Shelley appeared (alongside Alec Baldwin and Jim Mezler) in the TV series Cutter to Houston in 1983; and many of her critics and detractors were surprised by how well she had improved acting-wise. Right after leaving Charlie's Angels in 1980, Shelley had been receiving great reviews for her acting efforts on both stage and the big and small screens. She received positive reviews for her performance in the Jack Heifner play Vanities, which was aired as part of the HBO series Standing Room Only. She then ventured further and did Elizabeth Diggs' Close Ties and likewise received great reviews. She starred in Martin Scorsese's The King of Comedy and the TV movies Trackdown: Finding the Goodbar Killer and Found Money. She was praised for efforts. Even her biggest detractor on Charlie's Angels producer Ed Lakso admitted, "One year after the show, I saw Shelley in the stage play Vanities, and she did a wonderful job."
