garyldibert Once upon a time, three little girls went to the police academy. and they were each assigned very hazardous duties, but I took them all away from all that and now they work for me. My name is Charlie. Those famous words started the all time greatest TV show in history Charlie's Angels. When the pilot aired in March of 1976, it starred Farrah Fawcett Majors as Jill who was the athletic angel, Jaclyn Smith as Kelly who was the streetwise angel, Kate Jackson as Sabrina who was the cool smart, multilingual leader, David Doyle as John Bosley, David Ogden Stiers as Scott Woodville and John Forsythe as the voice of Charlie. Kate Jackson was aboard from the beginning of the project, and was set to play the lead angel. Farrah Fawcett was the next to join; filling the blonde role, but then the producers dropped the hair color concept and brought in Jaclyn Smith to complete the trio. Many of the scenes used in the opening credits of the show are from this pilot episode. Then in the fall of September of 1976 ABC introduce the three stunning, sexy and young former police officers, private detectives working for the Charles Townsend Detective Agency with the entire crew back except David Ogden Stiers. In the opening sequence of the first season no one knew where the Angels went to the police academy. The wealthy Charlie Townsend, their never-seen boss, relayed assignments via a speaker telephone. The Angels worked with their trusty male counter-part, John Bosley. After only 23 episodes, Farrah left the show at the end of the first season. When Farrah Fawcett left the series, her absence was explained by having her character Jill become a professional racing driver on the NASCAR circuit. Along with a new Angel, the show received a new time slot. The Angels remained on Wednesday nights, but moved from 10pm to 9pm. This change in time opened up a whole world of new viewers who wanted to know what the big fuss was all about and kept the "Angels" right where they belong - on top of the ratings! The 1977-1978 season ended with high ratings, proved that Kris, Cheryl Ladd, was every bit as popular with the viewers as Farrah. In the 1979-1980 season, the answer came with Shelley Hack, a model who had been prominent in Revlon's "Charlie" Perfume ads and commercials. Shelley entered The Townsend Office as Tiffany Welles, an Ivy League scholar who also was a graduate from the Boston Police Academy. Spelling and Goldberg had the idea that with this new Angel/model at the helm, she could bring an elegant and classy touch to Charlie's trio! Kate Jackson's absence was explained by having Sabrina getting married and starting a family. The writers treaded lightly as they tried to figure out how to make Tiffany Welles the new "Sabrina Duncan". The 1979-1980 seasons' problem was the sudden decline in ratings. The series found itself in the top 20's instead of the top 10 were it had been for the last three years. The ratings drop was directed at the new Angel and at the end of the season, Shelley was let go of her detective duties. Thus, beginning, for another hunt for a new Angel! By 1980, Charlie's Angels was beginning to feel its age and was declining fast. Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg wanted to go with a fresh new image. After careful consideration, they decided to hire virtually unknown actress, Tanya Roberts. This time around, the character would be a model-turned-detective, street-smart Julie Rogers. The new Angel showed her face in the three-hour 1980-1981 season premiere on November 30, 1980. High hopes were placed on Charlie's newest Angel to pull the series out its failing ratings. To help give it an added boost, the Angels were sent to Hawaii for the first six episodes. Hawaii wasn't only chosen to intrigue the audience but to keep the Angels scantily clad in swimsuits! Charlie's opening monologue has now undergone a complete overhaul. It begins, "Once upon a time, there were three beautiful girls. Two of them graduated from the police academy. The other graduated from a top school for models. And they each reaped the rewards of their exciting careers Bosley looks over brochures of Hawaii in anticipation of the Angels' possible assignment there. Charlie arranges for Julie to receive a probationary investigator's license and begin working with Kris and Kelly. Unfortunately, at this point, the audience was no longer keeping up with the Angels antics. In February 1981, the show went on hiatus and wasn't shown again until June of 1981. Charlie's Angels was not winning any viewers in the summer of '81 with its remaining episodes. The show that had made women crime fighters popular during the 1970's was taken off the air. Charlie's Angels was a huge success the moment it hit the airwaves in 1976. The Angels were on gum cards, doll boxes, T-shirts, board games, puzzles and posters. If you wanted to hire the Angels you had to call the office phone number was 555-0267. Kelly Garrett (Jaclyn Smith) was the only Angel to last the entire series. Kelly was an orphan. John Forsythe' was never on the set - his voice was recorded, and dubbed in later. The Angels all drove Ford automobiles. Jill (and later Kris) drove a Cobra, Kelly drove a Mustang, and Sabrina drove a Pinto. For the record, Bosley drove a Ford L.T.D. Although Charlie was never heard, he did actually appear in a couple of episodes, but his face was never shown. Kelly is the only Angel to have been shot throughout the run of the show. Sabrina was the only Angel that was previously married. She was married to a fellow officer when she was still a cop but the marriage ended in divorce.

