Previews Brings Back Detroit Memories

February 28, 2012

David Ruffin

http://www.eurweb.com/201...-memories/

*Previews of TV One’s Unsung episode on David Ruffin bring back a lot of fond Detroit memories. For one, even though it was shown in black & white, and their appearance was but a brief few minutes, when we saw The Temptations on TV – or any Motown act for that matter – everything else stopped. It was exciting, and watching these previews takes me back to that era in Detroit when we had a very strong sense of community.

Detroit in the ‘60’s – particularly before the ’67 riot – was a beautiful city. Our neighborhood on the eastside was like a country town with pizzazz. I say that because the southern roots of the black community gave it heart and soul which was embodied by the sound of Motown music. We were like one big family and our most common strongest thread was the church and the songs we used to sing together. One could walk down any neighborhood street and hear the latest Motown record from one house to another; or someone playing a piano; girls playing hopscotch on the sidewalk; guys playing basketball in the alley; neighbors looking out for one another and each others’ kids; grownups sitting onthe front porch listening to the Detroit Tigers game on the radio while perhaps drinking a cold Stroh’s beer; and all the things that somehow got away from us these past 45 years. Those same neighborhoods are now in shambles as Detroit struggles to re-invent and re-tool itself.

Then there were those exciting family picnics at Belle Isle Park– an island on the Detroit River with Detroit on one side and Windsor Canada on the other. There was Dot & Etta’s Shrimp Hut; Green’s Bar B Q restaurant; the Delthe and Rialto Theaters right in the neighborhood; Fairview skating rink; bowling downstairs at Macedonia church; and so many more attractions. It was home, and the memory still lingers.

For the benefit of the children now living in Detroit, if you have some fond memories you’d like to share about your own neighborhood, please feel free to leave a comment about Detroit then and now.

The Unsung episode on Ruffin airs Monday March 5^th at 10PM EST on TV One.

the show should prove to be interesting, nostalgic and a catalyst for some interesting post.

[Edited 3/2/12 9:36am]

This is one Unsung epi that I've been looking forward to seeing.

I CANNOT wait for this one!!

In the preview, I saw that David's son and his ex were interviewed. I wonder if Jimmy Ruffin was also interviewed. It'll also be interesting to see if Otis gets interviewed as well...

Timmy84 said:

In the preview, I saw that David's son and his ex were interviewed. I wonder if Jimmy Ruffin was also interviewed. It'll also be interesting to see if Otis gets interviewed as well...

Urgh, I hope not. We already know his point of view in more ways than one. We need see and hear others points of view instead.

missfee said:

Timmy84 said:

In the preview, I saw that David's son and his ex were interviewed. I wonder if Jimmy Ruffin was also interviewed. It'll also be interesting to see if Otis gets interviewed as well...

Urgh, I hope not. We already know his point of view in more ways than one. We need see and hear others points of view instead.

True. I never really trusted Otis' point of view that much. The way he talked about how he would budge in on the Tempts sets after he had been kicked out (allegedly) by the group was too overly dramatic for me.

Timmy84 said:

missfee said:

Urgh, I hope not. We already know his point of view in more ways than one. We need see and hear others points of view instead.

True. I never really trusted Otis' point of view that much. The way he talked about how he would budge in on the Tempts sets after he had been kicked out (allegedly) by the group was too overly dramatic for me.

I always got the impression that Otis was a little jealous of David. Just off by the voice alone, we all know Otis ain't never have the pipes that David or Eddie did. Aside from the nasty drug habit and a temper out of this world, it didn't take much at all for David to get the ladies either, which Otis probably envied as well.

missfee said:

Timmy84 said:

True. I never really trusted Otis' point of view that much. The way he talked about how he would budge in on the Tempts sets after he had been kicked out (allegedly) by the group was too overly dramatic for me.

I always got the impression that Otis was a little jealous of David. Just off by the voice alone, we all know Otis ain't never have the pipes that David or Eddie did. Aside from the nasty drug habit and a temper out of this world, it didn't take much at all for David to get the ladies either, which Otis probably envied as well.

I agree. David was a charming man for a reason.

Also can I just talk about his voice for a minute? Like oh my God... his high notes gave Minnie a run for her money but it was still manly, you know what I mean? I never heard a man sing that high that easy!

Timmy84 said:

missfee said:

I always got the impression that Otis was a little jealous of David. Just off by the voice alone, we all know Otis ain't never have the pipes that David or Eddie did. Aside from the nasty drug habit and a temper out of this world, it didn't take much at all for David to get the ladies either, which Otis probably envied as well.

