Dallas was a popular, long-running American primetime television soap opera about the Ewings, a very wealthy Texas oil family. It initially aired on the CBS network for 13 seasons, from April 2, 1978 to May 10, 1991, replacing the long-running crime drama Kojak, which already ended its five-year run. It was broadcast around the world & is still considered to be the most successful drama series in television history, in or out of the United States. The Dallas series is probably best-known for the central character of J.R. Ewing, the vain, greedy, scheming, crass oil baron played by Fort Worth native Larry Hagman for the show's entire run. Ironically, J.R. was only meant to be a supporting character when the show premiered (the show was originally to be based around J.R.'s brother Bobby & his new bride Pam); however, the popularity of jr . took off & he became the focus of the series. Creator David Jacobs originally created & pitched Knots Landing, but CBS wanted a more glamorous show. Jacobs therefore created Dallas around a wealthy oil family. When Dallas proved to be a hit, CBS again turned to Jacobs to create a show, & Knots Landing was aired as a spinoff. Dallas started as a miniseries in April 1978 & was originally shot entirely on location in Dallas, Texas. Later, most interiors were shot at the MGM studios in Hollywood, CA. This show was known for its sex, intrigue, struggling for money & power. When the series began, the founder of Ewing Oil & patriarch of the Ewing family was Jock (veteran movie actor Jim Davis), who had a lot of experience working in the oil wells & had supposedly schemed his partner, Digger Barnes (David Wayne later replaced by Keenan Wynn) out of his share & only love, Miss Eleanor "Ellie" Southworth (veteran stage/movie actress Barbara Bel Geddes). Together they raised three sons, J.R. (played by Larry Hagman), Gary (David Ackroyd later replaced by Ted Shackelford) & Bobby (Patrick Duffy). J.R. was the oldest, scheming, evil Ewing son, who was unhappily married to a former Miss Texas, Sue Ellen Shepard Ewing (Linda Gray). When he was looking for something or somebody, he would pretty much stop at nothing to attain his goal. J.R. was frequently opposed by his younger brother, Bobby, who wasn't just a ladies' man, but was also handsome & had the morals & integrity his older brother didn't have. After the Ewing family's illegimate son (though this was not revealed until a later season) & ranch foreman, Ray Krebbs (Steve Kanaly) had a short fling with an attractive young woman, Pamela Barnes (Victoria Principal), who was Digger Barnes' daughter & Cliff's (Ken Kercheval) sister, Bobby married her; Ray was dejected by this. After the new marriage, J.R. continued to jeopardize the new family's relationship to his advantage as president of Ewing Oil. Throughout the many seasons, the Ewings lived on a ranch called Southfork in Dallas, Texas. Southfork was the previous home of Miss Ellie's family, the Southworths. During its second season, Lucy's (Charlene Tilton) mother, Valene (Joan Van Ark) arrived in Texas with Gary to reconnect the relationship they never had. Gary, an estranged son & black sheep of the clan who had been an outsider to his family tried to work for his brother but had found the work increasingly hard. J.R. was able to drive Gary & Valene away, leaving their only daughter to live at Southfork. Later, the following season, both Bobby & Miss Ellie had helped both Gary & Val out in purchasing a brand new house near the Fairgate Family's home (there was interplay between the two shows, especially during the early seasons), in California in a fictional suburban area called Knots Landing, after the two got remarried. Spoiler warning: Plot & /or ending details follow. Cast Larry Hagman (original cast) as John Ross "J.R." Ewing, Jr. Eldest son of Jock & Miss Ellie. Patrick Duffy (original cast) as Robert James "Bobby" Ewing (1978-1985, 1986-1991) Youngest son of Jock & Miss Ellie. Barbara Bel Geddes (original cast) (1978-1984, 1985-1990) & Donna Reed (1984-1985) as Eleanor "Miss Ellie" Southworth Ewing Farlow Jock's wife, whose family owned Southfork Ranch originally. Jim Davis (original cast) as John Ross "Jock" Ewing, Sr. (1978-1981) Founder of Ewing Oil & head of the Ewing family. Victoria Principal (original cast) (1978-1987) as Pamela Jean Barnes Ewing Bobby's wife, who is forced to act as a buffer between the two feuding families. Linda Gray (original cast) as Sue Ellen Shepard Ewing (1978-1989) J.R.'s long-suffering wife. Charlene Tilton (original cast) as Lucy Ewing Cooper (1978-1985, 1988-1990) Gary & Val's daughter. Saucy granddaughter of Jock & Miss Ellie. Ken Kercheval (original cast) as Cliff Barnes Pam's brother, whose schemes are aimed directly against the Ewings. Steve Kanaly (original cast) as Ray Krebbs (1978-1988) Ranch foreman; Jock's illegitimate son. Susan Howard as Donna Culver Krebbs (1979-1987) Political woman who marries Ray. Howard Keel as Clayton Farlow (1981-1991) Dignified, & sometimes hot tempered, oil baron. Miss Ellie's second husband, after the death of Jock. Priscilla Beaulieu Presley (1983-1988), Morgan Fairchild (briefly in 1978), & Francine Tacker (briefly in 1980) as Jenna Wade Bobby's first true love, before Pam. Dack Rambo as Jack Ewing (1985-1987) A wandering cousin. Sheree J. Wilson as April Stevens Ewing (1986-1991) Jack's ex-wife who eventually marries Bobby. George Kennedy as Carter McKay (1988-1991) Becomes the head of WestStar oil & the adversary of J.R. Cathy Podewell as Cally Harper Ewing (1988-1991) J.R.'s second wife. Lesley-Anne Down as Stephanie Rogers (1990) PR woman who plots to make Cliff a powerful political figure. Sasha Mitchell as James Richard Beaumont (1989-1991) J.R.'s illegitimate