Saturday, May 4, 2024

Still At An All-Time High

Shelley Hack with Jaclyn Smith and Cheryl Ladd
in a promo pic for Charlie's Angels, 1979

"I couldn't believe it. What was I doing in the evening news?" Shelley exclaimed after it was announced that she was joining the cast of Charlie's Angels in 1979. Supermodel Shelley Hack became Charlie's 5th Angel and everyone was excited to see THE Charlie Girl bring her brand of beauty and glamour into the Townsend Detective Agency. "We hired her 40 percent from the screen test and 60 percent from the personality test," executive producer Aaron Spelling told TV Guide, "We decided she was a nice person with sparkle and intelligence." And Shelley's debut episode "Love Boat Angels" topped the Nielsen ratings when it first aired. It looked like Charlie's Angels was in for another explosive season.

a writeup about Charlie's Angels, 1980

During its first and second seasons, in the Nielsen ratings, the series finished within TV's top 5 shows of their respective years. During its third and fourth seasons, the series finished within TV's top 20 shows. For a four-year-old TV series, it wasn't doing bad at all. Interest in all the Angels was still at an all-time high by the show's fourth season. Kate Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, Jaclyn Smith, Cheryl Ladd and Shelley Hack were all still doing famously and were all still being talked about, written about and making all the magazine and tabloid covers. Angel Fever was still ongoing.

Shelley Hack with Jaclyn Smith and Cheryl Ladd
in a promo pic for Charlie's Angels, 1979