I agree. David was a charming man for a reason.

Also can I just talk about his voice for a minute? Like oh my God... his high notes gave Minnie a run for her money but it was still manly, you know what I mean? I never heard a man sing that high that easy!

And that's what got him the ladies! Let's be honest here, David surely didn't have the looks, he looked a hell of a lot better than Bobby Womack, but David was still on the fugly side...but that didn't matter, when you got a sexy voice and know how to use it, mix in a little charm and you got pussy flying everywhere!!

missfee said:

Timmy84 said:

I agree. David was a charming man for a reason.

Also can I just talk about his voice for a minute? Like oh my God... his high notes gave Minnie a run for her money but it was still manly, you know what I mean? I never heard a man sing that high that easy!

And that's what got him the ladies! Let's be honest here, David surely didn't have the looks, he looked a hell of a lot better than Bobby Womack, but David was still on the fugly side...but that didn't matter, when you got a sexy voice and know how to use it, mix in a little charm and you got pussy flying everywhere!!

Right. The women reacted to his high, almost whistle-register voice and panties flew off.

Aww shit it's on now I was in Detroit visiting family when the Temps movie came out and his family was mad as hell but that portrayal was David so I know this Unsung episode is gonna be off the chain

nursev said:

Aww shit it's on now I was in Detroit visiting family when the Temps movie came out and his family was mad as hell but that portrayal was David so I know this Unsung episode is gonna be off the chain

The parts they got mad at were this:

*David mentioning to the other Tempts that his mom was a prostitute (I don't know if that story's even true)

*David being dragged out of the car at the time of his death and them not knowing who he was when he was taken to the hospital (even though his autospy results appeared to show lacerations in his body, he wasn't dragged out of a car, it was likely he overdosed in the crack house and then was taken to the hospital; according to his children, he was recognized instantly as David Ruffin, David Ruffin was FAMOUS too)

But the other parts were true - including his behavior after the Tempts got famous.

I don't know if he actually said to Otis, "ain't nobody coming to see you Otis!" but I wouldn't be surprised if he said something similar.

That's a classic line, like Rick's alleged "I'm Rick James, bitch!" even though he didn't quite say that either (he either would say, "I'm Rick James (without the bitch though some times say he'll start off by "cum'ere bitch!" lol; or "I'm Rick motherfuckin' James!").

Timmy84 said:

nursev said:

Aww shit it's on now I was in Detroit visiting family when the Temps movie came out and his family was mad as hell but that portrayal was David so I know this Unsung episode is gonna be off the chain

The parts they got mad at were this:

*David mentioning to the other Tempts that his mom was a prostitute (I don't know if that story's even true)

*David being dragged out of the car at the time of his death and them not knowing who he was when he was taken to the hospital (even though his autospy results appeared to show lacerations in his body, he wasn't dragged out of a car, it was likely he overdosed in the crack house and then was taken to the hospital; according to his children, he was recognized instantly as David Ruffin, David Ruffin was FAMOUS too)

But the other parts were true - including his behavior after the Tempts got famous.

I don't know if he actually said to Otis, "ain't nobody coming to see you Otis!" but I wouldn't be surprised if he said something similar.

That's a classic line, like Rick's alleged "I'm Rick James, bitch!" even though he didn't quite say that either (he either would say, "I'm Rick James (without the bitch though some times say he'll start off by "cum'ere bitch!" lol; or "I'm Rick motherfuckin' James!").

Shucks if he didn't say it, I sure as hell want to! My mom and I joke about it all the time, lol.

Timmy84 said:

nursev said:

Aww shit it's on now I was in Detroit visiting family when the Temps movie came out and his family was mad as hell but that portrayal was David so I know this Unsung episode is gonna be off the chain

The parts they got mad at were this:

*David mentioning to the other Tempts that his mom was a prostitute (I don't know if that story's even true)

*David being dragged out of the car at the time of his death and them not knowing who he was when he was taken to the hospital (even though his autospy results appeared to show lacerations in his body, he wasn't dragged out of a car, it was likely he overdosed in the crack house and then was taken to the hospital; according to his children, he was recognized instantly as David Ruffin, David Ruffin was FAMOUS too)

But the other parts were true - including his behavior after the Tempts got famous.

I don't know if he actually said to Otis, "ain't nobody coming to see you Otis!" but I wouldn't be surprised if he said something similar.

That's a classic line, like Rick's alleged "I'm Rick James, bitch!" even though he didn't quite say that either (he either would say, "I'm Rick James (without the bitch though some times say he'll start off by "cum'ere bitch!" lol; or "I'm Rick motherfuckin' James!").