angelmuze I was 7 when Charlie's Angels first aired, little did I think that 30 years later, I would still be talking about the Angels. The show captured the imagination of this nation and the world. It had glamorous settings, exquisite fashions, beautiful women, and intriguing often ground breaking plots. All these things were a part of the Charlie's Angels phenomena, and yet the key for me has always been the relationship of the three main characters. This was a true team of friends who didn't resort to the stereotypical cat fights that most women on TV often get into. They were three equals who depended on one another with confidence. Yes, they were beautiful and they used their sexuality, but they did so with brains and courage. I consider myself lucky to have grown up with the Angels as my role models, a girl could do a lot worse. The plots may have been silly but the relationships were genuine.

roghache I ashamedly admit to quite regularly tuning in years ago to this weekly drivel myself, though even back when it aired, I was appalled by its totally sexist perspective. I'm definitely no feminist but as I'll discuss later, would certainly imagine this series to represent the very opposite of feminist goals. However, I do admit it was all quite mindlessly entertaining.The series portrays the adventures of three female police officers who are rescued from their mundane duties by a mysterious multi millionaire named Charles Townsend, who hires these gorgeous girls as operatives in his new private investigation agency. Charlie's assistant, Bosley, acts as a liaison with the ladies since the enigmatic Charlie never reveals himself in person. The three beauties, Sabrina, Jill, and Kelly, frequently go undercover as strippers, models, or whatever during the course of their investigations. When Jill leaves Charlie's agency to pursue an auto racing career, she is replaced by her younger sister, Kris. After Sabrina departs to start a family, she in turn is replaced by Julie and later by Tiffany.There wasn't a woman watching this show who didn't secretly wish she looked like one of these beautiful, curvaceous ladies. Kate Jackson played Sabrina, the 'smart angel' and often the brains of the operation. The blonde & bubbly Jill was portrayed by Farrah Fawcett and notable mainly for her hairstyle, which spawned a popular new look in the late 1970's. Kelly, the truly pretty & sweet one and the only angel permanent to the series, was played by the lovely Jacklyn Smith. Cheryl Ladd (who went on to do some pleasant little Danielle Steele TV movies) was cast as the perky and charming young rookie, Kris. My personal favourite was Julie, a street smart but classy New Yorker with an Ivy League education, played by Shelley Hack, who later starred briefly in another series, Jack and Mike. Finally, the role of the red haired model turned detective, Tiffany (whom I personally saw less of and never quite 'bonded' with), was given to Tanya Roberts.This series actually contradicts feminist philosophies, since it isn't really a show whose point is to depict that women can possess beauty, intelligence, and strength...all three. Instead, it's an excuse for displaying these gorgeous women in bikinis or other tight fitting clothing, and otherwise placing them in situations focusing on their sex appeal. The girls always wear beautiful designer fashions and however harrowing their circumstances, their make up never smudges, a nail never breaks, nor a single hair stray out of place. If you read the reviews here, you'll note that the common theme isn't the clever plots but how amazingly sexy these girls look in their bikinis! It's mainly all about the jiggle factor.Some claim that it does support the feminist cause since the angels are single, smart, independent, capable, and mutually supportive. These lovely ladies don't wait around for a man to rescue them when danger befalls, but instead depend upon each other. And that's the point...one BEAUTIFUL woman is rescued by another BEAUTIFUL woman, not a plain or ordinary looking though equally bright, resourceful, and courageous female. In fact, these girls employ all their sexual wiles to their best advantage, more often than not using their looks and sex appeal rather than their wits to get themselves both into certain situations and out of others. However, all that being said, it's a generally fun & entertaining show to watch. There's mystery, assorted engaging adventures, occasional exotic locales, and an effective chemistry of friendship & co-operation between these female private investigators. Just bear in mind that it's yet another monument to women with lovely faces, perfect bodies, and gorgeous clothes.

