Change often comes slower than it should and it seems almost inconceivable that as recently as the early 70s, women were still considered the homemakers and men the breadwinners. Even in the realm of children’s playtime, the boys shot each other with toy guns and the girls spent their time with Barbie and Easy-Bake ovens. But Aaron Spelling wasn’t content with that image and when he introduced the ground-breaking television series, Charlie’s Angels in 1976, women were, for the first time, portrayed not as helpless victims, but gun-wielding crime fighters who were perfectly capable of putting their male foes in their place. The playgrounds of America would never be the same.

Chock-full of glamour and action, Charlie’s Angels followed the lives of three foxy and fearsome private detectives who were determined to take a bite out of crime. Jill was athletic, Kelly was full of street savvy, and Sabrina was the smart one. While each carried a concealed weapon that they weren’t afraid to use, they often used their beautiful looks to disarm their adversaries. No longer trapped in the typical female meter maid attire, these women preferred the stylish tube tops and designer jeans of the day. And woe be unto anyone who mistook their femininity for frailty. Not only did the cleverly conceal firearms in those skin tight satin pants, but they could kick in a door just as effectively as their male counterparts. The men on the show never knew what hit them.

Numerous cast changes occurred over the years, with Sabrina and Kelly being replaced by Kris, Julie and Tiffany. And almost as frequently, so did their stylishly good looks which provided the perfect undercover apparel for the disco, roller derby, or any other place their services were needed. And millions of women demanded that their hairdressers give them the aerodynamic feathery wings that Farrah Fawcett sported.

But no matter how fashionable they might have appeared, and no matter how often the show was downplayed by terms like “Jiggle TV”, the fact remains that these women were groundbreaking leaders in the roles that women would play on TV. And proved that females no longer had wear a June Cleaver dress on TV, they could be bold and beautiful and millions of girls across the country looked up to them as, not only models, but also role models.