Jiggle television is a term coined byNBC executivePaul Klein to criticizeABC's television production and marketing strategy underFred Silverman,[1] describing the use of female television characters who wear loose clothing orunderwear in a way that theirbreasts orbuttocks appear to shake or "jiggle".[2]
Klein referred to ABC's programs as "porn" in order to tap into the 1970smoral panic and anxiety over the spread of pornography,[3] using theneologism to describe the use of female television celebrities wearing loose clothing orunderwear in a way in which theirbreasts orbuttocks appear to shake, or "jiggle".[2] An American invention,[4] it was used to refer to programs such asCharlie's Angels,[5]Wonder Woman andThree's Company,[3] which used the sexuality of young women as appeal to their audiences.[6]
The programs' plots were often full of innuendo and suggestive language, and unrealistic in nature.[7] Producers of such series would make sure that its lead actresses would appear in a bikini, one-piece swimsuit, négligée, underwear, or naked under a towel, in each show.[8]Angie Dickinson, star of NBC'sPolice Woman (1974–1978), which preceded and influencedCharlie's Angels, said that although "essentially a woman’s job is being a woman", by the show's last season she was tired of scenes "where the phone rings while I'm taking a bath".[9] Due to censorship standards of the time, however, programs made for U.S. television that fell into the "jiggle television" category were not allowed to move beyond innuendo or slight suggestiveness, with actual nudity and sexual content generally not allowed.[citation needed]
At the time, the ABC target audience was 18 to 35 years old.[10] Jiggle was also called "tits &ass television" or "T&A" for short[11] and in the 1970s the amount of sex on television increased, as did its ratings,[3] creating social controversies and consequences.[12]
James T. Aubrey produced aTV movie about theDallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, whichVariety later said "aired on ABC to huge ratings at the height of its T&A phase".[13] The concept was later taken to new extremes by the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s and early 2000s on such television shows asBaywatch,She Spies, and numerousUSA Network series.
The term has been used to describe the dramatic television series ofAaron Spelling such asThe Love Boat,Fantasy Island,Charmed and others.[14] Jiggle TV is seen as trashy and escapist entertainment.[1] Programs or female performers are often judged by their "jiggle factor"[15] and many, such asPamela Anderson,[4] had their bodies surgically modified to increase it. The term "jiggle-o" is used to describe a character which uses jiggle factor, and "jiggle syndrome" refers to the phenomenon as a whole.[2]
When the show was number three, I figured it was our acting. When it got to be number one, I decided it could only be because none of us wears a bra.[16]