Appreciating Charlie's Angels

[Soaplover]

Who was the best actress?

Kate Jackson was the most commercially successful one.
Her character on Dark Shadows didn't even speak for months, which probably enhanced her skills.
Never saw her paly a baddie, though.

Some suggestions for Kate Jackson playing a baddie:

Satan School for Girls (1973)
Sweet Deception (1998) - played a supporting role as a bitter ex wife of the protagonists new hubby
Empty Cradle (1993) - Evil nurse that steals Lori Loughin's baby and makes her believe the baby has died.

 

[Seaviewer]

Evil nurse that steals Lori Loughin's baby and makes her believe the baby has died.

I wonder where they got that idea.

 

[Soaplover]

I wonder where they got that idea.

Based on a true story

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Jaclyn Smith is 80 years old --- and Victoria is just a few weeks behind her!

 

[ClassyCo]

Jaclyn Smith Announces Her New Memoir ‘I Once Knew a Guy Named Charlie’

Ahead of ‘Charlie's Angels’ 50th anniversary, the Angel announces her new memoir.

www.remindmagazine.com

 

[Crimson]

I was glancing at Farrah's filmography and realized her immediate post-CHARLIE'S ANGELS career absolutely sucked. For all the drama around her leaving the show, the movies she made were terrible and/or flops. THE CANNONBALL RUN is the peak. Obviously she eventually found success, but CA was over by then anyway. Which is to say, she could have just stayed on the show, enjoyed having a hit, negotiated herself a very nice salary (since she didn't have a S1 contract) and still gone onto the same career in the 80s.

But then I'm always a little sour about actors who find success on TV and then immediately bail for movies.

 

[ClassyCo]

I was glancing at Farrah's filmography and realized her immediate post-CHARLIE'S ANGELS career absolutely sucked. For all the drama around her leaving the show, the movies she made were terrible and/or flops. THE CANNONBALL RUN is the peak. Obviously she eventually found success, but CA was over by then anyway. Which is to say, she could have just stayed on the show, enjoyed having a hit, negotiated herself a very nice salary (since she didn't have a S1 contract) and still gone onto the same career in the 80s.

But then I'm always a little sour about actors who find success on TV and then immediately bail for movies.

Farrah was at the peak of her fame while she was on CHARLIE'S ANGELS. As her manager from that time remembers it, the show was "always trying to keep up" with Farrah because her celebrity was outreaching that of the show. Indeed, it was Farrah whose name dominated the popularity polls, and who was usually mentioned first when magazines or tabloids mentioned the show. I recall seeing the video from where CHARLIE'S ANGELS won an Emmy award in early 1977. Farrah Fawcett-Majors (as she was known at the time) was the very first name mentioned.

In saying all that, Farrah really upset some powerful people in the industry when she walked out on the show after the first season. No, she had not signed her contract because they hit a wall with merchandising, but she had verbally agreed to stick with the show. And when she decided to walk, it ruffled some feathers. So, as I understand it, she was gray-listed in the industry. Apparently, at a screening of John Travolta's SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER in 1977, the audience booed when the camera panned over and stopped on Farrah's famous red swimsuit poster. Her fans were upset with her, too, not just the producers and "suits" in Hollywood. She also apparently missed out on a movie deal with MGM that the CHARLIE'S ANGELS producers had set-up for her.

So, as it goes, people were angry with her and therefore they didn't hire her. What movie and TV projects she did do weren't well-received because they were of a lesser-quality.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

I was glancing at Farrah's filmography and realized her immediate post-CHARLIE'S ANGELS career absolutely sucked. For all the drama around her leaving the show, the movies she made were terrible and/or flops. THE CANNONBALL RUN is the peak. Obviously she eventually found success, but CA was over by then anyway. Which is to say, she could have just stayed on the show, enjoyed having a hit, negotiated herself a very nice salary (since she didn't have a S1 contract) and still gone onto the same career in the 80s.

But then I'm always a little sour about actors who find success on TV and then immediately bail for movies.

It's questionable that Farrah had any kind of career strategy. Once she started making noise about wanting to leave, the brass scrambled to find some way to keep her on the show. But their offers of more money and creating a production company for her so she could make one feature film during each spring hiatus -- half-a-million dollars for the first, a full million for the second (good money at the time) -- were met with perplexing apathy from the star.

And I don't think chauvinisticky Lee Majors can entirely be blamed either.

Farrah's psychology (which she has kinda conceded herself) is just that of a restless woman -- someone not entirely focused on career and not terribly ambitious (other than being sporadically fabulous).

Farrah was at the peak of her fame while she was on CHARLIE'S ANGELS. As her manager from that time remembers it, the show was "always trying to keep up" with Farrah because her celebrity was outreaching that of the show. Indeed, it was Farrah whose name dominated the popularity polls, and who was usually mentioned first when magazines or tabloids mentioned the show. I recall seeing the video from where CHARLIE'S ANGELS won an Emmy award in early 1977. Farrah Fawcett-Majors (as she was known at the time) was the very first name mentioned.

In saying all that, Farrah really upset some powerful people in the industry when she walked out on the show after the first season. No, she had not signed her contract because they hit a wall with merchandising, but she had verbally agreed to stick with the show. And when she decided to walk, it ruffled some feathers. So, as I understand it, she was gray-listed in the industry. Apparently, at a screening of John Travolta's SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER in 1977, the audience booed when the camera panned over and stopped on Farrah's famous red swimsuit poster. Her fans were upset with her, too, not just the producers and "suits" in Hollywood. She also apparently missed out on a movie deal with MGM that the CHARLIE'S ANGELS producers had set-up for her.