son. Kimberly Foster as Michelle Stevens Beaumont Barnes (1989-1991) April's sister. Barbara Stock as Liz Adams (1990-1991) Cliff's girlfriend during the final season. Important secondary characters Mary Crosby (1979-1981) & Colleen Camp (briefly in 1979) as Kristin Shepard Sue Ellen's scheming sister, who has an affair with J.R. & then shoots him in the famous cliffhanger. Ted Shackelford (1979-1981) & David Ackroyd (briefly in 1978-1979) as Garrison Arthur "Gary" Ewing Alcoholic black sheep of the Ewing family & Lucy's father, who moves away to California to star in the spin-off series Knots Landing. Joan Van Ark as Valene Ewing (1978-1981) Gary's wife & Lucy's mother. David Wayne (1978-1979) & Keenan Wynn (1979-1980) as Willard "Digger" Barnes Cliff & Pam's father, former partner & sworn enemy of Jock Ewing. A legendary prospector but erratic personality, it was implied in Dallas: The Early Years that Digger could smell oil underground. Tina Louise (original cast) as Julie Grey (1978-1979) J.R.'s secretary & mistress in the beginning. John Ashton as Willie Joe Garr (1978-1979) One of J.R.'s business associates, involved in a deal based on the infamous Red Files. Don Starr as Jordan Lee (1978-1990) A member of the cartel. Fern Fitzgerald as Marilee Stone (1978-1990) Promiscuous female member of the cartel, whose husband committed suicide after losing money in a deal with J.R. Barbara Babcock as Liz Craig (1978-1982) Pam's boss at The Store. George O. Petrie as Harv Smithfield (1979-1991) The Ewing family's attorney. Tom Fuccello as Senator Dave Culver (1979-1991) Donna's stepson. Jared Martin as Steven "Dusty" Farlow (1979-1982, 1985, 1991) Clayton's son & Sue Ellen's one-time lover. Randolph Powell as Alan Beam (1979-1980) Smooth-talking, ambitious lawyer who works for J.R. & was briefly engaged to Lucy. Martha Scott as Patricia Shepard (1979 & 1985) Sue Ellen & Kristin's mother. Leigh McCloskey as Mitch Cooper (1980-1982, 1985, 1988) Lucy's husband & Afton's brother. Morgan Woodward as Punk Anderson (1980-1988) Oil executive & good friend to Jock & Miss Ellie. Joanna Cassidy as Sally Bullock (1980-1981) Shipping magnate who sleeps with J.R. Morgan Brittany as Katherine Wentworth (1981-1984, 1985, 1987) Wicked half-sister of Pam & Cliff, who shot Bobby. Priscilla Pointer as Rebecca Blake Barnes Wentworth (1981-1983) Mother of Pam, Cliff & Katherine. William Smithers as Jeremy Wendell (1980-1981, 1984-1989) Head of the powerful WestStar Oil & proverbial thorn in J.R.'s side. Audrey Landers as Afton Cooper (1981-1984, 1989) Mitch's sister & aspiring singer who becomes Cliff's girlfriend. Susan Flannery as Leslie Stewart (1981) A public relations agent who works with Ewing Oil & secretly tapes her conversations with J.R. Deborah Rennard as Sylvia "Sly" Lovegren (1981-1991) J.R.'s secretary. Deborah Tranelli as Phyllis Wapner (1981-1991) Bobby's secretary. Sherill Lynn Rettino as Jackie Dugan (1979-1991) Cliff's secretary. Alice Hirson as Mavis Anderson (1982-1987) Punk's wife & Miss Ellie's close friend. John Beck as Mark Graison (1983-1984, 1985-1986) Pam's one-time fiancé who owns & operates Graisco. Lois Chiles as Holly Harwood (1982-1983) Oil heiress who becomes involved in a complex scheme with J.R. & causes Sue Ellen to drink again. Timothy Patrick Murphy as Mickey Trotter (1982-1983) Ray's rebellious cousin who becomes involved with Lucy. Christopher Atkins as Peter Richards (1983-1984) Young lover of Sue Ellen & mentor to little John Ross. Omri Katz as John Ross Ewing III (1983-1991) J.R. & Sue Ellen's son. Shalane McCall as Charlie Wade (1983-1988) Jenna's daughter. Alexis Smith as Lady Jessica Farlow Montford (1984, 1990) Clayton's criminally insane sister. Daniel Pilon as Renaldo Marchetta (1984-1985) Jenna's ex-husband & Charlie's father. Jenilee Harrison as Jamie Ewing Barnes (1984-1986) Cousin to the Southfork Ewings who marries Cliff. Deborah Shelton as Mandy Winger (1984-1987) A model who becomes one of J.R.'s many mistresses. Joshua Harris as Christopher Ewing (1985-1991) Bobby & Pam's adopted son, biological son of Kristin Shepard & Jeff Farraday. Barbara Carrera as Angelica Nero (1985-1986) Exotic businesswoman who dangerously tangles with J.R. Steve Forrest as Ben Stivers/Wes Parmalee (1986) Ranch hand who claims to be Jock. Jack Scalia as Nicholas Pearce (1987-1988, 1991) Stockbroker who becomes infatuated with Sue Ellen. Andrew Stevens as Casey Denault (1987-1989) Young hustler who works for J.R. Leigh Taylor-Young as Kimberly Cryder (1987-1989) Daughter of the largest owner of WestStar stock, whom J.R. tries to marry in order to gain control of the company. Beth Toussaint as Tracy McKay Lawton (1988-1989) Carter McKay's daughter who becomes involved with Bobby. J. Eddie Peck as Tommy McKay (1989) Son of Carter McKay, a drug dealer. Jeri Gaile as Rose Daniels McKay (1989-1991) Carter's young wife. Ian McShane as Don Lockwood (1989) Film director who directs Sue Ellen's idea for an unflattering film about J.R. Gayle Hunnicutt as Vanessa Beaumont (1989-1991) Old flame of J.R.'s & James' mother. Susan Lucci as Sheila Foley (1990-1991) Psychotic kidnapper. Barbara Eden as LeeAnn de La Vega (1990-1991) Old girlfriend of J.R. who plots revenge against him. "A House Divided" & "Who Done It?" — The 1979-1980 season ended with the show's anti-hero, J.R. Ewing, being shot (in the episode A House Divided). Viewers had to wait all summer (and most of the fall due to a Hollywood actors' strike) to learn whether J.R. would survive, & which of his many enemies was responsible. "Who Done It?" aired on November 21, 1980, with the revelation that Sue Ellen's sister Kristin, shot him in a fit of anger. It was one of the highest-rated episodes of a TV show ever