. "Beyonce has lived a lot of Deena Jones' story already, having grown up as a teenager in a girl group and then emerged into the spotlight on her own."
To prepare for the role, Beyonce has emerged herself in Ross' old recordings. The two divas even look alike.
"Beyonce doesn't just evoke Diana Ross, she really is Diana Ross in much the same way that Diana Ross became Billie Holiday in 'Lady Sings the Blues,'" says Taraborrelli.
"We hope that Diana's love of Beyonce is what will save the day," says a source close to the film. "It even makes us hopeful that she'll attend the premiere and get on board to support the movie enthusiastically."
And she'd probably be wise to do so.
"Once 'Dreamgirls' is released, it will become the official version of her life," says Taraborrelli.
