a closeup of Shelley from a promo pic
for Charlie's Angels, 1979
Shelley became Charlie's 5th Angel in 1979. She was handpicked by Aaron Spelling for the role of Tiffany Welles due to her impeccable background. She was a bright young woman with a high I.Q. from upscale Greenwich, Connecticut. She had a history degree from Smith (a classy East Coast college.) And, because of her Revlon Charlie endorsements, she was already one of the most recognizable faces in the world. "We hired her 40 percent from the screen test and 60 percent from the personality test," Spelling told TV Guide, "We decided she was a nice person with sparkle and intelligence." Shelley's debut episode "Love Boat Angels" topped the Nielsen ratings when it first aired; and it looked like Charlie's Angels was in for another explosive season with the addition of this Supermodel Angel.
a writeup about Shelley, 1979
By 1979, Shelley was already known all over the world as THE Charlie Girl and was used to being recognized on the street. In fact, some fans would chase her when they realized who she was. But becoming Charlie's newest Angel was a whole new ballgame; the paparazzi relentlessly pursued her. She was in every magazine and newspaper and was even mentioned in the evening news. "I couldn't believe it. What was I doing in the evening news," she exclaimed. She said of her new Hollywood superstardom, "Yesterday, I was a schnook, and today I can't get across the street." She suddenly found herself in unfamiliar territory - rock star territory. "I had press people crawling in my window," she told E! in 2002. "There's a downside to this stuff," she added.
Shelley with Jaclyn Smith and Cheryl Ladd
in a promo pic for Charlie's Angels, 1979