aired. A session of the Turkish parliament was even suspended to allow legislators a chance to get home in time to view the episode. The great success of this stunt helped usher in the practice of ending a television season with a big cliffhanger. This entered into United States popular culture, with t-shirts printed with such references as "Who shot J.R.?" & "I Shot J.R.!" being common over the summer. Charles Rocket, an actor on Saturday Night Live's controversial 1980 season, lost his job after he cursed on-air in reference to "who shot J.R.". The cliffhanger was also made reference to in the The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air episode "As the Will Turns"; when Will was trying to get fired from a television show via a ridiculous monologue that incorporated elements from numerous TV shows, he says that he's "the guy who shot J.R." (as well as the sheriff). The Simpsons paid homage to "Who Shot JR?" with their own "Who Shot Mr. Burns?" contest. Mr. Burns is Springfield's resident multi-millionaire & is often a leading antagonist on the show. There was a nation-wide poll where viewers were allowed to write in who they believed shot Mr. Burns, & everyone in town was a suspect. The winners' names were displayed in the revelation episode, where it was revealed that Maggie Simpson, the baby, had shot him. "The Fourth Son" — Steve Kanaly, who played the role of ranch foreman Ray Krebbs, was growing frustrated with the direction of his character & was heavily considering leaving Dallas altogether. In 1980, while playing racquetball with Larry Hagman, Kanaly was convinced in a conversation that if any of the actors on the set resembled a son of Jock Ewing it would be him. Hagman dreamt up a storyline that Ray Krebbs would be the illegitimate son of Jock. With some convincing, Hagman then persuaded Leonard Katzman that the idea would work. However, previous episodes portrayed Kanaly having an affair with Jock's granddaughter, Lucy Ewing, so Katzman let the on-screen affair die-off & be forgotten before they utilized the storyline. It was originally slated to develop in the episode, "Dove Hunt", with Jock revealing the surprise in confidence to J.R., but this idea was nixed. Instead, the storyline unfolded on December 12, 1980. Ray's supposed father, Amos Krebbs (William Windom), who left him as a small boy, would show up on Ray's doorstep (with Ray wanting nothing to do with him). Amos Krebbs would later meet Jock & produce a diary belonging to his wife, Margaret Krebbs, Ray's mother, in which she admitted having an affair with Jock during the end of World War II. Margaret writes of Ray's first birthday & wishing his father (Jock) could be there. This was a landmark episode because it elevated Ray's status with the entire Ewing clan & also served as a basis for future storylines where Ray, J.R., & Bobby would unite as brothers & fight as Ewings. "Swan Song" — In the 1984-85 season ending cliffhanger, Jenna Wade, Bobby Ewing's fiancee is released from prison. (She was in it earlier in the season for a false accusation of murder against her ex-husband.) J.R.'s wife Sue Ellen has started drinking again, & thinks that she has seen her ex-lover Dusty Farlow. Bobby Ewing is unsure if he wants to marry Jenna, because he has started to have feelings for his ex-wife Pam. Lucy Ewing decides to marry her ex-husband Mitch Cooper, & the wedding is held at Southfork. Jenna can see at the wedding that Bobby is acting different, & she figures out that he is in love with Pam. After the wedding Bobby goes & proposes to Pam. She accepts! The next day, when Bobby is leaving to go tell Jenna that it's over, he gets hit by a car driven by his ex-sister-in-law Katherine Wentworth. He is then taken to the hospital & dies. "Blast From The Past" — One of the show's stars, Patrick Duffy, left the program in the spring of 1985. His character, Bobby, was plowed down by a car & died, on camera, on May 17, 1985. With ratings falling, & Duffy's career at a standstill, he agreed to return to the show for the 86-87 season. With Duffy in tow, the producers ended the 1985-1986 season (on May 16, 1986) with an episode in which a series of spectacular events take place (including an explosion in J.R.'s office), culminating in a scene where Pam wakes up in bed, to be greeted by Duffy emerging from a shower. In the closing credits for that episode, there was the bizarre credit of "Also Starring Patrick Duffy as ", leaving doubt as to exactly whom Duffy was portraying. Fans had to wait until September 26 to learn how the writers would explain his return. Most were disappointed with the solution, a pure deus ex machina: Pam had dreamt the entire previous season (1985-1986), including Bobby's death (an example of retroactive continuity, or a retcon). This caused a conflict elsewhere, as references to Bobby's death were made in the spin-off TV show, Knots Landing. After this, Dallas & Knots Landing effectively cut ties as they then took place in different universes. "Fall of The House of Ewing" — This cliffhanger marked the end of a contract player, as Victoria Principal had decided to leave the show after 10 seasons. The storyline had Pam returning to Southfork after phoning Bobby telling him after all their struggles to conceive a baby, she could finally be pregnant. Suddenly, an oil truck comes out of nowhere & a distracted Pam crashes into it, igniting a huge fireball. Pam survives the accident but is left with third degree burns. While in the hospital, she is suddenly whisked away, leaving no trace. Later in the season, she divorces (by mail) Bobby, giving him custody of their adopted son, Christopher. In subsequent seasons it is revealed that Pam was dying & chose to let her family believe that