A Great Body of Work

a paparazzi pic of Shelley, 1986

Immediately after leaving Charlie's Angels, Shelley jumped into theater-acting in 1981 via the play Vanities by Jack Heifner. In the following years, she ventured further and did Elizabeth Diggs' Close Ties, and later Born Yesterday. In 1989, she appeared in the John Krizanc play Tamara. She impressed her critics and detractors and received glowing reviews for her stage performances. In 1983, she appeared in the Martin Scorsese film The King of Comedy and held her ground acting-wise opposite acting legend Robert De Niro. Later, she appeared in the 1986 children's fantasy feature Troll with Michael Moriarty (who would later star in Law & Order) and the 1987 cult classic The Stepfather (with Terry O'Quinn and Jill Schoelen) directed by Joseph Ruben. Joseph Ruben was impressed with Shelley's performance in The King of Comedy and had no second thoughts casting her in his film. She would receive great reviews for her acting in Ruben's film. She also played a blind character in the 1989 suspense thriller Blind Fear. On TV, she delivered great work opposite acting veterans George Segal (Trackdown: Finding the Goodbar Killer, 1983), Dick Van Dyke and Sid Ceasar (Found Money, 1983). She worked with Paul Michael Glaser and Tony Danza (Single Bars, Single Women, 1984) with soap superstar Anthony Geary (Kicks, 1985) with Sela Ward and Brooke Adams (Bridesmaids, 1989). She also starred in two of her very own TV series - Cutter to Houston in 1983 with Alec Baldwin, and Jack and Mike from 1986-1987 with Tom Mason. All in all, she racked up a great body of work in the 1980s.

a paparazzi pic of Shelley, 1986

Satin and Suede

Shelley in artwork and promo pics

for Charlie perfume and cosmetics, 1978

Shelley first became famous in the 1970s as THE Charlie Girl. In 1976, she was hand-picked to represent the Revlon Charlie brand, as she was the embodiment the brand's ideal – gorgeous, sexy and young. Makeup artist Francis Rick Gillette recalls, "Shelley Hack was really the perfect girl for Charlie." In 1979, artworks of her appeared in a Charlie ad with the tagline "Revlon Colors It Spring: Step Out in Charlie's New Satin and Suede!" It was a promo for Charlie's brand new, soft, shiny and totally sexy makeup look - the Satin look for the eyes and lips - the Suede look for the face. "We call it fashion for the face" the ad said. It was also a promo for the very special Charlie's Coloring Box For Lips which contained Charlie's Soft-Line Automatic Lip Pencil, Charlie's Lipcolor Toner, Charlie's Extra-Extra Shine Lipstick, 3 of Charlie's Extra-Extra Shine Lip Glosses and a bottle of Charlie Concentrated Perfume Spray. It was available for just $6.00 for any $5.00 or more purchase from the Charlie or Chaz collections. And, of course, whether in pictures or in artwork, Charlie Girl Shelley was always Charlie-Girl gorgeous.

artworks of Shelley in a newspaper ad

for Charlie perfume and cosmetics, 1979

A Complete Departure

Shelley with Harry Anderson

and John Larroquette in a promo pic

for Night Court, 1984

In 1984, Shelley was cast in the nighttime sitcom Night Court for its second season (replacing Paula Kelly). She was cast to play public defender Christine Sullivan and the character was going to be romantically involved with Judge Harry Stone (played by Harry Anderson). Although best known at the time for being a dramatic actress, Shelley wasn't averse to doing comedy. "Comedy is a complete departure for me," she said, "but it's something I've always wanted to do and, besides, I love the show already just as a viewer." Shelley was excited about her new role. "You don't think I'll be the serious one who has to carry the doom and gloom?" she said.

a writeup about Shelley joining

the cast of Night Court in 1984

Cotton Knits and Double-Knits

a closeup of Shelley

from a spread for the Sears

Spring Through Summer 1968 catalog

Shelley appeared in many catalogs throughout her tenure as Supermodel. In 1968, she appeared on the pages of the Sears Spring Through Summer 1968 catalog. She appeared on a spread that featured "Great Ways to Put Yourself Together in Cotton Knits." It featured shift dresses and pullover-tops knitted in a crochet-look pattern, as well as a jacket, skirt and pants in smooth double-knit fabric. All could be mixed and matched as preferred.