Totallyrad80 I grow up watching the show when it first aired in 1976 and I was in the first grade and I loved it. I couldn't get enough of it at the time and I had a huge crush on Farrah Fawcett-Majors (maybe because she was a blonde and bubbly)and I like the action that took place back in the 70's. When she left I was terribly upset, but got use to Cheryl Ladd as her replacement. Too bad Kate Jackson didn't take a liking to her, because I thought they had got along off screen, which Kate knew Cheryl before Farrah and Jaclyn Smith when they worked on Satan School for Girls. I love the adventures and the action that centered around them, but I really was not a fan of Sabrina Duncan (or Kate Jackson), because I did say she was the least attractive and I always felt that the show revolved around Sabrina than Jill, Kelly or Kris (which I noticed after Kate was fired the show revolved around Kris, which I myself felt Cheryl was the better actress) but I did like the episodes and I always loved watching them in reruns. The episodes in the first season was always the best where I always like when they had to go on a cruise to investigate and each of them had a bomb to throw off the cruise and when they focused on each of them individually they hair was blowing into the wind except for Farrah's hair. It never moved. I liked the comedy she kind of provided for viewers to watch which had men keep watching more as her career took off way after the show.The second season I did like the episode "The Sandcastle Murders", but the only con I could say about that episode it was really bad after Bosley (David Doyle) fired his gun to the bad guy, Dave Rossiter which he fell into the ocean, that they made Sabrina dive into the pier fully clothed to get him out, but from the back it was bad to say you could tell that it was a stunt double because the person from the back was wide, heavier and they never showed a close up on "Sabrina's athletic powers" (is what Bosley complimenting her to Charlie in the office after they wrap up the case). But I did like the show to take me into the third season, which Kate did wear to much makeup which I still found her to be the least attractive and did check into the fourth season with Shelley Hack. Now I had seen the episodes which I picked out "Avenging Angel" which was a great showcase for Jaclyn to portray and "Caged Angel" which is my favorite where Cheryl was locked up to investigate a case. But I did notice the show downslided and the new Angel Tiffany did not live up to any expectation. I can say Shelley did try her best but it only lasted for 1 season for her.Now in Season 5 which I was a fifth grader at the time I remember hearing that "Charlie has a new Angel". I couldn't keep up with the changes and I thought it was ridiculous that a model left her career behind to now work as a private detective (not to mention any of the other recruits who looked like models than cops). But I checked out the Hawaii episodes and those were ok as they were a team. The look was in which all 3 girls (Kelly, Kris and Julie were all wearing bikinis and Bosley going topless) which I knew it was a gimmick for viewers to get back into the show with an unknown - Tanya Roberts, (which all of them were unknowns at the time except for Kate). The episodes were not bad, but it just had to be over soon. I did enjoy "Angels in the Deep" where they had Patti Darbanville as a guest who had zest and the 1 they had to have Kris and Julie go undercover as go-go dancers where Kelly is now the investigator (Bad because Jaclyn has more dancing experience on her resume than the other 2 actresses). But it had to be classy. I wish it could be the same about the film because seeing Jaclyn in a cameo appearance, I wish she could be in it and show the other 3 (Drew, Cameron and Lucy) how it should be done. But when the show was cancelled I didn't know if I was upset or what. But there is cable which could rerun the show and I could be entertained by it.