she had left, thus sparing them the trauma of watching her deteriorate. "Conundrum" — This, the series finale, saw a despondent & drunk J.R., having lost almost everything with meaning to him, roaming around Southfork with a gun, contemplating killing himself. In a sequence reminiscent of It's a Wonderful Life, an angel (played by Joel Grey) visits J.R. & shows him what life would be like if he had never been born. In this alternate reality, Gary had taken over Ewing Oil, & had eventually run it into the ground. The stress of seeing his beloved company ruined had killed Jock, & Miss Ellie had soon followed. Among the things J.R. sees are the selling (and demolition) of Southfork, on which tract houses called Southfork Estates were built (by Jason Ewing, who would have been J.R.'s replacement in the family); Gary Ewing as a successful divorce lawyer (who never married); Bobby Ewing as a down-and-out divorcee struggling to make alimony payments to his wife & pay off his gambling debts to Carter McKay (who owns a casino); Sue Ellen as a successful actress who never had a drinking problem; Cliff Barnes as Vice President of the United States; Ray as an ordinary ranch hand (who had never learned of his Ewing ancestry) who has a happy family despite Ray's dead-end job; Cally (J.R.'s second wife) as a battered spouse who kills her husband; & Kristin Shepard (who never was killed at the end of the 1980-81 season) as a successful con artist. J.R. doesn't like any of this, & the angel is revealed to be a minion of Satan...at which point J.R. wakes up, thinking it's a dream. The minion reappears in J.R.'s mirror, egging him on to pull the trigger, which he does—just as Bobby walks into the house. He runs into J.R.'s room, sees the damage, & says "Oh, my God"—at which point the episode ends, as well as the series. (This was later resolved in the TV movie "JR Returns.") Production details Produced by Leonard Katzman, the "Dallas" television series was one of the first to be distributed globally. "Dallas" was eventually translated & dubbed into 90 languages in over 67 countries, a record that to this day still stands for an American television series. The "Who Done It?" episode of "Dallas" that revealed "Who shot J.R.?", the famous 1980 cliffhanger, received the highest domestic ratings at that point with over 90 million American viewers tuning in for the answer. The last episode of M*A*S*H in 1983 finally beat the ratings; however, internationally "Dallas" still holds the record for the highest rated episode with nearly 360 million viewers tuning in to see who shot J.R. A spin-off series, "Knots Landing", ran from 1979 to 1993. Ratings The show's seasonal rankings were as follows. #12 (Miniseries, 1978) #10 (Season 1, 1978–79) #6 (Season 2, 1979–80) #1 (Season 3, 1980–81) #1 (Season 4, 1981–82) #2 (Season 5, 1982–83) #1 (Season 6, 1983–84) #2 (Season 7, 1984–85) #6 (Season 8, 1985–86) #11 (Season 9, 1986–87) #22 (Season 10, 1987–88) #30 (Season 11, 1988–89) #43 (Season 12, 1989–90) #61 (Season 13, 1990–91) Dallas cliffhangers Spoiler warning: Plot & /or ending details follow. Dallas was notable for its cliffhangers. Throughout the series' run, every season ended with some sort of cliffhanging ending designed to drive ratings up for the season premiere the following year. Miniseries cliffhanger: Although this really wasn't a cliffhanger, the end of the fifth episode of this pilot miniseries saw J.R. go up to the loft of the barn to talk to Pam, who had gone up there to escape the wild time at the barbecue that was going on during the episode. J.R., intoxicated, tries to convince her to tell Bobby not to leave the ranch. However, she doesn't want to be bothered, & in trying to escape J.R. she falls off the loft, landing square on her stomach. Resolution: Pam, who was pregnant with Bobby's child at the time, lost the baby & had her ability to conceive afterwards called into question. Season One cliffhanger: Sue Ellen's drinking problem has landed her in a sanitarium, where she is pregnant with a child she believes is Cliff Barnes' (although this would later be proven false). She escapes from the sanitarium, gets drunk, & then gets into a severe car accident, putting her life & the baby's life in danger. The doctors deliver the baby, named John Ross Ewing III (after his father & grandfather), but he is very small on delivery & isn't out of the woods yet. Neither is his mother, who as the episode ends is clinging to life. A very distraught J.R. is watching his wife at the end of the episode in tears, saying that she's "just gotta live". Resolution: After a two part season premiere in which the child was kidnapped, John Ross is returned to the hospital & Sue Ellen recovers, although the doubt surrounding her newborn son's paternity lingers for a while afterwards (DNA testing finally puts the paternity question to rest). Season Two cliffhanger: To cap off a season where J.R. has angered nearly everyone in the state of Texas, someone comes into his office late at night & shoots him twice. Resolution: As a result of the shooting, J.R. is temporarily paralyzed from the waist down & faces a long recovery. An investigation into the crime is conducted, & eventually Sue Ellen (who was the prime suspect) confronts Kristin, her sister about the shooting...and the mystery is solved. Sue Ellen realized that that night she stormed into Kristin's apartment with gun in hand & very drunk. Kristin calmly gives her another drink knowing full well that she could barely stand. After putting her unconscious in her car she takes the gun & shoots J.R. with it, later planting it in the house to frame Sue Ellen. However, Kristin is pregnant with J.R.'s baby, so he refuses to have her prosecuted, fearing another