Shelley in a spread for the Sears

Spring Through Summer 1968 catalog

Shelley wore the Shift dress. It was basically a T-shirt that was above-the-knee in length which was knit in an airy crochet-look pattern. It had a round neckline and short sleeves. It had a back zipper and came with a self-tie belt. It was available in chamois yellow and light aqua blue (Shelley wore the chamois yellow version.) Shelley's hair was blown straight with the top pulled back. And Shelley looked fabulous. Appearing in the spread with Shelley were Jennifer O'Neill and Cheryl Tiegs.

pics of Shelley featured

in a spread for the Sears

Spring Through Summer 1968 catalog

Angels Wardrobe 24 A

screen caps of Shelley

from the Charlie's Angels episode

"One Love... Two Angels Part 1"

1979 was a new era for the hit TV series Charlie's Angels. Supermodel Shelley Hack joined Jaclyn Smith and Cheryl Ladd to form Charlie's glamorous new Angel team. Nolan Miller, the wardrobe designer of the series, said, "I begged Aaron to hire Shelley. There was something about her I really liked; I was impressed with her Charlie perfume commercials and how she could create a look just by turning her collar up and putting her hands in her pockets." The wardrobe budget was increased to $20,000 per episode; and, according to People magazine, each Angel was to go through eight costume changes per episode (but it was more like three to five, with Farrah making the most - at eight changes - in "Fallen Angel"). For the episode "One Love... Two Angels Part 1," Shelley went through three outfit changes. For her first scene, she wore an all-black ensemble. She wore a black pullover sweater (in glitter velvet) tucked into a pair of black slacks. She finished her look with a pair of black open-toe sandals with ankle straps. She next wore a maroon shirt (in velvet) and stood behind the bar at the Townsend Agency office. She finished her look with a pair of gold earrings. She next wore a suit jacket and pants ensemble. She wore a camel-colored suit jacket over a pair of maroon slacks. A multi-colored woven belt (striped in maroon, dusty blue and cream) tied over and around her jacket waist and a pair of strappy maroon-colored sandals finished her look. A gold bracelet and a gold necklace accessorized her look.

screen caps of Shelley

from the Charlie's Angels episode

"One Love... Two Angels Part 1"

Standing Room Only: Vanities

Shelley with Annette O'Toole

and Meredith Baxter Birney in a promo pic

for the play Vanities, Nov 1980

In November of 1980, Shelley starred in the Jack Heifner play Vanities which was staged at the Westwood Playhouse in Los Angeles. It was filmed for TV as part of HBO's Standing Room Only series and was aired in 1981. Set in 1963 then 1968 and finally in 1974, the play was about three girls from Texas (as high school cheerleaders, then as college roommates, and finally as young adults) - their friendship and its eventual demise. Shelley played Mary (the confident one) alongside Meredith Baxter Birney who played Joanne (the naïve one), and Annette O'Toole who played Kathy (the planner). Shelley immediately jumped at the opportunity to play Mary after leaving Charlie's Angels. "I didn't want to leave Los Angeles without doing something good," she explained. Although she had no prior stage experience, she was ready to take on the challenge. "I don't know how I got the guts to go right into a play immediately after leaving the series," Shelley said. "I started doing theater for the first time in my life although I'd never been on a stage before." And Shelley's gamble paid off. She received glowing reviews for her performance, surprising many of her critics and detractors... as well as Charlie's Angels producer Ed Lakso who thought she couldn't act and that casting her in Angels was a mistake. "One year after the show, I saw Shelley in the stage play Vanities, and she did a wonderful job," Lakso admitted.

Shelley with Annette O'Toole

and Meredith Baxter Birney in a promo pic

for the play Vanities, Nov 1980

Sakowitz 1975 1

a closeup of Shelley

from a pic that appeared in a spread

on Sakowitz Lifestyle catalog,

July 1975

Shelley appeared on many spreads for many catalogs from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s. Mail-order catalogs were at the height of its popularity at the time. They were big-book size publications that contained a list of general merchandise from, usually, a department store that were available for purchase and delivery straight to the homes of consumers. Everything from homeware to toys were featured in these catalogs... as well as garments and the latest fashion pieces. Many Supermodels - like Cheryl Tiegs, Beverly Johnson, Patti Hansen and Shelley Smith, just to name a few - appeared in the most popular catalogs of the era. Many models who eventually became actresses also appeared in these catalogs - like Veronica Hamel, Erin Grey, Kim Basinger and Pam Dawber.

Shelley in a spread

on Sakowitz Lifestyle catalog,

July 1975

Shelley appeared on the pages of Sakowitz Lifestyle catalog, on their July 1975 issue. Often compared to Neiman Marcus, Sakowitz was a chain of high-end department stores that operated until 1990. Sakowitz had a hand in making European fashion designers familiar to the American consumer... Andre' Courreges, Yves St. Laurent Rive Gauche, Zandra Rhoades, Givenchy and Erminegildo Zegna were some of designers they carried. Aside from apparel, Sakowitz had "home & lifestyle" and "ultimate gifts" among its high-end merchandise, all of which appeared on Sakowitz's catalog. In their July 1975 catalog, Shelley appeared on the apparel and accessories section. She wore the "Two Is Better Than One" ensemble - made up of a sleeveless denim-colored dress with an A-line skirt and a self-tie belt topped with a denim-colored shirtjacket with white polka dots and white cuffs and collar. Both were by Patty O'Neil, an American clothing brand popular at the time. Shelley looked fabulous as always.

a pic of Shelley

that appeared in a spread

on Sakowitz Lifestyle catalog,

July 1975