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Reply #90 posted 05/09/21 1:36am

lavendardrumma
chine

AZStreet said:

He def confirmed it was a massive story


AP and LA Times don't even mention or connect the incident to We Are the World when it happened. Half the problem is the context missing from this conversaton. Most people didn't have a clue what We Are The World was at that point.

A UPI article claimed Prince showed up to the awards with 20 bodyguards, and before burying it's reporting of We Are the World in an article taking a swipe at Prince, says

"Prince, however, opted for a Sunset Strip restaurant where his bodyguards allegedly beat at least two photographers waiting outside, ripping the film out of one camera.

The divergent scenarios followed the nationally televised ceremonies, where Lionel Richie collected six awards to easily outdistance Prince (Roger Nelson) and Kenny Rogers with three each."



So why are we carrying water for that nonesense and pretending that was public consensus and some massive news story again? I mean, why did they bring up Richie's awards at all?

Here's what most papers printed instead....with zero mention of We Are the World.



Prince’s Bodyguards Arrested in Scuffle With Photographers

January 29, 1985

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (AP) _ Two bodyguards for rock star Prince - one of them 6 feet 9 inches tall - were arrested Tuesday in a scuffle with two photographers who tried to snap photos of the singer outside a Sunset Strip nightclub.

Both men were later released on bail, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies said.

The confrontation occurred several hours after Monday night’s American Music Awards, in which Prince won three awards.

A third bodyguard - the hulking, tattooed Chick Huntsberry - had accompanied Prince onstage during the nationally telecast awards show. He was not arrested.

A sheriff’s spokesman said the dispute occurred after Prince and his entourage emerged from Carlos’ N Charlie’s on Sunset Boulevard at 2:20 a.m. and were confronted by two photographers.

″Two photographers had staked out the parking lot because they heard Prince was inside,″ said Deputy Stephen Lee.

Six-foot-9-inch Lawrence Gibson, 26, who weighs 300 pounds, seized the shoulders of Mike Guastella, 21, of Granada Hills and demanded that the photographer surrender his camera ″or get hurt,″ said Lee.

Gibson then removed the film from Guastella’s camera, Lee said.

Wallace Safford, 25, a foot and an inch shorter than Gibson, took on New York photographer Vincent Zuffante, who was punched in the right eye, Lee said.

Zuffante made a citizen’s arrest, he said.

Meanwhile, Prince and his party waited inside the restaurant until sheriff’s deputies arrived and arrested Gibson and Safford. The star was questioned briefly by police and left the restaurant accompanied by two other bodyguards, Deputy Bob Stoneman said.

Safford was booked for investigation of misdemeanor battery while Gibson was booked for investigation of robbery in the removal of the film, which was not recovered, Lee said. Gibson was freed on $6,000 bond, Safford on $500 bail.



PRINCE’S BODYGUARDS HELD

By CAROL McGRAW
Jan. 30, 1985 12 AM PT
Times Staff Writer

Two bodyguards of rock star Prince--one of them 6-foot-9 and 300 pounds--were arrested early Tuesday after allegedly attacking two photographers who were trying to take pictures of the musician after his appearance at the American Music Awards ceremony, deputies said.

Mike Guastella, 21, of Granada Hills, and Vincent Zuffante, 28, of New York, began taking pictures of Prince as he emerged from Carlos and Charlie’s, a West Hollywood restaurant on Sunset Boulevard about 2:20 a.m.

Lawrence Gibson, the larger bodyguard, grabbed Guastella by the shoulders and demanded that he turn over the camera or get hurt, said Sheriff’s Deputy Robert Stoneman. Gibson then allegedly tore the film out of the camera. The other guard, Wallace Safford, 25, punched Zuffante in the eye, Stoneman said. During the scuffle, Prince went back into the restaurant.

Gibson, 26, who was booked on suspicion of strong-arm robbery, was released after posting $6,000 bail at the West Hollywood sheriff’s station. Zuffante filed a citizen’s complaint against Safford, charging him with battery. The bodyguard was released after posting $500 bail.



This was the era of print journalism. There was no MTV News yet, no TMZ, no easy way to read last weeks news....

[Edited 5/9/21 1:42am]

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Reply #91 posted 05/10/21 1:49pm

MotownSubdivis
ion

lavendardrummachine said:



MotownSubdivision said:


lavendardrummachine said:




How do you think Prince came off? A lot of what you're reading is talk from much later sensationalizing things. There were barely any news outlets compared to today. Gossip was limited. There was some talk, butbut it's been so overblown.



