User:Pussycat Dolls (H)/sandbox

The '''Pussycat Dolls' are an American-British pop girl group and dance ensemble, founded in Los Angeles by choreographer Robin Antin, currently featuring members Melody Thornton, Ashley Roberts, Jessica Sutta and Kimberley Wyatt.

The group were originally formed as a burlesque troupe in 1995 but in 2003, Antin negotiated a record deal with Interscope Records, turning the group into a music franchise which developed a global image and commercial brand overseen by Antin, Interscope and various partners. The first line-up, which also featured Carmit Bachar and lead singer Nicole Sherzinger, released just one album, "PCD" in 2005 which was a worldwide hit and featured 5 US top 100 hits, including three top tens, and 5 UK top tens, including two #1 singles.

Bachar left the group in March 2008 and the group returned with their second album "Doll Domination" which despite not being as big a hit as their debut, solidified their status as the only girl group to release successful music internationally. After a world tour, Sutta was dropped from the group after breaking a rib. She was fired by Antin in January 2010. Just a day later, Roberts announced she had quit the group. In February 2010, Wyatt also announced her departure whilst Thornton's was announced in May 2010. It was announced that Sherzinger would continue in the group with a new set of girls but this was ended in December 2010 when Sherzinger quit the group.

After Antin tried to re-launch the group with a different line-up, it was announced that Thornton, Roberts, Sutta and Wyatt had brought rights to the music trademark from Antin and Interscope Records in December 2011. In late December 2011, the four girls announced they would be reforming the Pussycat Dolls as a quartet and would release their comeback single in January or February 2012.

Burlesque Group (1995-2002)
Antin began exploring the idea of a modern burlesque troupe during 1990 with Christina Applegate and Carla Kama. The dance troupe's first performance was in 1995. During this period which have seen many members in its evolving lineup since debuting in 1995, they performed with numerous guest vocalists, with a repertoire of 1950s and 1960s popular music standards while dressed in lingerie or old-fashioned pin-up costumes. They secured a Thursday night residency at a Los Angeles nightclub, The Viper Room, where they stayed from 1995 to 2001. The Pussycat Dolls were also featured in the 1997 Morgan Higby Night directed film Matters of Consequence.

The troupe received wider press coverage during June 1999, when Playboy featured a Pussycat Dolls pictorial, featuring at least seven contemporary members posing semi-nude (Kasey Campbell, Kiva Dawson, Antonietta Macri, Erica Breckels, Katie Bergold, Erica Gudis and Lindsley Allen). Three years later, the Pussycat Dolls moved to The Roxy. They were featured in magazines, television specials for MTV and VH1, ad campaigns, and movies. Some of the Pussycat Dolls appeared in the 2003 film Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, ancing to "The Pink Panther Theme". They were also featured in Pink's "Trouble" music video. Along with Christina Applegate, Christina Aguilera and Carmen Electra (who was the group's lead performer for many of their shows) the troupe was featured in a Maxim magazine shoot in 2002, which increased public interest in them.

Following their growing popularity, music producers Jimmy Iovine and Ron Fair became involved with the group helping them to transform into a franchise. The former dance troupe evolved into a popular music recording group and became employees of Iovine's label Interscope Records. The only troupe members who remained after the re-casting process were Robin Antin (taking on the creative, executive and managerial roles), Carmit Bachar, Cyia Batten, Kasey Campbell, Ashley Roberts, Jessica Sutta and Kimberly Wyatt. Electra, when asked about her lack of involvement with the group's evolution into a popular music group, she said, "I was part of [The Dolls] for over two years and did every show with them [...] but financially, I couldn't become part of their new music project [...] It was a sacrifice I couldn't make.