So, as it goes, people were angry with her and therefore they didn't hire her. What movie and TV projects she did do weren't well-received because they were of a lesser-quality.

Yes, Aaron Spelling made it clear that anybody who hired Farrah could be in trouble, at least until her contract issues were settled. Even though that contract was never technically signed. It was likely a bluff legally, but it made folks in Hollywood want to keep their distance from her.

She, years later, said contradictory things about the scandal, admitting that it wasn't the smartest thing she'd ever done (i.e., walking off the show) and yet she was paid far more for her few, enforced re-appearances than if she'd never left to begin with. (Aaron Spelling really did pay bargain basement salaries to his stars for their first seasons of his series: Glaser & Soul only received $5,000/episode for Season 1 of STARSKY & HUTCH and Jaclyn & Farrah something comparable for Season 1 of ANGELS -- an incredibly lowball number even for relatively unknown actors even for the first year even in the mid-'70s..... While Farrah was having her contract conniptions in Spring 1977, Glaser semi-quietly threatened to leave S&H -- resulting into a hefty raise for he and his co-star, Soul, Aaron Spelling wanting to salvage his two newest hit shows).

 

[Chris2]

Farrah‘s career was in such a tough spot by 1980 that there was talk of more guest appearances in the fifth season of CA, even though she was no longer contractually obligated to the show. But that never went anywhere (Spelling/Goldberg probably didn’t want to shell out the money for her at that point).

Farrah's psychology (which she has kinda conceded herself) is just that of a restless woman -- someone not entirely focused on career and not terribly ambitious (other than being sporadically fabulous).

LOL - well said!

 

[Svengali]

Farrah is an icon and I love her, but her acting was not so good and her tv movies after Charlie's angels sucked.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Farrah is an icon and I love her, but her acting was not so good and her tv movies after Charlie's angels sucked.

She did a good job of getting beat up by abusive men on screen -- and, I'm assuming, real life.

Do what you know.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

April 2026, the stars reunite for the 50th anniversary:

 

[Toni]

April 2026, the stars reunite for the 50th anniversary:

I just love the fact that, in each and every pic of them I have seen, Jaclyn is in the middle. It speaks volumes about you-know-what feud... But I do love to see them so well despite being cancer survivors. Truly inspiring.

 

[Jimmy Todd]

What exactly was the feud?

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

What exactly was the feud?

I notice that in some of the interviews from the other day, Kate makes a deliberate effort to refer to Cheryl by name a couple of times. (God knows they're aware of the stories).

Did Shelley die??

 

[Toni]

I found one with Kate in the middle!

 

[Mel O'Drama]

I found one with Kate in the middle!

And holding hands, to boot.

​

I notice that in some of the interviews from the other day, Kate makes a deliberate effort to refer to Cheryl by name a couple of times. (God knows they're aware of the stories).

Kate goes as far as saying "These two ladies are my sisters", while standing alongside Jaclyn and Cheryl.

Whatever happened in Seasons Two and Three, I suppose it was the best part of fifty years ago, and people do soften and reassess things with age. I like to think there's been some kind of resolution, even if it doesn't run deep.

The frustrating thing with so many media outlets' involvement is I've yet to find a straight, uncut interview. All the videos are a series of soundbites and clips cobbled together. Even the Today show interview with Maria Shriver is heavily edited (on the show's YouTube channel at least).

It's lovely to see them reunite and reflect on the series and their relationships so warmly, but - from the way these videos are cut at least - the "sisterhood" and "the power of girlfriends" angle is just too cloying for me (and probably revisionist considering how the series was viewed at the time). Certainly, it doesn't make me want to snap up Jaclyn's book.

 

[Chris2]

I notice that in some of the interviews from the other day, Kate makes a deliberate effort to refer to Cheryl by name a couple of times. (God knows they're aware of the stories).

Did Shelley die??

LOL. My guess is that Shelley is very happy to be out of the spotlight. Except when people are taking pictures of her at the grocery store.

It was nice to hear Kate talk about Cheryl stepping in for Farrah and “we didn’t miss a beat” or something to that extent. Because that’s the truth as far as I’m concerned.

 

[Toni]

LOL. My guess is that Shelley is very happy to be out of the spotlight. Except when people are taking pictures of her at the grocery store.

It was nice to hear Kate talk about Cheryl stepping in for Farrah and “we didn’t miss a beat” or something to that extent. Because that’s the truth as far as I’m concerned.

Maybe Kate has changed her mind after re-watching seasons 2 & 3 and realizing those were the best years of the show. Because they were.

 

[Barbara Fan]

I think I said before but i wasnt allowed to watch Charlies Angels Back in the day as it was "American rubbish"

And the classic "when you pay the license fee you can watch what you want"

I used to go to a friends house and sometimes see it there.

They were all lovely looking women back in the day (Kate Jackson less so) but What have they done to their faces? - its awful that they feel the need to have surgery to keep young but its not a good look and chipmunk cheeks spring to mind.

I think its a reason why I wouldnt go to a Dallas reunion now, i want to remember them as THEY WERE