He came off like an egotistical jerk who couldn't be bothered to donate some of his time in a collective charitable effort to raise awareness of a serious issue. I don't think it matters how many news outlets there were then compared to now; if the incident was widely reported by the lesser amount at the time then it was a big story. Were you alive back then? I don't see how it's been overblown at all considering people on here have to resort to mental gymnastics to make Prince sound like he of all people was the victim in this whenever someone points out that he made a mistake by no-showing. Clearly he thought so to otherwise he probably would not have called up Quincy asking to lay down a guitar solo or contributed "4 the Tears in Your Eyes" to the LP. Obviously, this didn't stain his career, it didn't impact sales of the album but let's not act like Prince was some hero for intentionally missing the session to go clubbing. [Edited 5/8/21 18:45pm]


I was alive back then, as were others here. You already said you weren't so this is getting odd.

Prince offering a solo and a single was not in response to the public.

[Edited 5/8/21 23:06pm]

Maybe, maybe not the guitar solo but one can debate that "4 the Tears in Your Eyes" was. Either way both can be seen as actions of a guilty conscience. You even got someone saying how big a story was at the time so I got some evidence on my side. I've also seen others on here over the years who attested to that.

WATW was about those invited showing up and contributing their voice to raise not just money but awareness for a good cause. Prince didn't do that and no guitar solo offer was going to make up for nor was another song, really because once again, he was invited especially to perform on the title track which he intentionally blew off.
[Edited 5/11/21 20:47pm]
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Reply #92 posted 05/15/21 11:14am

luv2tha99s

avatar

I was 15 at the time and a pop culture junkie. The slant on this story in media at the time was muddled at best. No one thought it was that big a deal. The only people who seemed to care(in hindsight) were Quincy and P's naysayers.

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Reply #93 posted 05/15/21 1:15pm

purplethunder3
121

avatar

luv2tha99s said:

I was 15 at the time and a pop culture junkie. The slant on this story in media at the time was muddled at best. No one thought it was that big a deal. The only people who seemed to care(in hindsight) were Quincy and P's naysayers.

I was an adult then and I don't remember it being that big of a deal...

"Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything." --Plato

https://youtu.be/CVwv9LZMah0
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Reply #94 posted 05/15/21 3:25pm

heartpeaceshea
rt

PennyPurple said:



lavendardrummachine said:




MotownSubdivision said:


It's not about how successful the song/album was, it's about how P came off by not participating. [Edited 5/7/21 14:26pm]



How do you think Prince came off? A lot of what you're reading is talk from much later sensationalizing things. There were barely any news outlets compared to today. Gossip was limited. There was some talk, butbut it's been so overblown.



OMG, you think there were barely any news outlets and no gossip in the 80's.



This was a HUGE, HUGE story back then.



PennyPurple I think you're quite nice and I think you would be a great person to swap scrapbook bits with.
Welcome to "the org", heartpeacesheart…
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Reply #95 posted 05/15/21 7:31pm

PennyPurple

avatar

heartpeacesheart said:

PennyPurple said:

OMG, you think there were barely any news outlets and no gossip in the 80's.


This was a HUGE, HUGE story back then.

PennyPurple I think you're quite nice and I think you would be a great person to swap scrapbook bits with.

If only I still had those magazines and clips. smile

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Reply #96 posted 05/15/21 7:45pm

purplethunder3
121

avatar

PennyPurple said:

heartpeacesheart said:

PennyPurple said: PennyPurple I think you're quite nice and I think you would be a great person to swap scrapbook bits with.

If only I still had those magazines and clips. smile

I guess you read more than I did back then... lol

"Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything." --Plato

https://youtu.be/CVwv9LZMah0
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Reply #97 posted 05/15/21 8:09pm

PennyPurple

avatar

purplethunder3121 said:

PennyPurple said:

If only I still had those magazines and clips. smile

I guess you read more than I did back then... lol

I used to save every newspaper and magazine clip. I think I threw them all away when I got married and moved. confused

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Reply #98 posted 05/15/21 11:04pm

woogiebear

thebanishedone said:

brokenhearted1972 said:

Any idea what was Prince's request was?

To play guitar solo instead of singing

Quincy should have LET HIM play Guitar then!!! Anyhoo "4 The Tears In Your Eyes" was an AWESOME contribution!!!

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Reply #99 posted 05/16/21 5:32am

muleFunk

avatar

nod

nod

nod

JorisE73 said:

Genesia said:

Glad to this day that Prince stayed away from this virtue signaling nonsense.

