America’s’ Sweetheart- Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders

[CormorantStrikesBack]

Watched this yesterday and loved it. Great behind the scenes if making the cheerleading team. Felt so bad for the ones who were cut and how unintentionally bitchy the judges/decision makers were at times.

does anyone know where I can watched the old documentary on the Dallas cheerleaders called Making The Team? It had 16 seasons but I can’t find it anywhere.

Following as we’ve just started the Netflix series and I’d like to see the original show.

I don’t know where you can watch it but is was brutal. Kellie and Judy have had some serious media training since the good ‘ole days. God knows they needed it. They were foul.

I still thought they were fairly awful. Am super keen to see the original stuff. There’s a load of videos on YouTube but mainly clips not full episodes and not in any order.

They are positively angelic in the new series!!

There's a big thread here on it

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5104157-americas-sweethearts?page=7&reply=136436606

I personally think it is horrendous how they are treated with regards to pay and health care insurance and also the terms and conditions they have to adhere too (if they are in a restaurant and a player walks in they have to walk out or face being fired). And yet with all that I was totally addicted to watching it.

I saw an old series on MTV today. Just checked and loads of episodes available on Sky

Thanks, I haven’t got sky sadly. Only virgin. Will check out the other thread.

I'm in Ireland but presume MTV is the same in the UK.

It's on MTV every morning from 7.30ish to around 10am. It's pretty much been on a loop for months now, they show from Series 3 to Series 16 then back to Series 3 again (Series 1 and 2 are never shown).

Thanks, have set a series record. Looks like it’s on every morning early.

It's all on Paramount

I've watched lots of the old series in previous years and loved them all. Poor Victoria, I remember the first year she tried out and failed. She is always on the edges and always desperate to fit in and get some love from Kellie and Judy. I think she's ND personally and i'm really glad she's decided not to put herself through it all again.

There was a big hooha a few years back about how little the cheerleaders got paid. It was interesting that is was addressed this series with the owner going on about how many other things they get from it - I thought what a load of misogynistic bollox. The reason they get paid so little is because they're girls, the footballers could get just the same things out of it if they were unpaid - but no one would dream of expecting them to do it for next to nothing.

It's really awful but I still love it. If you like this and haven't already seen it then I highly recommend 'Cheer'. There are 2 seasons on Netflix.

The Netflix show is much more polished/edited than the original series which concentrated on the audition process. Like both series. Being a cheerleader is like a vocation to the girls! The pay is indeed low compared to that of the footballers but the girls know this before they sign up and I do think the organisation looks after them. It is a brutal process.

I enjoyed watching this but shocked at how hard they have to work and how little they get paid. So many of them with fantastic careers then doing this on top of that. The routines were amazing!!!

When the pay issue blew up before it wasn't just that they get paid a lot less than the footballers.
They got paid an awful lot less than the mascot.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5840815/amp/Dallas-Cowboys-cheerleader-demands-equal-pay-overtime-suit-says-mascot-four-times-more.html

The whole thing was bloody weird. I think the programme was ultimately edited to expose the company as the ludicrous farce it is. The one who was clearly mentally unwell was so sad to watch..doing a tiktok then eating birthday cake with her Mum on their own. She was so so desperate for approval. The husband of the chirpy Christian looked low key depressed. He's relocated and ended up in a random job he clearly didn't enjoy. I found it weird how they talked about proportions as a way to essentially highlight body fat and shape that didn't meet with approval. I found the women to be very.... Empty. Lots of surface girl time lovey dovey but come on.... It's not real life surely? Right down to the old man with the calendar? It clearly showed that they were wheeled out to impress. I mean, even the tour of the Texas stadium with the owner meet and greet which turned out to be a recording. Bit like the Wizard of Oz, and he didn't even answer the question. I'm more annoyed that the mentally unwell girl revealed she had depression and an ED and yet she still was surrounded by people who encouraged her to put herself into something that damaged her wellbeing. It's just so.... Antiquated. And gross. It's 2024 and young women are being sexualised and described as sweethearts. Gross.

I've just watched this and found it interesting (like many things that are so far removed from my own life !) Terribly tough on the girls that don't make it and felt very concerned for Victoria as pp have said, she seemed to be on the outside trying to fit in and felt the two trainers (?) were less warm to her than others - at least it came across like that on TV. Winced every time they did the splits - dread to think what that does to their bodies over time!!

I wish they'd get a proper wage. I think it's disgusting they have to survive on 4 hours sleep whilst working full time in other jobs. This is the most lucrative team in the NFL. They said they don't pay them a living wage, because they're doing it for the honour and tradition of being on the cheerleading team. That is such a load of bollocks. They could not pay the men on the football team a living wage for the same reasons, but we all know that doesn't happen. Pay these women a living wage!

I found Victoria and her mother to be very worrying, the mother was still desperately clinging to having been a DCC and had (I think) clearly made Victoria feel that unless she was one as well she was less than worthy. She was desperate to be accepted but the tears when they said she would never be a team leader was heartbreaking.

And it’s back!

On form in first two episodes.

The previous 16 series are on channel 5 on demand

I’m currently watching the seasons on channel 5 but I find it quite shocking and depressing when some of the girls are cut. Fair enough if they can’t dance well enough but the times when girls are cut for being “fat” even though they’re super slim don’t make the uniform look good enough or just plain
aren’t pretty enough (no they don’t say it directly but you know!) that just depresses me because they’re treated like blow up dolls.
Plus the audition process where some of the men appear to have no technical knowledge and are sitting commenting on young girls bodies, wether they’re hot or not and wether men will like them…that’s unpleasant.
It still makes addictive watching though.

is the new series on Netflix ?

Toxic stuff.