Make Me an Offer

Susan Blakely and Stella Stevens shine in this comedy drama about a young woman finding her independence and working her way up the real estate ladder in Beverly Hills.

The basic details of the plot remain fixed in my memory--a woman is dumped by her lawyer husband and must make it on her own. Thanks to the tutelage of older, wiser female mentors, she is able to forge her own success as a Beverly Hills real estate agent. As an 11 year old girl when this TV movie came out, I remember being viscerally inspired by the story of Joyce Windsor. I have searched for it on and off for years. Made me realize that success was possible for a woman with or without a man. Strange that one can pinpoint a movie as a catalyst to their own drive. In any case, I highly recommend this movie. Of course, I am more than a bit nostalgic about it.

Susan Blakely's character goes through a marvelous transformation after her husband, who she helped put through law school, leaves her for another woman. It's fun to watch her go from being a veterinarian's assistant to the hottest real estate broker in Beverly Hills. Tired of being everyone's patsy, she does something about it - so well, in fact, she runs the risk of going to the opposite extreme: turning into the sleazy types she always despised. She figures out how to strike a balance between work and play before she becomes a 'ruthless, love-starved woman'. She ends up with her former employer, who always loved her as she was. The movie reflects what was going on in the society at large with the 'new consciousness' and the feminist movement when women began to pursue careers. They would financially support their husbands or boyfriends only to have those men leave them for one silly reason or another. This romantic comedy states the case well without being too preachy or heavy-handed. Another 'winner' from the ABC television movie files.