Charlie’s Angels
Charlie’s Angels was a TV show about three women who were dicks. That’s slang for detective, right? The show aired from 1976 to 1981 with substantial cast changes throughout those five years. Charlie’s Angels was one of the first shows to have women in roles that were traditionally given to men. Um, okay.
There’s a jazz band by the name of Diva. I’ve seen them live a couple times at various jazz festivals. They’re a pretty good group. If I close my eyes, they’re probably just mediocre. Being a female jazz trumpet player myself, I find it kind of cool that Diva is an all-female jazz band. I guess it proves that girls can play jazz. Whatever. It really seems like a gimmick to me. Why not get the best players who vibe well together and form a band based on that? Membership shouldn’t be based on gender.
The first season of Charlie’s Angels featured the three women who I think of when someone mentions Charlie’s Angels. They were Farrah Fawcett-Majors, Kate Jackson, and Jaclyn Smith. Cheryl Ladd replaced Farrah when she left after the first season to make swimsuit booby posters. Kate Jackson left a few years later and was replaced by Shelley Hack. Everyone hated her and she was replaced by Tanya Roberts.
I never watched Charlie’s Angels but I remember hearing about it in school. I did watch a lot of TV as a kid, so the show must have aired against something better. My good friend Jared (nice Mormon boy) wasn’t allowed to watch Charlie’s Angels. I guess the show was too risqué or considered a sin.
Trivia
- Originally called The Alley Cats (sounds slutty) and Harry’s Angels (sounds like porn).
- Kate Jackson was originally cast as Kelly.
- Jaclyn Smith was the only Angel to film all five seasons.
- Drew Barrymore owns the screen rights to the series.
- On her first day of filming, Cheryl Ladd showed up wearing a t-shirt that said Farrah Fawcett Minor on it. That’s funny. Get it?
- Farrah Fawcett-Majors once attributed the show’s success to this fact: “When the show was number three, I figured it was our acting. When it got to be number one, I decided it could only be because none of us wears a bra.
Groovy Guest Stars
Charlie’s Angels had some great guest stars during their run. Stars included Dirk Benedict, Sonny Bono, Bert Convy, Jamie Lee Curtis, Patrick Duffy, David Hedison, Randy Mantooth, Dean Martin, Dack Rambo, Robert Reed, Maureen McCormick, Tom Selleck, Barbara Stanwyck, Robert Urich, and lots more.
A movie based on the series starring Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, and Cameron Diaz hit theaters in 2000. It was successful (I didn’t see it) and a sequel happened in 2003. This film was also successful, earning close to $260 million. There’s supposed to be a new movie coming out this year [2019] with an all new cast.
I guess the original Charlie’s Angels was groundbreaking in the 70’s. Cool. Hopefully we’ve progressed a lot since then. Meanwhile, I’m waiting to see same sex couples on Dancing with the Stars.