There were rumors back then that it was all just a industry cocaine money laundering front. Back then as a MJ fan I got mad when reading that but as the 80s crept on I slowly started to see it was quite plausible.

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Reply #100 posted 05/16/21 9:33am

MotownSubdivis
ion

woogiebear said:



thebanishedone said:


brokenhearted1972 said:


Any idea what was Prince's request was?



To play guitar solo instead of singing

Quincy should have LET HIM play Guitar then!!! Anyhoo "4 The Tears In Your Eyes" was an AWESOME contribution!!!

No, P should have showed up, checked his ego and sang just like everybody else as was requested of him.
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Reply #101 posted 05/16/21 10:58am

Free2BMe

purplethunder3121 said:



luv2tha99s said:


I was 15 at the time and a pop culture junkie. The slant on this story in media at the time was muddled at best. No one thought it was that big a deal. The only people who seemed to care(in hindsight) were Quincy and P's naysayers.




I was an adult then and I don't remember it being that big of a deal...


[Edited 5/16/21 11:00am]
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Reply #102 posted 05/16/21 10:59am

Free2BMe

MotownSubdivision said:

lavendardrummachine said:



MotownSubdivision said:


, can y'all just admit Prince was in the wrong here?


Does it really matter? Acting like it's the one big scar on his career is equally as silly. Fans would have loved to see it, and he was missed, but who cares really? He's not the only big star that didn't take part. Whitney Houston wasn't invited, and a lot of other names. It's so not important in 2021.

I never said it was a big scar on his career but at the time it certainly made him look bad; it's called nuance.

Your mentioning of Whitney is kind of pointless. She wasn't yet the star we remember her as in January '85. Her debut album hadn't even come out yet and her only presence on any chart at the time of recording WATW was as a featured voice on Teddy Pendergrass' " Hold Me" (#5 R&B the prior July, #46 pop). She was largely unknown to general audiences at that point meanwhile, Prince was a massive star who had the #1 song of '84 and whose album just came off 24 straight weeks at #1. Furthermore, as you also mentioned, Whitney was not invited; Prince was and he no-showed. There's the difference.

P not coming to the session ultimately does not matter in 2021 but when we're having a discussion on the subject, context does and since the "incident" doesn't really matter now, what's the point in ignoring that context and calling it down the middle? P's legacy is cemented regardless of the mistakes he's made but let's not act like he made no mistakes and in 1985, he made a big mistake. Simple as that.
[Edited 5/6/21 12:15pm]


Exactly.
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Reply #103 posted 05/16/21 11:22am

heartpeaceshea
rt

MotownSubdivision said:

woogiebear said:



thebanishedone said:


brokenhearted1972 said:


Any idea what was Prince's request was?



To play guitar solo instead of singing

Quincy should have LET HIM play Guitar then!!! Anyhoo "4 The Tears In Your Eyes" was an AWESOME contribution!!!

No, P should have showed up, checked his ego and sang just like everybody else as was requested of him.



How can he be told to check his ego when the press was busy checking it for him?
Welcome to "the org", heartpeacesheart…
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Reply #104 posted 05/16/21 1:18pm

MotownSubdivis
ion

heartpeacesheart said:

MotownSubdivision said:

No, P should have showed up, checked his ego and sang just like everybody else as was requested of him.



How can he be told to check his ego when the press was busy checking it for him?
Well maybe if he showed up...?
[Edited 5/16/21 13:22pm]
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Reply #105 posted 05/16/21 6:09pm

woogiebear

MotownSubdivision said:

woogiebear said:

Quincy should have LET HIM play Guitar then!!! Anyhoo "4 The Tears In Your Eyes" was an AWESOME contribution!!!

No, P should have showed up, checked his ego and sang just like everybody else as was requested of him.

Well.....maybe it was Quincy who had the Ego. Maybe Prince felt He would be MORE EFFECTIVE playing Guitar on the Track as opposed 2 Singing. Playing Devil's Advocate. Still: Glad He contributed "4 The Tears In Your Eyes". AWESOME contribution!!!

cool

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Reply #106 posted 05/16/21 6:22pm

PennyPurple

avatar

woogiebear said:

MotownSubdivision said:

woogiebear said: No, P should have showed up, checked his ego and sang just like everybody else as was requested of him.