scandal. It is later revealed that after leaving Dallas, Kristin almost immediately miscarries J.R.'s child. Wishing to be able to blackmail J.R. at a later date, Kristin quickly becomes pregnant again with boyfriend Jeff Farraday (Art Hindle), & later gives birth to a boy, Christopher, who she claims is J.R.'s child. Season Three cliffhanger: On his way to a late night business meeting with Bobby, Cliff notices a female body in the pool. He goes into the pool to see who it is (we are never told in this part who it is, although the viewer is led to believe it's Pam), then looks up to find J.R. standing on the balcony over the pool, right near a broken area where the person fell. Cliff, thinking J.R. did it, said, "She's dead. You bastard." Resolution: The body was revealed to be that of Kristin Shepard, who earlier that year was revealed to have shot J.R. Her cause of death was ruled to be a combination of drowning & a PCP overdose. In the months that follow, Kristin's boyfriend Jeff Farraday, desperate for money to repay various drug dealers & other lowlifes, "sells" the infant Christopher Shepard to Bobby & Pam, & he is raised as Christopher Ewing. Season Four cliffhanger: Cliff Barnes had been having a rotten year. First of all, his relationship with Sue Ellen (which had been rekindled that year) came to an end when Sue Ellen & J.R. decided to remarry after divorcing the previous season. To top it all off, thanks to J.R., Cliff nearly drove his mother's tool company into bankruptcy, causing him to lose his job. He ends up attempting suicide, & while he lays in a hospital bed, comatose, Sue Ellen tells J.R. that if Cliff dies they will not remarry. Resolution: Cliff emerges from his coma in the second episode of the season, & Sue Ellen & J.R. remarry later on, with Cliff humiliating himself during the ceremony. Season Five cliffhanger: A drunk Sue Ellen & Ray Krebbs' cousin Mickey Trotter are involved in a car accident just outside Southfork. Sue Ellen emerges unhurt, but Mickey is paralyzed & in a coma. After finding out that the driver of the other car was J.R.'s rival Walt Driscoll, out to kill J.R., Ray comes over to Southfork to confront J.R., blaming him for what happened. J.R. asks, "Are you drunk?" Ray replies, "No, I'm stone cold sober, & now I'm going to kill you." J.R., trying to stop Ray, throws a candle holder at him but misses him completely. In the process, another candle holder with lit candles falls & ignites a fire while Ray & J.R. brawl. J.R. knocks Ray out & tries to get upstairs to Sue Ellen & John Ross, who are asleep-or, in Sue Ellen's case, passed out drunk- & unaware of the fire creeping up to the second floor. Unfortunately, a falling beam knocks him down as Southfork burns around him. Resolution: J.R. was able to get to John Ross & they jumped out of his bedroom window together into the pool. Bobby saved Sue Ellen. Mickey Trotter awoke, but was despondent over his paralysis & relapsed into another coma, during which Ray pulled the plug on him. Ray was found guilty of manslaughter, but was given a suspended sentence by a compassionate judge. Season Six cliffhanger: Just like in season two, J.R. was crossing people left & right. & just like in season two, one night someone broke into his office at Ewing Oil & shot the man in J.R.'s office (who was sitting with his back to the assassin) three times. However, Bobby, sitting in the chair, takes the bullets & falls to the floor. Resolution: After rumors that the target was J.R., Bobby was revealed to be the target. It turned out that the obsessive Katherine decided if she couldn't have him no one will. Bobby survives, & she is eventually caught. Season Seven cliffhanger: Bobby reveals that he wants to remarry Pam (by this time the couple had been divorced for some time) & they agree to do so. After spending the night at Pam's house, Bobby is about to leave for Southfork to relay the news to his fiancee Jenna Wade, but is hit by a car trying to save Pam from being struck (by an escaped Katherine, who apparently died in the accident) & immediately goes into convulsions. He is rushed to the hospital, where after saying his final goodbyes to everyone, sheds one tear & dies. Resolution: see "Famous Episodes." Katherine, rumored dead, returned at the beginning of season ten. Season Eight cliffhanger: As stated before, Pam wakes up to find someone in her shower. She opens the door to find Bobby, alive & well. Resolution: see "Famous Episodes." Season Nine cliffhanger: Pam, on her way home from the doctor's after finding out she can conceive a baby, crashes into an oil tanker, which bursts into flames & engulfs the car, in which she is trapped. Resolution: see "Famous Episodes." Season Ten cliffhanger: After a long year which ended in a messy Ewing divorce, J.R., Sue Ellen, & Sue Ellen's beau Nicholas Pearce have a confrontation in J.R.'s high rise hotel suite. J.R. & Nick fight, & during the course of the fight Pearce goes over the balcony, & falls to his death. J.R. turns & is shot three times by Sue Ellen, who believes J.R. has murdered Nick. Resolution: J.R. recovers (in true Dallas fashion, he had been shot three times in chest, but not seriously wounded!), & they mutally agree not to press charges against each other. Season Eleven cliffhanger: Sue Ellen, tired of being mentally beaten down by J.R., gives him a preview of what could happen if she got her revenge on him, showing him her biographical movie that would make him "the laughing stock of Texas", & threatening to release it if he ever displeases her again. She then, triumphantly, walks out his life forever (or until the reunion movie, at least). Resolution: This never really was resolved, as no mention was made of the movie ever again. Season