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My first love is always family \u2014 my children and my husband. They make my world go round.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Charlie\u2019s Angels catapulted Jaclyn Smith to fame in the 1970s, and this great beauty has captivated us ever since. Talented, gracious and kind, she\u2019s also a phenomenally successful entrepreneur. For the past 31 years her Jaclyn Smith brand has anchored Kmart\u2019s fashion line, offering the public great value and affordable, fashionable clothing. She also has a line of fabrics, wigs and skincare and somehow finds the time to work ardently for several charities. But the most important part of her life is her family, including husband, Dr. Brad Allen, a renowned medical researcher, and her children, Spencer Margaret and Gaston. Travelgirl is honored to have this glamorous star grace our cover.<\/p>\n
tg: It\u2019s a pleasure to welcome you to the cover of Travelgirl Magazine! We are honored to have you. You grew up in Texas with wonderful values; you started taking dancing lessons when you were a small child. You attended Trinity University in San Antonio, where you studied but continued to love to dance. What was your goal when you left college?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
JS: My goal was to open a ballet school and probably live in Houston down the street from my family because I was so attached to them. When I went to New York to get additional training and widen my horizons all of a sudden I found myself testing for commercials and pilots. Over time I realized this was something I really loved. When I first went to New York I made it two months \u2014 from October 1 until December 1 \u2014 and then went home. In that time I realized, wow, I really liked New York. I liked the lifestyle, the art, dance, theatre and fashion. It was a place where I felt really at home. I went back to New York and my career started. An agent discovered me when I was dancing in Central Park in a show. His name was Harry Abrams, and he started sending me out on commercials, and one thing led to another. It was different then; you went to a dance call and all of a sudden you would be reading for a part in a play. It was less structured when I started.<\/p>\n
tg: How did growing up in Texas impact your life? You\u2019ve stayed quite grounded despite your celebrity status.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
JS: I had the greatest parents in the world. I was very close to my grandfather who was a Methodist minister and lived to be almost 102. I look at my upbringing as all that was good and right and my family gave me that. It gave me a balance in life and the way my parents lived their lives was an example to me that I aspire to even today. I respected my parents\u2019 choices and the way they chose to live. That was what was most important to me. Celebrity is great but you have to be grounded or it separates you from your friends, from life, from everything. When you are at the top of your career everything is done for you; decisions are made and everything is at your fingertips. You have to realize that celebrity is wonderful but it isn\u2019t real life. I love the life my parents chose to live; that was real life to me. Even though I am not living in Texas and my parents are gone now, they are with me with every breath I take.<\/p>\n
tg: I remember you starred in commercials as the Breck Girl for Breck Shampoo. How were you \u201cdiscovered\u201d for the commercials?<\/span> <\/strong><\/p>\n
JS: The Breck commercial got me my first acting job, which was on McCloud. The producer of McCloud saw me in a Breck commercial. Dennis Weaver brought me in and I thought, \u2018I don\u2019t know if I\u2019m up to this,\u2019 and all of a sudden Dennis Weaver told me I was going to do this, and he got me a great director named Lou Antonio who I still work with today. Lou teaches at the Actor\u2019s Studio and is an award-winning director and was also an actor. That was the beginning of my acting career.<\/p>\n
tg: Let\u2019s talk about Charlie\u2019s Angels. Your role brought you immense success. Did you realize at the time the impact that role would have on your career? It must have been a fun time in your life.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
JS: It was a wonderful training ground and the beginning of a whole new world and life for me. Friendships were made and our lives changed in a split second because of the popularity of that show. It was a winning concept and I loved doing it; it\u2019s part of my history and I\u2019m grateful for it.<\/p>\n
tg: You\u2019ve had phenomenal success as a businesswoman. What inspired that addition to your career? Tell me about the development of your own brand.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n
JS: Thirty-one years ago Kmart approached me about designing a brand. I first turned them down because I wasn\u2019t quite sure about fashion and Kmart. I was asked to at least attend a meeting, which I agreed to do. I realized after the meeting that designing fashion at affordable prices might be challenging work, so I agreed to it. I traveled the country every month to launch my line at Kmart. The merchandise was beautiful, and I built a very loyal customer base. It evolved, and that\u2019s how I got into business. I learned about price points and how to cut the cost of a particular garment. Kmart is a master of producing in mass. We have a team of really talented people and we can give the public value: beautiful clothes at affordable prices. The success spilled over into other areas including home and design. Being a businesswoman, I didn\u2019t just put my name on the brand. I was hands-on with all aspects of the business from hang tags to fabrics, styling, commercials and even the print ads.<\/p>\n
Celebrity is great but you have to be grounded or
\nit separates you from your friends, from life, from everything.<\/p><\/blockquote>\nBranding is an everyday process; you can\u2019t let down; you have to constantly reinvent. It\u2019s challenging, but it\u2019s a great feeling to be able to give back and have a loyal customer. Kmart is also a morally conscious company and is the biggest supporter of St. Jude Children\u2019s Research Hospital in Memphis. I am a breast cancer survivor, and Kmart also supports breast cancer research. A portion of the sales of a certain collection goes to this great cause. I love working with fabrics; my fabric line is by Fabricut and my particular line is called Trend. I also have my wigs, and even though I didn\u2019t have to have chemo, I saw many people who did. Hair is so much of a woman\u2019s identity. We made these wigs very affordable and they are gorgeous. My friend Jose Eber came in and worked with us on them, and they are out there with Paula Young. You can also see the wigs on my website: jaclynsmith.com. The value is just tremendous.<\/p>\n
tg: Which is your favorite role, your career in acting or in business?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
JS: I don\u2019t think my entrepreneurial success would have come without my acting career, so I am very grateful for that. The acting is something so personal. It is a joy, and it defined me and gave me emotional and financial independence. With acting I could pick up my kids and travel. The business part of my career is more challenging because it\u2019s ongoing, but I think God has a plan. I still do the odd movie if I love it. I recently did a Hallmark movie because they are heartwarming and always have a happy ending. My first love is always family \u2014 my children and my husband. They make my world go round. I would have to say that because of the way my career started, acting is my favorite. It made all the others possible.<\/p>\n
tg: Would you talk a bit about the skin care products you developed with your husband, Dr. Brad Allen? Where can they be purchased?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n
JS: The products are absolutely wonderful and are available on my website: jaclynsmith.com<\/a>. You don\u2019t have to purchase the whole set. If you prefer, you can purchase the retinol cream or the eye cream, and they are a very good value. My husband put his heart into these and developed products adding cutting edge, anti-aging ingredients. I\u2019m really proud of these products. My day cream is three creams in one and I don\u2019t go a day without it. It includes a UVA and UVB sunblock, a primer, a moisturizer \u2014 and it contains pearl dust and diamond dust, which reflect light. When you reflect light fewer lines show.<\/p>\n