America’s Sweethearts Then and Now: Can Dallas’s Old Traditions Keep Up With a New World?

There is something undeniably campy about watching two sixty-year-old Southern belles standing on the sidelines of AT&T Stadium, critiquing the high kicks of young blonde women wearing some of the tiniest shorts you've ever seen.

“Y’all gotta get those kicks higher!” Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders director Kelli Finglass yells with a slight southern twang. 

“Yes, ma’am,” says the tiny but tall bleach blonde on the receiving end of the command.

The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders have long been a staple of classic Texas Americana. Born to America’s team in the 1970s, the “DCC” is a chorus line of gorgeous, usually white, mostly blonde, professional dancers. Big toothy smiles, blue blouses with tight knots to accentuate curves, the DCC as its own entity is as prolific as the entity it represents. 

Netflix recently dropped its latest documentary du jour “America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders” chronicling the DCC’s 2023 season from try-outs to playoffs. But make no mistake, the DCC has long been on our television screens as a bastion of American pop culture. 

Long before Netflix, there was “Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team” which premiered on CMT in 2006. The original reality series starred the same two Southern belles, Kelli, and her head choreographer, Judy Trammell. Both belles are former DCC members themselves, having been a part of the organization in one facet or another for nearly forty years. “Making the Team” was a 2000s reality phenomenon well in line with the pop culture toxicities of the era. DCC candidates contorted their bodies and starved themselves in front of cameras in a vye to become a part of an American legacy. Producers found ways to make their eating disorders laughable, often editing in close-up shots of barely there “muffin tops” against quirky transition music and cutting commentary from Kelli. 

And of course, true to form, Americans loved it. CMT had a hit on their hands.

“Making the Team” lasted a whopping 16 seasons, wrapping in 2021 following a surprising network cancellation. A variety of rumors swirled around the show’s cancellation, most notably, allegations of lewd conduct and voyeurism by senior Dallas Cowboys organization members. In 2022, four former DCC members settled a $2.1 million lawsuit against the sports franchise stemming from a 2015 incident involving, ironically, the organization’s senior vice president of public relations. 

Classic! 

When Netflix announced a reprisal of the series under new direction and production, Texans, cheer buffs, and reality veterans alike were enthralled. However, Netflix’s “America’s Sweethearts” is sure to leave a bitter taste in the mouths of DCC puppeteers, especially one Charlotte Jones, daughter to billionaire Dallas Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones. It is evident the final cut had no DCC oversight with clear misogynistic and racial thematics at the core of the series reprisal. 

One of the more memorable DCC atrocities the reprisal revealed was the salaries of the cheerleaders. More than trusting of Netflix’s production team, Charlotte Jones happily shared that Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders are paid in “sisterhood.” About $20,000 a year to be exact.

The billionaire’s daughter goes on to say that original Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders weren’t even paid! They starved themselves and endured hours of laborious training for the love of their country and team. *Eagle screech*

Hell’s aunties from left to right: Charlotte Jones, Kelli Finglass, and Judi Trammell

With each episode I binged on a cloudy Sunday in Chicago, producers were able to stealthily unveil one DCC horror after the other. There was a scene where the only two brown girls in a group practice were pulled out midway through and cut immediately. There was a scene where a blonde candidate was forced to dye her hair brown only to be cut a scene or two later. And of course, there was the arc of Victoria Kalina, four year DCC veteran and daughter to a DCC alum, which candidly details an experience with the DCC that lead to subsequent eating disorders and mental health issues. 

In a rare moment of production interference, a producer says “You’re so brave, Victoria.” 

“Not always,” she replies tearfully. 

Tasked with a difficult decision on whether to retire after four years or return for a fifth year in hopes of securing a leadership position on the squad, Victoria sits before Kelli and Judy, pleading with them to confirm whether she’s grown enough to warrant said position. Stone-faced, both give no indication that the organization intends to promote her, despite her seniority. At first, she concludes that she’ll return for her fifth year, to end her run on own her terms. But as the series concludes, she privately shares with producers that she’s decided to retire. 

On the surface, “America’s Sweethearts” looks to be a shallow peek into the lives of pretty girls who perform choreography to AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” on a national stage. But quickly it unmasks the exploitive, racist, and misogynist nature of a $9 billion organization. The most valuable sports organization in the world, to be more specific. 

The DCC’s decision to reprise the series on Netflix is definitely getting them plenty of attention. Perhaps not the kind of attention they were bargaining for. 

Maybe they could hire a new senior vice president of public relations to help.