Dancing Baby Clothes Right Out of Ally-ville

One of TV’s most striking images last season was on “Ally McBeal,” when the young heroine frolicked in her pajamas with the dancing baby, the wildly popular Internet phenom. That’s when a light went off in the licensing and merchandising division of 20th Century Fox.

“Why couldn’t we market a line of pajamas?” asked Steve Ross, president of merchandising.

Last Christmas, Fox came out with isms--a lounge wear line of boxers, pajamas, nightshirts and briefs dotted with such “Ally-isms” as “Ex-boyfriends don’t have rights” and “Everything’s my business.”

The show’s audience, Ross said, is an upscale, sophisticated group that won’t go for logo-inspired clothes. The line, priced at $28 to $78, was such a success that it practically sold out at Bloomingdale’s over the holidays. And it’s now available at Nordstrom, Fred Segal and other boutiques around the country.