LAS VEGAS (AP) — Mary Wilson, one of the original members of the Supremes, the 1960s group that helped define the Motown sound and style and propelled Diana Ross to superstardom, has died. She was 76.
Wilson died Monday night at her home in Nevada and the cause was not immediately clear, said publicist Jay Schwartz.
“I just woke up to this news,” Ross tweeted on Tuesday, offering her condolences to Wilson’s family. “I am reminded that each day is a gift,” she added, writing “I have so many wonderful memories of our time together.”
Like many Motown artists, Wilson, Ross and Florence Ballard had grown up in Detroit and were still in their teens when they were signed in 1961 by Berry Gordy to his young record company. Within three years, the Supremes had their first No. 1 hit, “Where Did Our Love Go?” By the end of the decade, they were Motown’s greatest commercial success and embodiment of the label’s polished pop-soul music and elegant appearance, with their beehive hairdos and heavy eye makeup, in sequin gowns or in slacks and strapless tops.
