She's also an author, now out with her new memoir, "I Once Knew a Guy Named Charlie."
Her life would take on a life of its own when she shot to superstardom alongside Kate Jackson and Farrah Fawcett-Majors on TV's "Charlie's Angels." It was the start of something big.
"For three women to step into that territory, not as ornaments but as agents and competent and strong and, you know, really central in a story was unusual," she said. "So I think it really paved the way for women in television."
Fame could be scary. When Smith's son was born, she received a threatening phone call while she was in the hospital.
"I had to leave the hospital with armed guards," she said. "And I was frightened. I mean, yeah, the hospital wanted me out. So that's when celebrity can get a little overwhelming. I think every angel had restraining orders. Every angel, you know, went through some of these things. That was the most serious."
"Charlie's Angels" ran for five seasons, with Smith being the only "angel" to appear in every episode. She made $5,000 an episode the first season, and by the final season, she was making $100,000 a show.
Friendships were forged. Sisterhoods were cemented. In her book, Smith describes Fawcett-Majors as "an 8x10 glassy come to life." Smith said it was hard to write the chapter involving a time close to the end of Fawcett-Majors' life.
"The last dinner I had at this house, she said, 'I want those shoes you had on the other day,'" Smith added. "At that point, her legs were 10 times the size and we made a joke, you know, about Cinderella. But she said, 'I want them.' I said, 'You can have them.'"
Before Smith became the queen of the miniseries, and before her TV superstardom, she was a queen of commercials. She made more than 100 of them. She would go on to have a 40-year relationship with Kmart, the first celebrity "brand" of its kind. Smith became quite the businesswoman. Her latest endeavor is a fragrance called Jackie.
In "I Once Knew a Guy Named Charlie," among many things, she talks about her childhood, her two children, her four marriages, her fame and that famous white string bikini from "Charlie's Angels."
"That is what people remember," Smith said. "And I think I wore that bikini so much I didn't want it. But I now would like it. I would like it for my, you know, my grandchildren to see. I wore this white bikini, kids!"
Smith will be signing copies of her book Saturday at 11 a.m. in Los Angeles at the Barnes & Noble at The Grove.
On The Red Carpet is producing a 30-minute special called "On The Red Carpet Icons: Jaclyn Smith." It will air locally in the Los Angeles area on Saturday, Sept. 19, at 9 p.m. on ABC7. You'll also find it airing in other cities and on the On The Red Carpet YouTube channel.