The Dallas Cowboys' Cheerleaders Swimsuit Calendar Shot on St. Kitts & Nevis

The boost in publicity the islands of St. Kitts and Nevis got because The Dallas Cowboys' Cheerleaders shot all photography there for their 1997 Swimsuit Calendar still reaps rewards, eleven years later. As a public relations feat that's quite good, and probably a Swimsuit Calendar record.

I know, I'm the public relations guy who set up the trip and Swimsuit Calendar photo shoot. I went along to make sure my client, St. Kitts and Nevis, received the expected publicity. Hey, it was a tough job, in the interest of promoting tourism, but somebody had to do it. Would you believe me if I said working on the Caribbean islands of St. Kitts and Nevis with The Dallas Cowboys' Cheerleaders was hard work? I didn't think so.

Why is that Swimsuit Calendar still a hot topic? For one thing St. Kitts and Nevis was a magnificent backdrop to show the beauty of the islands. Having The Dallas Cowboys' Cheerleaders prancing around in swimsuits for the calendar and a behind the scenes video couldn't hurt.

What makes this Swimsuit Calendar and one-hour video so popular? The airing every year since, in reruns, of the one-hour ESPN television special, "The Making of The Dallas Cowboys' Cheerleaders calendar in St. Kitts and Nevis." It was a double PR whammy: the swimsuit calendar and the video.

The video aired on August 20, 1996, and broadcast no less than five times on ESPN and ESPN2, including that year's Super Bowl on Sunday, January 27, 1997, when it was the pre-game show. The swimsuit calendar video aired five times the following year. Incidentally, January 27 is my wife's birthday. And, yes, she was on the trip and took the accompanying photo of me with The Dallas Cowboys' Cheerleaders.

Sixteen members of The Dallas Cowboys' Cheerleaders visited St. Kitts and Nevis for the Swimsuit Calendar photo shoot and video. The Cheerleaders were photographed in dozens of locations. Group size for the St. Kitts and Nevis trip, including photographers, hair and makeup people, etc., was thirty persons.