Half a century after they first answered Charlie's call, the Angels are still drawing a crowd. Kate Jackson, Jaclyn Smith, and Cheryl Ladd reunited Monday at PaleyFest LA to mark the 50th anniversary of Charlie's Angels, trading laughs about bikinis and network censors while reflecting on the show's impact and their shared battles with breast cancer. Ladd recalled deliberately buying the skimpiest swimsuit she could find to protest the constant bikini scenes—earning a "little troublemaker" label from producer Aaron Spelling, but also more say over what she wore, reports Variety. "I knew the show was different, special and unique," Smith said. "Three women chasing danger instead of being rescued from danger… our show was the first of its kind. It gave women permission to be independent and break out of the mold and not be defined by men."
The trio revisited how Jackson helped reshape a rejected pilot called Alley Cats into Charlie's Angels, how ABC initially doubted three women could carry action roles, and how Farrah Fawcett's exit rattled the show before Ladd stepped in as her character's younger sister. The AP notes that the tone turned sober as all three spoke about their breast cancer diagnoses, with Smith saying, "When Cheryl called me, the first thing I did was send her my wigs. She was so brave." But as for the show's legacy, Jackson says, "We were giving people an hour to sit back, put their feet up, forget everything, and watch television, and then again just kind of subtly getting the message in there that women are just as capable, intelligent, can do anything that a man can do."
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