The prime time soap opera that is Dallas was featured on CBS every week from 1978 to 1991. For 14 consecutive seasons Dallas managed to shock and awe its viewers with plot twists and cliffhangers aplenty. Though its storylines developed to include a slew of characters and surprising developments, at its core Dallas was about two extremely wealthy families – the Ewings and the Barneses – who competed with each other in the turbulent oil business. The Ewing family owned Ewing oil and lived on Southfork Ranch, while the Barnes family owned its own oil company. Both families always tried to manipulate one another and to undermine each other in their respective business deals.
The series began with a Romeo and Juliet-style storyline, in which golden boy Bobby Ewing and the lovely Pamela Barnes were married despite their families’ long-standing rivalry. Bobby’s older brother J.R., who was initially only written as a supporting character, quickly became a fan favorite due to his constant scheming and aggressive charm. He was subsequently bumped up to be a main character, while cementing his status as the antagonizing villain America loved to hate.
Dallas was known for its incredible cliffhangers, such in the episode that declared the entire ninth season to had only been a dream (this to allow actor Patrick Duffy, who played Bobby Ewing, to return to the show). Another fan favorite was the shocking cliffhanger that left everyone wondering who shot J.R.; to this day, that episode remains the second-highest rated primetime telecast show ever. Dallas won four Emmy Awards and remains a critically renowned and iconic series. Every one of its 357 episodes was loved dearly by its viewers, so much so that in 2012, TNT decided to revamp the show by making an updated continuation Dallas. The new Dallas series lasted 3 full seasons before concluding in 2014. Unsurprisingly, Dallas was featured in TIME magazine’s 100 Best Shows of All TIME.
Dallas was so good that people just couldn’t get enough, and in an effort to respond to the high demand, several spinoff series and TV movies based on the show were made. The most famous of these was the show Knots Landing, which featured the youngest Ewing brother and lasted 14 seasons. In light of Dallas’ immense success, it is interesting to note that it was originally only made as a 5-episode miniseries for CBS network, which was then extended into 14 full seasons due to the fans’ pressure on the network.
The cast of Dallas started filming in 1978. 39 years later, we decided to find out where these talented actors are now, and what have they’ve been up to in the past 4 decades.
[post_page_title]Larry Hagman as J.R. Ewing[/post_page_title]
John Ross “J.R.” Ewing was one of the most popular characters on the show, with J.R. being the only one to appear in every single one of its 357 episodes. J.R. is a manipulative and conniving oil tycoon who is always working on a plan to ruin his enemies – namely, Cliff Barnes. A shameless and ruthless mastermind, J.R. was named TV Guide’s Number 1 All-Time Villain. Nonetheless, it should be noted that J.R. was not pure evil, and that in addition to his intelligence and unapologetic nature, he was also defined by his fierce devotion to his family.