Yep! They were mad as hell at all these things they say were false and that David never did any of this shit It was on the Detroit evening news and every damn thing His kids were even threatening lawsuits regarding the movie. Never heard any more from them so I'm assuming all this was true and David was a talented, hot ass mess @ Rick

On a musical note my fav's from Mr. Ruffin are Beauty's only Skin Deep, My Girl and I Wish It Would Rain straight Motown jamz

nursev said:

Timmy84 said:

The parts they got mad at were this:

*David mentioning to the other Tempts that his mom was a prostitute (I don't know if that story's even true)

*David being dragged out of the car at the time of his death and them not knowing who he was when he was taken to the hospital (even though his autospy results appeared to show lacerations in his body, he wasn't dragged out of a car, it was likely he overdosed in the crack house and then was taken to the hospital; according to his children, he was recognized instantly as David Ruffin, David Ruffin was FAMOUS too)

But the other parts were true - including his behavior after the Tempts got famous.

I don't know if he actually said to Otis, "ain't nobody coming to see you Otis!" but I wouldn't be surprised if he said something similar.

That's a classic line, like Rick's alleged "I'm Rick James, bitch!" even though he didn't quite say that either (he either would say, "I'm Rick James (without the bitch though some times say he'll start off by "cum'ere bitch!" lol; or "I'm Rick motherfuckin' James!").

Yep! They were mad as hell at all these things they say were false and that David never did any of this shit It was on the Detroit evening news and every damn thing His kids were even threatening lawsuits regarding the movie. Never heard any more from them so I'm assuming all this was true and David was a talented, hot ass mess @ Rick

I remember Melvin Franklin's mama and Paul Williams' children also sued the makers of the movie for false stories. Melvin didn't die in his mother's home as alleged in the movie (though Otis did admit they fictionalize that part for Hollywood purposes; plus he's seen as if he is buried in Detroit in the movie but he's buried in Los Angeles) and Paul's children say that their mother and father didn't argue on the night Paul took his own life. But I think Paul was arguing with his mistress at the time.

Timmy84 said:

nursev said:

Yep! They were mad as hell at all these things they say were false and that David never did any of this shit It was on the Detroit evening news and every damn thing His kids were even threatening lawsuits regarding the movie. Never heard any more from them so I'm assuming all this was true and David was a talented, hot ass mess @ Rick

I remember Melvin Franklin's mama and Paul Williams' children also sued the makers of the movie for false stories. Melvin didn't die in his mother's home as alleged in the movie (though Otis did admit they fictionalize that part for Hollywood purposes; plus he's seen as if he is buried in Detroit in the movie but he's buried in Los Angeles) and Paul's children say that their mother and father didn't argue on the night Paul took his own life. But I think Paul was arguing with his mistress at the time.

Yeah I do remember Paul's kids being upset, but I had no idea about Melvin's death parts being fictional

Timmy84 said:

nursev said:

Yep! They were mad as hell at all these things they say were false and that David never did any of this shit It was on the Detroit evening news and every damn thing His kids were even threatening lawsuits regarding the movie. Never heard any more from them so I'm assuming all this was true and David was a talented, hot ass mess @ Rick

I remember Melvin Franklin's mama and Paul Williams' children also sued the makers of the movie for false stories. Melvin didn't die in his mother's home as alleged in the movie (though Otis did admit they fictionalize that part for Hollywood purposes; plus he's seen as if he is buried in Detroit in the movie but he's buried in Los Angeles) and Paul's children say that their mother and father didn't argue on the night Paul took his own life. But I think Paul was arguing with his mistress at the time.

I read somewhere that the family didn't believe he committed suicide and was fighting the coroner's office for putting that on his death certificate or something. Something about he was possibly murdered because he owed money and/or his mistress was married and her husband killed him. But it's all a blur. I don't know if its true or not.

nursev said:

Timmy84 said:

I remember Melvin Franklin's mama and Paul Williams' children also sued the makers of the movie for false stories. Melvin didn't die in his mother's home as alleged in the movie (though Otis did admit they fictionalize that part for Hollywood purposes; plus he's seen as if he is buried in Detroit in the movie but he's buried in Los Angeles) and Paul's children say that their mother and father didn't argue on the night Paul took his own life. But I think Paul was arguing with his mistress at the time.