Well.....maybe it was Quincy who had the Ego. Maybe Prince felt He would be MORE EFFECTIVE playing Guitar on the Track as opposed 2 Singing. Playing Devil's Advocate. Still: Glad He contributed "4 The Tears In Your Eyes". AWESOME contribution!!!

cool

They didn't need him to play guitar, they wanted him to sing. LOL

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Reply #107 posted 05/16/21 7:01pm

MotownSubdivis
ion

woogiebear said:



MotownSubdivision said:


woogiebear said:


Quincy should have LET HIM play Guitar then!!! Anyhoo "4 The Tears In Your Eyes" was an AWESOME contribution!!!



No, P should have showed up, checked his ego and sang just like everybody else as was requested of him.

Well.....maybe it was Quincy who had the Ego. Maybe Prince felt He would be MORE EFFECTIVE playing Guitar on the Track as opposed 2 Singing. Playing Devil's Advocate. Still: Glad He contributed "4 The Tears In Your Eyes". AWESOME contribution!!!


cool

It don't matter what Prince felt, he was expected TO SING lol

He was formally invited to lend his voice to this song along with several other fellow marquee musical names, many of which were legends. All of those names came along and cooperated; all except Prince. When someone asks you TO SING on their, not your, their song, offering a guitar solo well after the fact while said song is in its final stages of creation ain't gonna cut it.

You wouldn't be satisfied if your landscaper no-showed the day he was scheduled to fertilize your grassless lawn but called a few days later offering to plant flowers in your barren yard to make up for not coming to do the job you wanted him to do when you wanted it done.
[Edited 5/16/21 19:01pm]
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Reply #108 posted 05/16/21 8:25pm

LoveGalore

MotownSubdivision said:

woogiebear said:



MotownSubdivision said:


woogiebear said:


Quincy should have LET HIM play Guitar then!!! Anyhoo "4 The Tears In Your Eyes" was an AWESOME contribution!!!



No, P should have showed up, checked his ego and sang just like everybody else as was requested of him.

Well.....maybe it was Quincy who had the Ego. Maybe Prince felt He would be MORE EFFECTIVE playing Guitar on the Track as opposed 2 Singing. Playing Devil's Advocate. Still: Glad He contributed "4 The Tears In Your Eyes". AWESOME contribution!!!


cool

It don't matter what Prince felt, he was expected TO SING lol

He was formally invited to lend his voice to this song along with several other fellow marquee musical names, many of which were legends. All of those names came along and cooperated; all except Prince. When someone asks you TO SING on their, not your, their song, offering a guitar solo well after the fact while said song is in its final stages of creation ain't gonna cut it.

You wouldn't be satisfied if your landscaper no-showed the day he was scheduled to fertilize your grassless lawn but called a few days later offering to plant flowers in your barren yard to make up for not coming to do the job you wanted him to do when you wanted it done.
[Edited 5/16/21 19:01pm]


Your analogy falls apart when you realize prince never said he was going to show up anyway. You make it seem like he flaked. He didn't. He said no thanks.
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Reply #109 posted 05/16/21 10:40pm

MotownSubdivis
ion

LoveGalore said:

MotownSubdivision said:

It don't matter what Prince felt, he was expected TO SING lol

He was formally invited to lend his voice to this song along with several other fellow marquee musical names, many of which were legends. All of those names came along and cooperated; all except Prince. When someone asks you TO SING on their, not your, their song, offering a guitar solo well after the fact while said song is in its final stages of creation ain't gonna cut it.

You wouldn't be satisfied if your landscaper no-showed the day he was scheduled to fertilize your grassless lawn but called a few days later offering to plant flowers in your barren yard to make up for not coming to do the job you wanted him to do when you wanted it done.
[Edited 5/16/21 19:01pm]


Your analogy falls apart when you realize prince never said he was going to show up anyway. You make it seem like he flaked. He didn't. He said no thanks.
He didn't even decline though. He simply did not go to the session. If he at least did that he wouldn't have tried saving face by calling Q and asking to contribute a guitar solo.
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Reply #110 posted 05/17/21 6:41am

homesquid

avatar

OldFriends4Sale said:

Prince-Tom-Jones-Quincy-Jones-Diana-Ross-American-Music-Awards-1995-1024x694.jpg

One of many pathetic moments in his career. The douche has "slave" written on his face and refuses to sing a song that was created to feed people.

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Reply #111 posted 05/17/21 7:24am

Genesia

avatar

MotownSubdivision said:

LoveGalore said:
Your analogy falls apart when you realize prince never said he was going to show up anyway. You make it seem like he flaked. He didn't. He said no thanks.
He didn't even decline though. He simply did not go to the session. If he at least did that he wouldn't have tried saving face by calling Q and asking to contribute a guitar solo.


