screen caps from The Charlie's Angels Fandom FB post
(thank you so much The Charlie's Angels Fandom
for supporting Shelley Hack)
Shelley became Charlie's 5th Angel Tiffany Welles in 1979, during the 4th season of the hit TV series. And she won the part of Tiffany not just because she was known as THE Charlie Girl at the time (although that was a big help), but because she passed a rigorous audition process. She went through several acting auditions (note: while she was modeling, she was also studying acting in New York, at the Herbert Berghof Studios under Jack Wolzer). She went through a personality test (the producers probably wanted a more relaxed and peaceful set). And she came with the approval of Jaclyn Smith and Cheryl Ladd, her future co-Angels.
But it seems Shelley Hack has been unfairly blamed for the demise of Charlie's Angels ever since the time she appeared on the show. Many of the show's fans have said "not very nice things" about her, her appearance and her acting. But many of the things that transpired during her season were not really in her control.
Charlie's Angels was entering its 4th season when Shelley joined the show. Shelley's Charlie Girl image was a huge publicity boost for the 4th season. But unlike Cheryl Ladd who joined the show in season 2, Shelley had a harder time endearing herself to the Charlie's Angels viewers.
Cheryl Ladd did a phenomenal job replacing Farrah Fawcett during the show's 2nd season. She was gorgeous, charming, and vivacious. But she also had an advantage at the time. Charlie's Angels had only been on for one season when she joined the show, so the premise and novelty of the series was still at an all-time high. Some people hadn't discovered the series yet, so when watching it for the first time starting with the 2nd season (there was no streaming in the 1970s), the idea of the show was still fresh. Plus, Farrah Fawcett's abrupt departure from the show somewhat tainted her image and turned off some fans which may have worked in Cheryl's favor.
Shelley in a "Portrait of the Month" poster
that appeared in Rona Barrett's Hollywood mag,
January 1980
Shelley didn't have this advantage. Charlie's Angels had already slipped in the over-all ratings- from #4 in season 2 to #12 in season 3 - so it was an uphill battle for her. Not only was she joining a show whose premise and novelty were becoming stale, she was replacing a character and actress who had a solid fan base. Shelley was still an up-and-coming actress.
Plus, although she passed the acting auditions, and although she had already gone through acting school in New York, producers didn't have faith in her acting ability, so much so that her lines were kept to a minimum early in the season. According to producer Ed Lakso (whose pick for Tiffany was Shari Belafonte), the persona of Tiffany and the performance of Shelley did not create the desired effect; so, he kept pulling lines away from her when they were filming the season opener "Love Boat Angels." So Shelley’s introduction to the Angels viewers became somewhat lackluster.
In addition, the incumbent cast wanted more time off, so single
Angel episodes (episodes that focused on one
Angel) were produced. This would have been okay, but Jaclyn's, Cheryl's and even guest
Angel Farrah's solo episodes were all aired before Shelley's. This is the reason most viewers had the impression that Shelley added nothing to the show. After the 2nd episode, the team episode "Angels Go Truckin'", a barrage of solo episodes starring Jaclyn (two episodes), Farrah (two episodes) and Cheryl (one episode) were aired. This kept Shelley in the background for a long time. It was only during the 10th episode (which, due to replays, was aired during the 12th week) was Shelley allowed to shine in her solo episode... which seems too long a time to introduce a new character. And, sadly, Shelley did so well in her solo episodes. It's really a shame they were aired so late on the season. (For more, check out:
Recommended Episode Order)
Shelley in a promo pic
from 1979
So please, stop blaming Shelley for the demise of Charlie's Angels. There were many things that were not in her control and she was only hired to be an actress. Unlike Kate Jackson, who had a hand in creating Charlie's Angels, Shelley had no such influence. She did her best with what was given her.
P.S. Something to ponder on:
Shelley was The Charlie Girl before, during and after her stint on Charlie's Angels. She most likely had a contract with Revlon that kept her from changing her appearance without their approval. The new Angel team consisted of two blondes and a brunette. Previously, it was two brunettes and a blonde. In 1976, when the pilot was tested, the audience couldn't tell the two brunettes apart. So, when the Angels went into series, Kate Jackson's hair was cut to a bob to distinguish her from Jaclyn Smith. Since, most probably, Shelley couldn't cut her hair due to her Revlon contract, it was curled instead to make it look shorter and distinguish her from Cheryl Ladd, which many viewers weren't fond of.
