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THE LONELY LADY

One of my favorite interviews will always be the afternoon I spent with the charming and somewhat misunderstood PIA ZADORA….yes, I said PIA ZADORA. Now before you pass judgment on this tiny yet formidable little nymphet, let us remember that way back in 1988 she was getting all the raspberries and I do mean all of them, eleven nominations in all (The Golden Raspberry awards also known as “The Razzies”) for THE LONELY LADY, the motion picture that took a 300 page Harold Robbins sex and drug novel and converted it into a 91 minute sex and drug film that still has to be seen to be believed.

Ray Liotta made his screen debut raping Pia with a garden hose, and of course let’s not forget the speech our Pia makes at the Oscars: “ I am not the first person to fuck her way to the top.” Now when will we ever hear that from a nominee for real on that show?

What I like so much about Pia in private conversation is that she maintains a clear and balanced outlook on life and no longer has to prove anything to anyone, much less her detractors in Hollywood. Her sense of humor is obvious: when asked to describe the plot of THE LONELY LADY, she advises “Its kind of a spoof of what is going on in Hollywood. My character, Jerilee Randall, gets married and divorced, gets pregnant and has an abortion, gets on drugs, has a gay relationship, and finally wins an Academy Award.” That is still the finest description of the film to this day.

Pia has made only a handful of films, beginning in 1964 as a child appearing in the now cult classic SANTA CLAUS CONQUERS THE MARTAINS, to the straight to video VOYAGE OF THE ROCK ALIENS, where she duets with Jermaine Jackson and, as the hot chick from Heidi High School, gets a number of moments to rock out with earthlings and aliens alike.

When we met at the Beverly Hills Café it was to discuss her controversial renovation of 1143 Summit Drive, also known as PICKFAIR, the former home of Mary Pickford and her husband Douglas Fairbanks. The press had a field day tearing into Pia and her very rich husband, Meshulam Riklis, for daring to demolish the landmark to make way for a villa of ego size proportions. Pia set the record straight on that one. ‘My husband and I have great respect for the integrity of the history of ‘PICKFAIR,’ and our plans are to renovate only what is in need of repair and maintain what is already there.”

I asked Pia about her encounter with the great Orson Welles and she had this to say: “Orson was so gracious to me as a newcomer to this business. He only worked a day on the film (BUTTERFLY), but he held everyone’s attention for the time he was there. I remember the scene where he is dressed in the robes of a circuit judge, and all the while smoked this huge Cuban cigar. All at once he looked over to the director and said very calmly, “You are aware that I am on fire?” It seems that Orson had dropped some lit ash which had ignited his robes causing him to smoke as he started to go up in flames…well they put it out immediately, and without missing a beat Orson looked at me and said “Well that’s the most excitement I’ve had down there in quite a while.” I loved the short time we had together. I mean, what beginner in this business gets to start her film career with a legend like Orson Welles?”

After our lunch Pia asked me if I ever wore “Crew Jackets” from films and such, and I told her I would if anyone ever chose to bestow one on me, and with that she handed me a shopping bag with my very own “Pia Zadora” leather jacket with her name in rhinestones on the back!! What a sweetheart she was, and to this day that jacket still hangs in a place of honor. I admitted to her that I had seen her “Cult” film, VOYAGE OF THE ROCK ALIENS, on at least two occasions, as it kept being retitled at the American Film Market. Pia took it all in stride. ‘”I know that one was less than perfect but it was a lot of fun to make, and Jermaine Jackson and I went to Europe with the video we made from one of the tunes, and it was very popular. That experience paved the way for me to begin to take my singing more to heart, and now I am a singer who once made films.”

At this time Pia was working on her career as a singer and she was getting positive reviews for her efforts. “I have always been an entertainer and worked on Broadway long before I met my husband and began making films, such as they were (laughs)…” The reality of this little dynamo is that she allows nothing to stand in the way of her dreams, and for that PIA ZADORA will always be tops in her field as far as Camp David is concerned

PIA WE HARDLY KNEW YE…

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