The Ottawa Citzen
November 10, 1998
Viewers just love Ally's pyjamas
You either love her or hate her, but everyone agrees, Ally McBeal's got great pyjamas.
Remember the episode where Ally is having nightmares because her biological clock starts ticking too loudly? Perhaps a vision of those little cyber-inspired "dancing babies" will refresh your memory.
The series' most talked-about show created quite a buzz -- as much for the interest in those jiggly infants as for the audience's obsession with the "Cloud Nine" and "Counting Sheep" pyjamas the star was sporting. Since the episode was aired, the show has been inundated with calls inquiring about those fun and funky printed jammies.
That's been music to the ears of the New York creators of Nick & Nora pyjamas, Steven Abrams and Linda Rae Tepper.
"We've changed the course of pyjamas," says Abrams, "Other companies are jumping on, but nobody carries as many designs as we do."
The creative duo have been watching the popularity of their retro- designed sleepwear expand over the last 15 years -- this year adding flannel sheets and children's sizes to the magic recipe.
And let's just say that celebrity endorsement hasn't hurt. The story goes that when Ally McBeal's costume supervisor, Loree Parral, presented the brushed-cotton flannel two-piece pyjamas to actor Calista Flockhart, she laughed and said, "Oh my gosh, I just got a pair of these for my birthday. I love them."
It would seem Ally's alter ego has had a change of heart since then, though.
According to Rachel Stanley, the show's latest wardrobe co- ordinator, Flockhart was asked to wear a pair of Nick & Nora pyjamas in the first episode of the current season.
"I just want to wear a T-shirt," she said. She was asked to put them on for a recent photo shoot and again she refused.
"There was such a to-do made about them last season," says Stanley of the Nick & Nora pyjamas. "I think she was just ready for a change."
People can call the Canadian distributor of Nick & Nora pyjamas (1-800-625-2125) to find out where they're available nearest to them. Nick & Nora pyjamas can also be ordered through the Victoria's Secret catalogue (1-800-888-1500) for $49 US .
