Nine to Five

Synopsis of Movie

Nine to Five was a 1980’s unappreciated career women’s deepest, darkest fantasy come true: a piggish boss finally “gets his,” courtesy of three fed-up, panty-hosed colleagues.

After her husband leaves for another woman, prim and naïve Judy (Jane Fonda, in a rare comedy turn) is thrust into the cruel corporate landscape, where she lands a job as a secretary and does regular battle with the photocopy machine. Violet has her best ideas and most of her pride stolen by boss Frank, and Doralee (Dolly Parton, in her film debut) is thought be sleeping with him—a rumor he himself started. The disgruntled trio sits around one night and regales each other with their fantasies about how they’d kill Frank (a poisoning, a hog-tie, and a safari shoot-out). But later, when Frank goes to the hospital for a bump on the head, Violet fears she has sub-consciously made her fantasy a reality and laced his coffee with rat poison.

The three panicked ladies kidnap Frank and lock him up inside his own house, via a harness, a garage door opener and a dog collar (don’t ask). To cover his absence, our heroines take over the company and make incredible changes—you can put a plant and a picture of your kid on your desk now, and you can drop that kid off at the fantastic new company daycare. Productivity skyrockets and everybody goes about their business with a great big smile.

When the jig’s up (and any jig that involves a harness, a garage door opener and a dog collar eventually comes up), Frank shows up at the office to huffily re-claim his throne and throw his erstwhile captors in jail. But his boss, white-suited Colonel Sanders look-alike Tinsworthy, might be their corporate guardian angel.

Nine to Five was a huge hit in 1980, sparking the movie career of Parton, who sang the hit title song. And as further proof that the film had tapped some deep, dark fantasy in working women everywhere, Nine to Five resulted in not one, but two TV spin-off sitcoms, one in 1982 and one in 1986. Harassing bosses, you have been warned.

Movie Release History

1980 - Nine to Five

Movie Sub Categories

live-action
comedy

Movie Studio

20th Century Fox

Cast

Judy Bernly  Jane Fonda
Violet Newstead  Lily Tomlin
Doralee Rhodes  Dolly Parton
Franklin Hart Jr.   Dabney Coleman
Russell Tinsworthy   Sterling Hayden
Roz   Elizabeth Wilson
Mr. Hinkle   Henry Jones
Richard 'Dick' Bernly   Lawrence Pressman
Missy Hart  Marian Mercer
Barbara  Ren Woods
Betty Norma Donaldson
Maria  Roxanna Bonilla-Giannini
Margaret  Peggy Pope
Meade   Richard Stahl
Eddie  Ray Vitte
Bob Enright  Edward Marshall
Chuck Strell  Alan Haufrect
Perkins  Earl Boen
Dwayne Rhodes  Jeffrey Douglas Thomas
Norman Lane  Tom Tarpey
Motorcycle Cop  Michael Delano
Buffy  Barbara Chase
Josh Newstead  David Price
Detective  Gavin Mooney
Doctor  Peter Hobbs
Policeman  Terrence E. McNally
Janitress  Esther Sutherland
Charlotte  Helene Heigh
Phoebe Hotz  Vicki Belmonte
Tom Wood  Jerrold Ziman
Lee Chang  Jessica Badovinac
Mailroom Clerk  Eric Mansker
Maxine  Shirley Anthony
Intern Michael Hehr
Medic  Gary Bisig
Medic  Brad David Stockton
Medic Terry Jackson House  
Man in Hospital  Raymond O'Keefe
Woman in Hospital  Vanna Salviati

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