Apr 7, 2026 1:20am PT

‘Charlie’s Angels’ Stars Recall Bikini Battles, Cast Changes, Health Scares and Making TV History: ‘It Gave Women Permission to Be Independent’

Michael Schneider

Plus Icon

Michael Schneider

Variety Editor at Large

franklinavenue

Latest

Fox Renews ‘Memory of a Killer,’ Starring Michael Imperioli and Patrick Dempsey, for Season 2

11 hours ago

‘Shrinking’ Creator Assures Fans Season 4 Will Have a Time Jump, but Not Be a Complete Reboot

13 hours ago

CBS Seals Deal With Byron Allen to Lease All of Late Night After Stephen Colbert Exits in May

19 hours ago

See All

Courtesy of The Paley Center for Media

Cheryl Ladd chuckled as she remembered being called a “troublemaker” by “Charlie’s Angels” producer Aaron Spelling. Ladd said Spelling liked her being in a bikini on the hit 1970s series — but she was having to wear one on screen so often “that it was starting to piss me off.”

Speaking on stage Monday at the Paley Center’s PaleyFest L.A. panel celebrating the 50th anniversary of “Charlie’s Angels,” Ladd recounted how she sent the show’s producers a message: “I went out and bought the tiniest little bikini ever seen on television!” Something that wouldn’t pass muster with ABC censors.

'Charlie's Angels' Stars Recall Bikini Battles, Cast Changes, Health Scares and Making TV History: 'It Gave Women Permission to Be Independent'