Yeah I do remember Paul's kids being upset, but I had no idea about Melvin's death parts being fictional

Yeah I kind of overlooked that myself.

nursev said:

Timmy84 said:

I remember Melvin Franklin's mama and Paul Williams' children also sued the makers of the movie for false stories. Melvin didn't die in his mother's home as alleged in the movie (though Otis did admit they fictionalize that part for Hollywood purposes; plus he's seen as if he is buried in Detroit in the movie but he's buried in Los Angeles) and Paul's children say that their mother and father didn't argue on the night Paul took his own life. But I think Paul was arguing with his mistress at the time.

Yeah I do remember Paul's kids being upset, but I had no idea about Melvin's death parts being fictional

His family took him to Cedars Sinai in L.A. after a number of seizures in which afterwards led to a coma. He died six days after he was admitted in February 1995. And he died of heart failure.

missfee said:

Timmy84 said:

I remember Melvin Franklin's mama and Paul Williams' children also sued the makers of the movie for false stories. Melvin didn't die in his mother's home as alleged in the movie (though Otis did admit they fictionalize that part for Hollywood purposes; plus he's seen as if he is buried in Detroit in the movie but he's buried in Los Angeles) and Paul's children say that their mother and father didn't argue on the night Paul took his own life. But I think Paul was arguing with his mistress at the time.

I read somewhere that the family didn't believe he committed suicide and was fighting the coroner's office for putting that on his death certificate or something. Something about he was possibly murdered because he owed money and/or his mistress was married and her husband killed him. But it's all a blur. I don't know if its true or not.

Yeah I read that too. His family was told that when they found him, he had the gun on his left hand but his wound was around the right side of his face and that is what got the family thinking he was shot. Some have gone so far to allege that either Otis or Motown itself ordered the hit but I think that's bogus. I can believe if it was murder that his mistress' husband definitely shot him if that was the case. Paul was about to go into a solo career when he died too.

Since we're keeping it Temptations, here's an interesting story on how Otis and Melvin met.

Otis and Melvin were in rival singing groups at the time while attending high school. Otis was a member of the Siberians and Melvin was in the Voicemasters (which included Lamont Dozier AND David Ruffin). One day, Otis heard Melvin sing and figured that he felt his group could use a bass singer because they didn't have one.

Melvin was going home when he spotted Otis and sensed trouble: Otis had his hair in conk and wore all leather and shades. Melvin thought Otis was a gang banger and ran for his life. Otis chased him until he stopped and said "wait, wait, I don't wanna harm you, I just want you to join my group!"

Melvin calmed down after that (Melvin was a good-natured kid) and after Otis told him about his group and needing his voice, Melvin agreed to join them immediately. They became best friends afterwards (that was one thing the film got right, Otis and Melvin were tight until Melvin's death).

Melvin's real name was David Melvin English, he later changed it to Melvin Franklin after his mother Rose English married Willard Franklin and moved from Alabama to Detroit. Melvin was Rick James' uncle. I think Rose English and Rick James' mother Mabel Johnson were related, I'm guessing Mabel was Rose's niece.

[Edited 3/2/12 13:04pm]

Timmy84 said:

Melvin's real name was David Melvin English, he later changed it to Melvin Franklin after his mother Rose English married Willard Franklin and moved from Alabama to Detroit. Melvin was Rick James' uncle. I think Rose English and Rick James' mother Mabel Johnson were related, I'm guessing Mabel was Rose's niece.

[Edited 3/2/12 13:04pm]

I think it came out somewhere that Melvin and Rick weren't really related. I remember reading that somewhere recently. Not sure if it's true or not.

Paris9748430 said:

Timmy84 said:

Melvin's real name was David Melvin English, he later changed it to Melvin Franklin after his mother Rose English married Willard Franklin and moved from Alabama to Detroit. Melvin was Rick James' uncle. I think Rose English and Rick James' mother Mabel Johnson were related, I'm guessing Mabel was Rose's niece.

[Edited 3/2/12 13:04pm]

I think it came out somewhere that Melvin and Rick weren't really related. I remember reading that somewhere recently. Not sure if it's true or not.

I sometimes wonder if it's authentic as well. Could've been a Motown PR thing... allegedly Melvin always referred to Richard Street and David Ruffin as cousins. Someone even said Melvin and David were possibly real-life distant cousins.

Timmy84 said:

David prolly coulda got a lil bit

Can't wait! Does anyone know where I can watch the preview of this episode?

neonlights said:

Can't wait! Does anyone know where I can watch the preview of this episode?

I'm sure TV-One has some snippets, lemme see if I can find it.

Couldn't quite get the video link but it's here:

http://tvone.tv/unsung-videos?