Twelve cliffhanger: After committing himself to a sanitarium in order to get a voting majority in Weststar Oil, J.R.'s plan backfires when Cally Harper, his latest scorned woman, & his illegitimate son James Beaumont coerce HIM into signing a property waiver, & ends with James tearing up J.R.'s release papers, forcing him to stay in the asylum. Resolution: After being placed in solitary confinement in the sanitarium & being diagnosed with paranoia, J.R. ends up leaving the sanitarium after bargaining with Cally. Season Thirteen cliffhanger: After being shown what life would be like without him & being egged on by the devil to kill himself, J.R. fires a gun in his room. Bobby enters looks down, exclaims "Oh my God!", & we are led to believe that J.R. Ewing has committed suicide. Resolution: This was not resolved (as this was the series finale), but it was later revealed in the first reunion movie that J.R. shot the mirror (where the devil was appearing to him) & left Southfork that night for a stay in Europe, where he remained for five years. References For the 55th NHL Allstar Game, CBC's opening was a spoof of Dallas' opening, using the same 1980s font & names like "Sidney Crosby", "Alexander Ovechkin", & Joe Thornton. In the Family Guy episode "Da Boom" (1999), the Y2K virus changes civilization for the worse. In a parody of "the return of Bobby Ewing" climax, Victoria Principal & Patrick Duffy reprise their roles in a live-action segment at the end of the episode, when Pam wakes up & tells Bobby, who is in the shower, that she just dreamt about the strangest episode of Family Guy. They pause, then ask, "What's Family Guy?" On the TV series Father Ted, a character named Tom wears a shirt that says "I shot J.R.". Mentioned in The Message by rapper "Grandmaster Flash" as, "My brother's doing fast on my mother's TV / Says she watches too much / It's just not healthy / All My Children in the daytime, Dallas at night / Can’t even see the game or the Sugar Ray fight. Introducing Saturday Night Live's 1986-1987 season, Madonna, who hosted the first episode of the dismally rated 1985-1986 season, read a statement from NBC that claimed the previous season of SNL was "all a dream, a horrible, horrible dream." Coincidentally, on another ill-fated SNL season (1980-1981), Charlene Tilton hosted an episode (which Larry Hagman had turned down) centered around the "shooting" of Charles Rocket, a parody of the Who Shot J.R. story arc, in which Rocket says "I'd like to know who the f... did it." For his use of the profanity, he was fired. On That '70s Show when Donna is caught drinking, Eric notes that she was "like Sue Ellen on Dallas". A couple of scenes on The Simpsons episode entitled "Who Shot Mr. Burns? (Part Two)" has Smithers' dream at the start of the show similar to Pam waking up & realizing Bobby's death was all a dream. Also, Smithers, thinking he shot Burns because he was drunk & he had a fired weapon on him, was similar to Sue Ellen during the Who Shot J.R.? mystery. In another episode, entitled (I Married Marge), Homer can also be seen wearing an "I shot J.R." T-shirt. In The Young Ones episode Time, the opening sequence & credits parody Dallas. In the DuckTales episode "Ducks of the West", Scrooge McDuck meets up with a cow-cowboy named J.R. Mooing, who is a parody of J.R. Ewing. In the last two seasons of The Drew Carey Show one of the opening montages is an homage to the opening of Dallas, containing Cleveland references. During a scene in The Wedding Singer, Frank Sivero, who plays Andy, refuses to leave the living room & says, "Hang on! I'm watching Dallas! I think J.R. might be dead or something! They shot him!" On The Parkers one episode consisted of a Dallas/Dynasty parody. On the ninth season of "Friends", an episode entitled The One With Phoebe's Rats we see Chandler watching television in his apartment. After hearing two gun shots, he sits up & says, "that's it?? It's over? Who Shot JR?" In the English soap opera "EastEnders" a story was created to intentionally spoof Dallas. The "Who Shot Phil?" story was an intentional parody of "Who Shot JR?" US sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel Air featured an episode in 1995 called "As The Will Turns", mocking soap operas. Will demands to be let out of his contract but when he is refused, wrecks the final scene, during which he says, "Yeah, I shot Carlos. & that's not all, I shot J.R. too. Also I shot the sheriff but I did not shoot the deputy (referencing Bob Marley as well)", referencing the "Who Shot J.R.?" storyline. During the mania surrounding "Who Shot J.R.?", "Happy Days" aired an episode in which the Fonz (Henry Winkler) was shot in the behind. Three different versions of the incident come forward, with the one told by Roger (Ted McGinley) being the most accurate. Fonzie, Chachi (Scott Baio), Roger & Potsie (Anson Williams) have gone camping. Fonzie & Chachi are at odds with Roger & Potsie trying to restore order. When Potsie intervenes, Fonzie tells him to mind his own business & shoves him hard enough that he hits the mantlepiece above the fireplace. This dislodges a mounted rifle, which discharges upon hitting the floor. Thus, the shooting is determined to have been an accident. The Jeffersons also had a Dallas parody through a script written Florence, the maid. The cast was George as G.R. Jenkins, Louise as Lou Weezy Jenkins, Helen as Ellen Wallis, Tom as Tim Wallis, Lionel as Leon Jenkins, & Jenny as Jannice Wallis Jenkins. There is even a scene in which G.R. is shot but fakes his coma to draw out the assailant -- Florence as Flossie. The surreal & offbeat soap-opera show Twin Peaks induced a national obsession similar to "Who Shot J.R.?". In this case it was "Who Killed Laura Palmer?" that