EPISODE  206: “TALKING 9 to 5: THE TV SERIES WITH THE KULTURECAST’S CHRIS STACHIW”

Tumble out of bed/and stumble to the kitchen/pour yourself a cup of ambition

And yawn and stretch and listen in as Susan and Sharon talk "Nine to Five": The TV Series with pop culture podcaster and founder of Weirding Way Media, Chris Stachiw.

On this special cross-over episode with The Kulturecast, we dig into one of the strangest, funniest and least-known film-to-TV transplants: Nine To Five. The film “9 to 5” debuted on December 19th, 1980 starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton. 

Running 85 episodes from 1982-1988, and executive produced by Jane Fonda, Nine to Five went on a wild journey -- from ABC (1982-83) to first-run syndication (1984-88), from film to video, and featuring an amazing and ever-changing cast that included Rita Moreno, Sally Struthers, Peter Bonerz, Jeffrey Tambor, Jean Marsh, Jack Reilly, Herb Edelman, Valerie Curtin -- and Dolly Parton’s sister, Rachel Dennison!
Read Transcript

The Conversation

  • HOW A MOVEMENT SPURRED A MOVIE:  The “9 to 5 Labor Movement”, which sprang up with the influx of women in the workplace in the early 1970s, caught the attention of Jane Fonda, who decided she wanted to make a movie about how “You can run a business without the boss – but not without the secretaries.”
  • Why a television series? Maybe beause the movie was a massive hit, earning over $100 million dollars making it the second highest-grossing film of 1980, behind “The Empire Strikes Back”?
  • WHERE’S THE SHOW? From 20th Century Fox to the Disney vault – why is it so hard to find Nine to Five?
  • “When The Secretaries Met The Nanny”… Who’s that locked up in a jail cell with Rita Moreno, Valerie Curtin and Rachel Dennison (Season 2, Episode 15, “The Oldest Profession”)? Yup -- it’s The Nanny, Fran Drescher
  • From Dabney Coleman in the movie to Jeffrey Tambor (“Arrested Development”, “The Larry Sanders Show”, “Transparent”) and Peter Bonerz (“The Bob Newhart Show”) in the TV show – who’s your favorite “Boss From Hell”?
  • How – and why – the Franklin Hart character transformed from a misogynistic predator in the film to a bumbling incompetent in the TV series.
  • IT WAS A MUSICAL, too!?! The “9 to 5: The Musical” premiered in 2009! Featuring songs by Dolly Parton (including her unforgettable title song), and written by the screenwriter of the film, Patricia Resnick, running six months on Broadway.
  • The long-delayed “9 to 5” film reunion – Well, practically happened when Dolly Parton guested on Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin’s Netflix show Grace & Frankie.

So join Susan and Sharon – and Chris – as they talk sexual harassment, singing telegrams – and the 1986 “The Real Ghostbusters” animated cartoon show!

Our Audio-ography

All 5 seasons of “Remington Steele” are now available on Amazon Prime and AppleTV!

Listen to Susan and Sharon talk about “9 to 5” (the movie!) on Chris Stachiw’s movie podcast “The Kulturecast” on Apple or Spotify or Podlink.

Learn about the 9 to 5 Labor Movement at 9to5.org.

Read the book: Working 9 to 5: A Women's Movement, a Labor Union, and the Iconic Movie. Check it out at Bookshop

Watch the Netlfix documentary: “9 to 5: The Story of a Movement”.

Watch all the opening title sequences of all five seasons on YouTube

Follow Rita Moreno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/TheRitaMoreno 

Let us know your thoughts on 9 to 5 and if you have any ideas where to watch all the episodes - Email us at 80sTVLadies@gmail.com

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CREDITS

80s TV Ladies™ Episode 206: “Talking Nine to Five: The TV Series – with Chris Stachiw”
Produced by 134 West and Susan Lambert Hatem.
Hosted by Susan Lambert Hatem and Sharon Johnson.
Guests: Chris Stachiw.
Sound Engineer and Editor: Kevin Ducey.
Producer: Melissa Roth.
Associate Producer: Sergio Perez.
Music by Amy Engelhardt.
Copyright 2023 134 West, LLC and Susan Lambert. All Rights Reserved.