Deep in the Heart of Texas: Reflections of Former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders

by Suzette Scholz, Stephanie Scholz, Sheri Scholz

Reflections of Former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders

237 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1991

Reviews

[Susan Saraceno · Rating 1 out of 5]

Started reading this in April 2022. I had read a blip about how horrible the Dalla Cowboys Cheerleaders were treated and this book is supposed to be a first hand account of three sisters and their time with the cheerleaders. The beginning part of this book reads like the former cheerleaders justifying their decision to stay cheerleaders, ignoring the abuse. I didn't finish it, although I might when I get bored.

[Stephanie A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

As someone who spent most of her life only vaguely aware that the NFL even had cheerleaders, I obviously was neither around for the time period discussed in this book nor knew any of the names/figures involved. But as someone who grew up taking dance classes and spent the last third of 2021 binge-watching Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team, I am now kind of obsessed with this world and fully understand its siren song. Naturally, once I'd seen the better part of 14 seasons, the next step was to go looking for books about the experience. This was the first one I found.

I was mostly drawn in by the promise of it being soapy/gossipy and dishing on scandalous stuff, but while there is a little of that in there, it's "not an expose," as per the main author Stephanie, "Americans think they want to hear trash, but they don`t.'' (x)

Instead, it's a combination look at how the wealthy sisters were raised/the trajectory that led them to the team, anecdotes about their teammates (all under pseudonyms, though I bet with the power of the internet you could identify them now), and their experience of being on the team, or at least what it was like then -- there are both similarities and differences from what we see on the show today.

I do love that they dish on the making of a movie I didn't know existed, in which Jane Seymour was apparently not only stand-offish to the cheerleaders, but actively furious about being in this film that she was certain was going to ruin her career. Otherwise, beyond a brief mention of some girls using cocaine for weight management, their main beef seems to have been with the director, Suzanne Mitchell, whom they describe as an incredibly harsh taskmaster not averse to playing mind games.

But there are more happy memories than not, and it seems that aside from the constant pressure to be drastically underweight, the sisters -- or at least the two elder ones (there is limited input from the youngest, who wasn't even on the team for a full year) -- came away generally happy with their time as cheerleaders, or at least the fame and opportunities it afforded them.

All in all, a fun and entertaining read. I also liked the pages of photos in the center; I was curious what they all looked like and it was nice to see a picture of their larger-than-life, always-dressed-to-the-nines-outside-her-front-door mother as well.

P.S. I didn't think to check the timelines before I started reading, and I only just now realized that the older sisters cheered alongside Judy Trammell from 1980-82. I'm not going to read it again to see if she might have been hinted at as one of the girls featured in an anecdote, but I'm curious to know if anyone with more knowledge of that era can tell.

[Meg · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting and scandalous. If you are interested in scandalous stories from the DCC back in the 70's and 80's, this book would interest you.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like things that are a little bit weird, this might be a good book for you. I clearly loved it.

[Jerry-Mac · Rating 4 out of 5]

I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/14489239