How do you know? You weren't even alive then.

We don’t mourn artists because we knew them. We mourn them because they helped us know ourselves.
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Reply #112 posted 05/17/21 7:31am

MotownSubdivis
ion

Genesia said:



MotownSubdivision said:


LoveGalore said:
Your analogy falls apart when you realize prince never said he was going to show up anyway. You make it seem like he flaked. He didn't. He said no thanks.

He didn't even decline though. He simply did not go to the session. If he at least did that he wouldn't have tried saving face by calling Q and asking to contribute a guitar solo.


How do you know? You weren't even alive then.

So? It's called hearing stories, most of which came from this very site.
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Reply #113 posted 05/17/21 8:32am

vainandy

avatar

I'm glad he didn't. His image back then was a mysterious nasty badass that did everything himself. He wouldn't have seemed so much a badass in there in the middle of all those other artists performing something with a choir sounding chorus.

Andy is a four letter word.
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Reply #114 posted 05/17/21 8:37am

vainandy

avatar

OldFriends4Sale said:

TrivialPursuit said:


Well, I guess Lionel Richie is just a big fat liar.

200.gif

tumblr_o9z5osoXWF1uajyc0o1_500.gif

No, I think he is embelishing. I mean every account out of Prince's camp says Prince did not wanted to make a 'United Front' with the WATW event. I mean can you/anyone point out anything that agrees with what Lionel said? I'm really not fighting here, Has anyone, any Prince fan ever heard/read/thought/perceived that they were friends wanting to present a United Front?

.

I'm saying everything I/WE ALL have read says Prince didn't want anything to do with it. I mean if Prince did, he would have. Is that really a stretch to believe?

.

I'm not saying he should have sung it. I was bothered that Quincy tried to force this on 0+> in 1995

.

Their thing was to have everyone in the same space.

hqdefault.jpg

Prince-Tom-Jones-Quincy-Jones-Diana-Ross-American-Music-Awards-1995-1024x694.jpg

He already didn't sing with the 1980s artists and those were great artists. He would have really needed a good ass whooping if he had sang with all those boring ass 1990s artists. lol

Andy is a four letter word.
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Reply #115 posted 05/17/21 8:40am

vainandy

avatar

lavendardrummachine said:

MotownSubdivision said:

, can y'all just admit Prince was in the wrong here?


Does it really matter? Acting like it's the one big scar on his career is equally as silly. Fans would have loved to see it, and he was missed, but who cares really? He's not the only big star that didn't take part. Whitney Houston wasn't invited, and a lot of other names. It's so not important in 2021.

This was January of 1985 so she was still mostly unknown. She didn't start ruining music until the summer of 1985.

Andy is a four letter word.
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Reply #116 posted 05/17/21 8:53am

Genesia

avatar

MotownSubdivision said:

Genesia said:


How do you know? You weren't even alive then.

So? It's called hearing stories, most of which came from this very site.


So? Some of us were alive then and watched events unfold in real time. And yet - you want to make like you know more. You're a joke.

We don’t mourn artists because we knew them. We mourn them because they helped us know ourselves.
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Reply #117 posted 05/17/21 8:54am

Genesia

avatar

vainandy said:

lavendardrummachine said:


Does it really matter? Acting like it's the one big scar on his career is equally as silly. Fans would have loved to see it, and he was missed, but who cares really? He's not the only big star that didn't take part. Whitney Houston wasn't invited, and a lot of other names. It's so not important in 2021.

This was January of 1985 so she was still mostly unknown. She didn't start ruining music until the summer of 1985.


falloff

We don’t mourn artists because we knew them. We mourn them because they helped us know ourselves.
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Reply #118 posted 05/17/21 8:57am

MotownSubdivis
ion

Genesia said:



MotownSubdivision said:


Genesia said:



How do you know? You weren't even alive then.



So? It's called hearing stories, most of which came from this very site.


So? Some of us were alive then and watched events unfold in real time. And yet - you want to make like you know more. You're a joke.

How am I acting like I know more? Because I'm not kissing your ass and agreeing with your clearly biased opinion? STFU and stop being an arrogant sycophant fan. Not everyone who was around then has the same recollection or mindset as you.
[Edited 5/17/21 9:06am]
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Reply #119 posted 05/17/21 8:57am

MotownSubdivis
ion

vainandy said:

I'm glad he didn't. His image back then was a mysterious nasty badass that did everything himself. He wouldn't have seemed so much a badass in there in the middle of all those other artists performing something with a choir sounding chorus.

I agree with this at least.
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