''The Girls in the Office'' is a 1979 American made-for-television

romantic drama film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...

starring

Susan Saint James Susan Saint James (born Susan Jane Miller; August 14, 1946) is an American actress and activist, most widely known for her work in television during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, especially the detective series ''McMillan & Wife'' (1971–1976) and ...

Barbara Eden Barbara Eden (born Barbara Jean Morehead; August 23, 1931) is an American actress, singer, and producer best known for her starring role as Jeannie in the sitcom '' I Dream of Jeannie'' (1965-1970). Other notable roles include Roslyn Pierce opp ...

, Robyn Douglass and Penny Peyser as four young women working in the office of a new department store in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. The film originally premiered as the ''ABC Friday Night Movie'' on February 2, 1979.

Synopsis

"The Girls in the Office" are four young women working in the office of the new Nayfak's department store in

where the action centers around the quartet as they search for professional success and future husbands while balancing their jobs with their love lives: * Rita Massaro is an ambitious woman hardened by her past who is determined to have a better, more prosperous life, and is willing to do anything she thinks will help her get it; her vicious and unscrupulous manipulations of events and co-workers eventually backfire; * Lee Rawlins is a dedicated office manager who reconciles strife between employees and supervisors; she is a career woman and a long-time employee of Nayfak's old department store whose conservative attitude has kept her from fulfilling her life; * Karen Heineman is a secretary and Tracy Beaumont is the office coffee girl; they are both Rita's co-workers and roommates who, despite their youth and inexperience, soon learn to stand up for their rights. Ben Nayfak is a pioneer who rose from shirt peddler to tycoon and, as his crowning glory, is determined to build the world's grandest department store. In addition, Beau Galloway is head of the construction crew at Nayfak's who falls in love with Lee; Mike Holden and Bill Pearson are the two right-hand men to Mr. Nayfak jockeying for top position.

Cast

as Rita Massaro *

as Lee Rawlins * Tony Roberts as Mike Holden * Robyn Douglass as Karen Heineman * Penny Peyser as Tracy Beaumont * Joe Penny as Beau Galloway *

Jonathan Goldsmith Jonathan Goldsmith (born September 26, 1938) is an American character actor. He began his career on the New York stage, then started a career in film and television. He appeared in several TV shows from the 1960s to the 1990s. He is best known ...

as Bill Pearson *

David Wayne David Wayne (born Wayne James McMeekan, January 30, 1914 – February 9, 1995) was an American stage and screen actor with a career spanning over 50 years. Early life and career Wayne was born in Traverse City, Michigan, the son of Helen M ...

as Ben Nayfak

Production notes

''The Girls in the Office'' was filmed on location from October to November 1978 at The Galleria shopping complex located in the Uptown District of

. During early filming, Susan Saint James accidentally injured her knee and when it became swollen, she was unable to walk through the vast Galleria complex unaided. It was suggested that she use a golf cart and the idea worked so well that scenes were rewritten for her to glide past the various departments with ease. The film's

tagline In entertainment, a tagline (alternatively spelled tag line) is a short text which serves to clarify a thought for, or is designed with a form of, dramatic effect. Many tagline slogans are reiterated phrases associated with an individual, s ...

is: "Meet the people behind the world's most glamorous department store... An intimate look at their hidden lives. The passionate games they play for power... and for love. The men at the top... and the GIRLS IN THE OFFICE." At the time, ''The Girls in the Office'' was the highest budgeted made-for-TV movie at a cost of $1.8 million.The Victoria Advocate
retrieved January 18, 2015.

Home media

''The Girls in the Office'' was released on VHS in

PAL Phase Alternating Line (PAL) is a colour encoding system for analogue television. It was one of three major analogue colour television standards, the others being NTSC and SECAM. In most countries it was broadcast at 625 lines, 50 fields (25 ...

format in Europe.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Girls in the Office 1979 films 1979 television films 1979 romantic drama films American romantic drama films Films based on American novels Films directed by Ted Post ABC network original films ABC Motion Pictures films Films set in department stores Films set in Houston Films shot in Houston 1970s English-language films 1970s American films