From the sensual world of Harold Robbins comes the story of a woman's struggle for fame in Hollywood.


This undistinguished drama goes no further than clichéd views about women who gain success by bedding down those who have it. Pia Zadora stars as Jerilee, just out of high school and married to a prominent Hollywood screenwriter, with her own heart-felt aspirations to get her screenplays noticed by the right producers. Her marriage fails for many reasons and once on her own, she comes to the difficult decision that she really will go nowhere fast unless she uses her sexual charms to pave the way to recognition -- and so she does, with a bit of revenge thrown in at the end for good measure.


The Lonely Lady is a 1983 American film, which was directed by Peter Sasdy and adapted for the screen by Ellen Shepard, who worked from the novel written by Harold Robbins. (The novel itself was believed to have been based on Robbins' memories of Jacqueline Susann.) The original music score was composed by Charlie Calello. The cast includes Pia Zadora in the title role, Lloyd Bochner, Bibi Besch, Jared Martin, and in an early film appearance, Ray Liotta. The movie was the last adaptation of one of Robbins' best selling novels before he died in 1997, and, to date, the last such adaptation of any of his works.


The Lonely Lady was hugely panned by critics. The film was nominated for 11 Golden Raspberry Awards and won 6: Worst Actress, Worst Director, Worst Musical Score, Worst Original Song ("The Way You Do It"), Worst Picture, and Worst Screenplay. It was also nominated for a Razzie as Worst Picture of the Decade, but lost to Mommie Dearest, and as Worst Drama of the Razzies' First 25 Years, but lost to Battlefield Earth.
Zadora won Worst New Star of the Decade for this film along with Butterfly. She was also nominated for Worst Actress of the Century, but lost to Madonna.
The movie was nominated for a Stinkers Bad Movie Awards for Worst Picture

Release Date: September 30, 1983


Distrib: Universal

Boxoffice: $1,223,220 $3,168,700