The Lady in Red (1979)

1930s gangster-era film about John Dillinger and his last girlfriend.

Director:

Lewis Teague

Writer:

John Sayles

Stars:

Pamela Sue Martin, Robert Conrad, Louise Fletcher

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Pamela Sue Martin	...	Polly Franklin
Robert Conrad	...	John Dillinger
Louise Fletcher	...	Anna Sage
Robert Hogan	...	Jake Lingle
Laurie Heineman	...	Rose Shimkus
Glenn Withrow	...	Eddie
Rod Gist	...	Pinetop
Peter Hobbs	...	Pops Geissler
Christopher Lloyd	...	Frognose
Dick Miller	...	Patek
Nancy Parsons	...	Tiny Alice (as Nancy Anne Parsons)
Alan Vint	...	Melvin Purvis
Milt Kogan	...	Preacher
Chip Fields	...	Satin
Buck Young	...	Hennessey

Storyline

Polly, a young countryside girl decides to leave for the city and all it has to offer. She starts an relationship with John Dillinger and soon discovers that city life isn't as easy as she hoped when she gets entangled in a world of crime and prostitution. The movie is partly based on the life of John Dillinger.

---

Plot Keywords:

1930s | gangster | topless female nudity | bare breasts | cult film | 

---

Taglines:

From Dime-A-Dance Girl To Public Enemy # 1.

---

Genres:

Action | Drama | Romance

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

July 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Touch Me and Die

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$400,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

New World Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Sayles' original script had a more diverse array of hit songs from the late 1920s and early 1930s, but this idea had to be nixed because the budget was too low to pay for the clearance rights to all these songs.

---

Goofs

When Polly is recruiting Pops for one last bank job, the mannequin in the shop window behind them can be seen moving slightly. On his audio commentary, director Lewis Teague reveals that they didn't have an actual mannequin on set, so the make-up girl was asked to pose as one.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Polly Franklin: In the heart of little old New York, You'll find a thoroughfare. It's the part of little old New York That runs into Times Square. A crazy quilt that "Wall Street Jack" built, If you've got a little time to spare, I want to take you there. Come and meet those dancing feet, On the avenue I'm taking you to, Forty-Second Street.

---

Alternate Versions

The 1986 UK VHS released by Eagle Crest Video is only 83 minutes long (86/87 minutes when converted back to NTSC) and uses a print that is missing all shots (and sometimes whole scenes) of sex and nudity, as well as some of the violence (e.g. Dillinger's bloody corpse). Note that these are not BBFC edits - they had already approved the film uncut for cinema release.

---

Connections

References King Kong (1933)

---

Soundtracks

If I Could Be with You
(uncredited)
Music by James P. Johnson
Courtesy Warner Bros. Music

User Reviews

Fairly decent look at the life of a Gun Moll

If they had called it "The life of a Gun Moll", nobody probably would have gone to see it. So they went with the Dillinger angle, but forget it this is Pamela Sue's film.

If you ever wondered how "good little" girls end up being window dressing for some of the most notorious gangsters that ever lived, this film gives a good look at her rebellion against her strict religious up bringing and her descent into crime and prostitution.

Pamela Sue is so cute, you have a hard time believing she is a hardened criminal, but she just about pulls it off.