Leona Helmsley: The Queen of Mean

A hard to resist made for TV film that was quickly made to capitalize on the tabloid sensation that was Leona Helmsley who like Donald Trump put her personal stamp on her NY properties and was famous for saying, "You're Fired!" This well-made, breezy and entertaining film works fine as tabloid fodder thanks to some sharp writing, effective performances from Joe Regalbuto of TVs Murphy Brown and Llyod Bridges as Harry Helmsley and a tour de force from Suzanne Pleshette as the "Queen" in what is undoubtedly the showiest role of her career and she fills it completely. The well-chosen supporting cast all look and feel right, the story moves quickly, the Queen's barbs are funny and Pleshette has a field day.

Suzanne Pleshette received well-deserved Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for her strong portrayal of Leona Helmsley, wife of wealthy New York City hotelier Harry Helmsley, who took a particular delight in running roughshod over "the little people". Ransdell Pearson's fact-based book provides the basis for this gossipy TV-movie chronicling the stormiest business years in the life of the Helmsleys, one in which no attempt has been made by writer Dennis Turner to delve into Leona's complicated psyche (such as why she seemingly hated anyone who stood in an 'inferior' position to her, or why she apparently terminated friendships with the trusted few who only wanted her to see the truth of her actions). The film is just a well-dressed tattler (and a thin one at 94mns); however, it isn't a camp-fest thanks to Pleshette's top-notch performance. Matching her are Lloyd Bridges as Harry (who occasionally got fed up with his wife's possessiveness), Joe Regalbuto as confidante Paul Summerton, and Raymond Singer as Leona's son Jay (who actually tried to bilk his stepfather's subsidiary without being noticed). The movie doesn't pretend to be art--and the final summation was already dated by the time the picture aired--but it certainly keeps its audience entertained.

I am calling this a guilty pleasure because normally I do not care to delve into the personal lives of public figures, but this is one time I would say it was worth it. While the plot line was thin, the cast did a great job of portraying The Queen of Mean and her billionaire husband, Harry Helmsley. While the movie did seem to explore Leona's psyche as the result of a mother who never gave her daughter unconditional love but instead based her love on how much money she made, it did not ever really explore how a billionaire could be taken in by someone like Leona. Certainly Leona was a millionairess and real estate baroness in her own right before she met Mr. Helmsley and he undoubtedly admired her spunk, but she certainly wasn't as attractive as Miss Pleshette in real life and had many negative traits. Still it is very interesting to see her wily ways to trap Harry into marriage. The movie really only deals with her adult life with Mr. Helmsley and maybe that is the only really interesting part of her life, but it would have been nice to see more of her younger years to maybe put her later years in perspective.

According to the film, if you worked for her organization and made an exceptional contribution to one of her projects, Leona Helmsley might fire you. Why? Because she wanted to take credit for everything. If you were one of her employees, you were obviously one of the "little people". In an infamous statement, testified by one of her employees at her trial, she was quoted as saying "We don't pay taxes. Only the little people pay taxes." It was tax evasion which lead to the undoing of Helmsley.

Suzanne Pleshette is perfectly cast as Leona Helmsley who was honored with the nickname "Queen of Mean". She and her husband, Harry Helmsley (Lloyd Bridges) became rich running lavish hotels, particularly in New York. She not only made irrational demands towards her employees, but would either reprimand or fire them for seemingly trivial matters. In the film, she fires a security guard for taking a break and making a phone call on the hotel's "dime". Simultaneously, the film paints a complex portrait of the one of the strangest figures among the New York elites. At times she seems reasonable, at others completely irrational. Sound familiar?

Leona Helmsley represented the pinnacle of 1980's greed and decadence. Her attitudes towards money and elites was certainly extreme but not uncommon. According to the film she would eventually be charged with over 30 counts of tax evasion. They were using the money for their businesses to fund lavish homes. While there's nothing inherently wrong with using money earned from a business to finance personal property, the Helmsley's tried to deduct it as a business expense. Contractors knew what was happening but became vocal when the Helmsley's failed to pay the contractors. They sued and testified about the Helmsley's tax practices.

Later (after the events portrayed in the film), a sobbing Leona proclaimed to reporters during her trial: "I've done nothing wrong. I'm innocent. My only crime is that I'm Leona Helmsley." Sadly, no one came to her defense. If you're the queen of mean, no one will help you at your darkest hour. And that's because she had no friends. Her "little people" testified against her at her trial.

Miss Pleshette gives a top notch & outstanding performance as Leona Helmsley in this excellent television film ! Her portrayal of Leona Helmsley is captivating !HIGHLY recommend this film. This film gives such a realistic feel to both the characters & the ritzy atmosphere this couple lived in in New York City. I so applaud Miss Pleshette's work in this film so much so I wish she were still alive to express this too her ! I would have liked to of met her ! This is quite a departure from "The Bob Newhart Show" "Emily" character she also finely portrayed on television. This film takes one into the NEw York high society in a captivating way & Leona Helmsley drive to become rich & powerful.