started right at the very beginning of the show's run. Initially, Dallas was an extended pilot composed of five 60-minute episodes. The pilot generated enough popularity that the network decided to produce a standard weekly TV series. The pilot season is now referred to as season one officially by the DVD release on Warner Home Video. The series' thirteen-year span was able to delve into the history of the Southworth/Ewing family dynasties (a total of six generations). It included Enoch Southworth - Great,Great,Great Grandfather, Aaron Southworth - Great, Great Grandfather, Eleanor Southworth Ewing Farlow - Great Grandmother, J.R. Ewing-Grandfather, James Richard Beaumont- Father, & Jimmy Beaumont - Son. Exterior locations were shot at the Southfork Ranch, which is now a tourist attraction & a convention center. Formerly known as Duncan Acres, it is located in Parker, a small suburb north of Dallas & east of Plano. Many of the show's exteriors, including shots of each protagonist's respective skyscraper offices, were also shot in the Dallas area. The majority of the series' dramatic action was filmed in California at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios. The series was produced by Lorimar. Only once was interior shooting done at the real Southfork Ranch for dramatic purposes, that was for the 1998 TV movie, War of the Ewings. The 2004 Return to Southfork reunion was also filmed inside, but that was a documentary, not an actual dramatic "episode" as such. When the "Who shot J.R.?" media frenzy began, Larry Hagman tried to renegotiate his contract. Producers Philip Capice & Leonard Katzman thought of firing him & replacing him with Robert Culp (J.R.'s ambulance was to have crashed & caught fire, necessitating extensive plastic surgery). However, Hagman announced that he may be leaving the series in an appearance on British chat show Wogan during a promotional tour in the United Kingdom. The ensuing outcry led to the producers agreeing to Hagman's terms, increasing his salary & offering him a degree of creative input in the storylines. Larry Hagman & Ken Kercheval were the only cast members to stay with the series throughout its entire run. Kercheval, however, was not credited in the opening credits until the beginning of the third season. The Ewing's mansion shown in the pilot season was substantially larger than the one viewers were familiar with in the later TV series' episodes. Similarly, the interior of the Ewing mansion (with a seemingly endless supply of bedrooms for new cast additions) was much bigger than the exterior. Larry Hagman is the only actor to appear in all of the 357 episodes of the series, plus the two reunion movies. Larry Hagman, Patrick Duffy, Ken Kercheval, Linda Gray, & Steve Kanaly are the only actors to appear in both the first & last episodes of the series. A session of the Turkish parliament was suspended to allow legislators a chance to get home in time to view the episode revealing "Who shot J.R?" The communist government of Nicolae Ceausescu's Romania ran episodes of Dallas in the 1980s hoping that it would convince people that capitalism was corrupt & decadent. Instead it sowed discontent within the communist system, as viewers looked past the characters to the portrayal of American lifestyles. Soon after the government fell, a Romanian businessman created a Dallas-themed attraction complete with a replica of the Southfork Ranch, to celebrate the show's role in bringing down communism. The original Southfork ranch location (The Cloyce Box Ranch) where the initial five episodes of season 1 were filmed no longer exists, having been destroyed by fire. The series left that location at the end of the first season due to a request by the property owner, & moved to the ranch (Duncan Acres) where the series was filmed for the rest of its run. However, due to the expense of filming part of the season in Texas & part in California, exterior shooting at the Texas location ceased in the fall of 1989, & would not return there until the reunion movie Dallas: J.R. Returns in 1996. The frame still stands to this day of the original Southfork that was used in the pilot season in Frisco, Texas. There was also a 1980s computer game based on this TV series called Dallas Quest. Most of the buildings seen throughout the series in the show really exist in the Dallas skyline. For example, the original Ewing Oil building was in a building called the Renaissance Tower. Later on, through plot developments, JRE Enterprises operated out of a building called Fountain Place (to which Ewing Oil itself later moved to, & remained through the end of the series). In the TV movies, Ewing Oil operated out of the Bank of America Plaza. Likewise, Cliff Barnes' Barnes/Wentworth Oil operated out of a pair of buildings called "Campbell Centre I & II", which for a time in the 1990s were where the Belgian oil company Petrofina operated from in the Dallas area. Several episodes include shots of an abstract piece of sculpture on the grounds of the complex that features the Fina shield-shaped logo. One year into the production of "Dallas" the swarthy actor David Ackroyd was replaced by the blonde actor Ted Shackelford playing Gary Ewing. This was one of the typical Hollywood actor replacements in which the new actor doesn't even remotely resemble the initial one he or she replaces. However, Shackelford is much better known as Gary Ewing because of the long-running series Knots Landing. In Spring 2004, a primetime special was taped in which actors reminisced about their work on the series. It aired on November 7, 2004 on CBS, though it was delayed due to football. Sadly, actor Howard Keel (Clayton Farlow) had died earlier that same day. After Dallas ended, co-stars