Original director John Badham stepped down when he objected to 33-year-old Diana Ross being cast as a teenage Dorothy. The character was changed to a 24-year-old kindergarten teacher, but by then Sidney Lumet had already replaced Badham.
When Motown star Diana Ross asked Gordy if she could be cast as Dorothy, he declined, saying that Ross—then 33 years old—was too old for the role. Ross went around Gordy and convinced executive producer Rob Cohen at Universal Pictures to arrange a deal where he would produce if Ross was cast as Dorothy.
Original Dorothy, Stephanie Mills, was just 17 when she opened The Wiz on Broadway. Stephanie Mills rose to prominence when she created the role of Dorothy in The Wiz; the character's finale ballad "Home" remains her signature tune. Surprisingly, she was just 17 when the show opened in January 1975.
Stephanie Mills (pictured in 2017) played Dorothy in the original 1975 Broadway musical The Wiz. The 1975 Broadway production won seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical. It was an early example of Broadway's mainstream acceptance of works with an all-Black cast.
“She evokes pity and sorrow like no other superstar.” Her best known role was that of Dorothy, at 17, in the 1939 film “The Wizard of Oz” — in which she sang the song which became her trademark: “Over the Rainbow.”
However, she has been married twice, first to music executive and businessman Robert Ellis Silberstein, the father of her daughters Tracee and Chudney, and second to billionaire shipping magnate Arne Naess Jr., the father of her two sons Ross and Evan.
Diana Ross's $250 million net worth in 2023 is a testament to her enduring talent and influence. As both a member of The Supremes and a solo artist, she has left an indelible mark on the world of music and entertainment.
When Judy Garland was cast in the role of Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz, she was not their first choice. Producers Arthur Freed and Mervyn LeRoy indeed wanted her cast from the beginning, but the studio chief wanted Shirley Temple from 20th Century Fox.
The Tin Woodman states unequivocally that he has neither heart nor brain, but cares nothing for the loss of his brain. Near the end of the novel, Glinda the Good Witch praises his brain as not quite that of the Scarecrow's.
Michael referred to Diana as his “mother, lover, and sister all rolled into one.” Metaphorically speaking, Diana isn't Michael's mother or sister and she wasn't his lover: it's how he saw her in his head and how he treated her at the time.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a 1910 American silent fantasy film and the earliest surviving film version of L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, made by the Selig Polyscope Company without Baum's direct input.
On May 24, 2023, at the age of 83, Tina Turner sadly passed away, leaving behind a lasting legacy. Let's delve into her net worth and the incredible accomplishments that shaped her iconic career. Tina Turner had an estimated net worth of $250 million at the time of her death.
Houston, who made an estimated US$250 million with her music and sold more than 170 million albums, was among the world's top artists in the 1980s and 1990s.
Diana Ross may be best known for her powerful and legendary voice, but the Motown singer is also a mom to five children: Rhonda, 48, Tracee Ellis, 46, Chudney, 43, Ross, 32, and Evan, 31. The late Arne Naess was the father of Ross and Evan, while Robert Ellis Silberstein is the father of Rhonda, Tracee, and Chudney.
Believe it or not, the legendary Diana Ross has never won a Grammy. Her first of 13 nominations was in 1964 for "Baby Love," and she was nominated nearly every year from 1970 to 1982 without a win. That being said, the Recording Academy recognized the songstress with a lifetime achievement award in 2012.
How many children did Diana Ross have with her first husband?
The "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" singer welcomed her eldest daughter, Rhonda, 52, with Motown legend Berry Gordy in 1971. The same year, Diana married her first husband, music executive Robert Ellis Silberstein, and they went on to welcome two more daughters: Tracee, 50, and Chudney, 47.
Shirley Temple was the favourite to play Dorothy, but her singing skills were not strong enough. The role was ultimately a big break for Garland, then a contract player at MGM. The film originally featured the Wizard as the central character, and both W.C. Fields and Bert Lahr turned down the part.
Throughout her adulthood she abused drugs and alcohol. She had financial troubles, often owing hundreds of thousands of dollars in back taxes. Her lifelong substance use disorder ultimately led to her death from an accidental barbiturate overdose in 1969, at age 47.
But her addictions, which had plagued her since her days at MGM, would have a lasting effect on her health; one contemporary article noted that she suffered from “exhaustion, kidney ailments, nervous breakdowns, near-fatal drug reactions, overweight, underweight and injuries suffered in falls.” On the morning of June ...
