Society Confidential: Proctor will call it a career in May

Last week, during an Anchor Bar get-together of reporters who'd covered the Kwame Kilpatrick trial, veteran WXYZ-TV reporter Bill Proctor let it slip that he would be retiring this spring after 30 years with the station.

That tidbit found its way onto deadlinedetroit.com. Channel 7 management hadn't announced it to the staff yet — oops — but when news drops in a bar full of reporters, it's all fair game.

Proctor, who's been on 7's investigative team for the last three busy years, confirmed to us that May 10 is his last day at Broadcast House.

"It's been a good end to a long career," Proctor said of his I-team experience.

What about the rumor that he was once a police officer? He can rock a sharp hat as well as any detective we know.

"Yes it's true," Proctor said. "I spent four and a half years as a cop."

That was in his native Washington, D.C. Before that, he was a sociology major at the University of Maryland and a Vietnam vet.

"I am most certainly staying here (in Metro Detroit)," Proctor said. "I have a 501c3 (nonprofit), "Proving Innocence," and I plan to work on some very specific cases."

Stay tuned.

And she can cook, too!

Glam dentist Avis Broussard , known for enabling many cosmetically astonishing smiles at Perfect Smile Dental Center, celebrated her 60th birthday at her new Southfield facility with more than 100 guests, including Southfield Mayor BrendaLawrence , Judge Denise Langford Morris , Judge Craig Strong , and Judge Sheila Johnson .

An Elvis impersonator (and that would be the older, fatter Elvis) did an entertaining musical tribute to the honoree, who stood on the side of the stage, displaying what the new 60 looks like in a sexy, shimmery silver and white minidress rivaling anyone 20 years her junior.

The highlight of the evening was guests having a chance to sample Dr. Broussard's famous Creole gumbo.

"I'm actually putting it on the market this year," said Avis as she handed us a bowl (it was divine). "It will be called, 'Yumbo Gumbo,' and will hopefully be at a restaurant or supermarket near you."

Goodbye to 'Mama Rose'

Amidst all the Motown deaths recently, one that didn't get a lot of notice was that of Rose Franklin , who died March 14 in Detroit, age 88. She was "Mama Rose" to not only Melvin Franklin , bass singer for the Temptations (Melvin died in 1995), but she was called that by the whole group and many others in the Motown family.

Visitation for Rose Franklin is from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. today at James H. Cole, 2624 W. Grand Blvd. (next to Motown) in Detroit, and her funeral is at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Oakland Avenue Missionary Baptist Church, 209 Harper in Detroit.

Briefly …

We hear that next week's "American Idol" theme will be hmmm … Motown. After we saw how involved Berry Gordy was in past Motown weeks, there has to be a tie-in with his "Motown: The Musical," which is setting attendance records in previews right now at Broadway's Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.

The musical opens April 14.

swhitall@detroitnews.com

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