Lady Sings the Blues (film)

Lady Sings the Blues
Theatrical release poster by Bill Gold
Directed bySidney J. Furie
Screenplay by
Based onLady Sings the Blues
by Billie Holiday
William Dufty
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyJohn A. Alonzo
Edited byArgyle Nelson
Music byMichel Legrand
Production
company
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • October 12, 1972 (1972-10-12)
Running time
144 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budgetover $2 million[2]
Box office$19.7 million[3][4]

Lady Sings the Blues is a 1972 American biographical musical drama film directed by Sidney J. Furie about jazz singer Billie Holiday, loosely based on her 1956 autobiography that, in turn, took its title from Holiday's song. It is produced by Motown Productions for Paramount Pictures. Diana Ross, in her feature film debut, portrays Holiday, alongside a cast that includes Billy Dee Williams, Richard Pryor, James T. Callahan and Scatman Crothers.[5] The film was nominated for five Academy Awards in 1973, including Best Actress for Diana Ross.

  1. ^ "Lady Sings the Blues (X)". British Board of Film Classification. December 22, 1972. Retrieved July 21, 2013.
  2. ^ Kremer, Daniel. Sidney J. Furie: Life and Films. The University Press of Kentucky, 2015. p 166
  3. ^ "Lady Sings the Blues, Box Office Information". The Numbers. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  4. ^ Kremier p 171
  5. ^ The AFI Catalog of Feature Films:Lady Sings the Blues