Patrick Duffy & Sasha Mitchell starred in a successful ABC sitcom, Step By Step. This was years after Duffy agreed to renegotiate his contract from Lorimar. Dallas probably inspired reality show The Will, which was infamous for being cancelled after a single episode. During the fourteenth & final season, Larry Hagman was reunited with former I Dream of Jeannie co-star Barbara Eden to play J.R.'s conniving ex-girlfriend, Lee Ann de la Vega. Subtly referencing the duo's former history on I Dream of Jeannie, Lee Ann revealed that her maiden name was Nelson, which was Hagman's last name on the sitcom. Linda Gray is the longest lasting female star on the show. She left after 11 years of playing Sue Ellen Ewing. Dallas has two reunion movies: JR Returns & War of The Ewings Larry Hagman, Linda Gray , Charlene Tilton, Steve Kanally & Patrick Duffy are still good friends today. In keeping with the tradition of honoring major cast members who passed on in real life, the Season 4 episode The Search was dedicated to Jim Davis, the patriarch, who died during the offseason. It included flashbacks, as memories, of Jock Ewing by the other cast members. After Davis' death the producers sent Jock Ewing to South America for oil exploration while they decided whether to replace the character but then they decided that Jock Ewing had to die as well. Each one of the rooms at Southfork is dedicated to a character as such there is: JR's master suite, Lucy's Yellow Texas Bedroom, Bobby's Cowboy Room, Miss Ellie's rose garden. In the living room of the mansion hangs a copy of the famous Jock Ewing (Jim Davis)/Southfork painting. The original patio breakfast table used for filming is on the patio where mean shots were filmed during the run of the series. One of the main tour guides at Southfork Ranch was the host of the segment that ran in 2006 when TVLand awarded Dallas the Pop Culture award. Dallas the Movie A feature length motion picture based on the Dallas story is presently in development. Actors signed on include: John Travolta as J.R. & Katie Cassidy as Lucy. Luke Wilson will play the role of Bobby Ewing. Also rumored are Sam Elliot as Jock Ewing, Shirley MacLaine as Miss Ellie & Lisa Rinna as JR's long-suffering wife, Sue Ellen. Director Robert Luketic was once attached to helm the project but has now moved on. The media reported he was unhappy with some casting choices, but did not specify which ones. Both Betty Thomas (I Spy) & British director Gurinder Chadha (Bend It Like Beckham) have subsequently been reported to be in negotiations to direct the film. In a BBC Radio Five Live interview on 21 April 2006, Gurinder Chadha confirmed her involvement in a movie version of Dallas. She claimed the script would be more "global" & that action would not necessarily be confined to the city of Dallas. Also, perhaps hinting at a more irreverent theme to the film, that one scene would show Miss Ellie hosting a charity event in aid of victims of the tsunami - by this meaning families who lost their oil rigs in the disaster. Jennifer Lopez was originally cast as Sue Ellen, but since left the role, for reasons as yet undetermined. In August 2006 Paris Hilton announced she was offered the role of Lucy Ewing, but believes she isn't ready for such a "demanding" role. However such an offer has not been verified. Marcia Cross was rumored to be in the running for the role of Pamela Ewing. This was later contradicted by Luke Wilson, who revealed in an interview that producers are keen to cast Jessica Biel in the part. Nothing has been said yet whether Biel has accepted or still in negotiations. In September 2006, it was announced that Luke Wilson, Shirley MacLaine, & Meg Ryan were all dropped leaving only John Travolta still on board. Reasons for doing so believe to be the director was dissatisfied with the casting choices. It was announced in April of 2007 that Olivia Newton-John was being considered for the role of "Pamela Ewing". The Second & Final page of the Lonympics selection, more more, The 10 most famous fictional Americans The 10 most famous aliens The 10 Most famous fictional Scottish_people A map of where different US films & TV programmes blanket across the USA are The Fave teams & Political parties of many of the famous A Great index of Comedy & joke sites, 100s of jokes, are 1 click away, A site stating which animals would be best at football, it is comical, with 2 teams competing, for the prize of the best animal soccer side A game where you have to play to win a US style presidential election, if you win you become the president & if you lose you lose, great fun. Our report on the history of racism, in US mainstream media, from the 1900s to 2006, & wonderings of what conclusions we can have, A short report. A who done it mystery where you have to discover who comitted the crime, a great 1920s style crime novel, The Murderous Butterfly Our fantasy Cycling game, It is the last competitive stage of the Tour De France, & you are a minute or so behind the winners, play this game & see if you can win the stage, of mountains & become Yellow Jersey winner The favourite foods of famous fictional characters Charlies Angels the facts A site saying somebody's achievements in computer games across their life so far The official Homepage of the Abominable Snowman Internet Resource Study Group. Reams of facts, views, history & fun on the elusive creature, The History Lounge - Where you can peruse & mull over a massive range of great historical related web sites. The Entrance to the INTERNET SAFARI, with real animals, most of us had never seen before. biggest forests, volcanoes, SOLAR SYSTEM RECORD BREAKERS, facts like the tallest mountain for the planets 10 Biggest Banks Histories Famous Gates Famous Walls Quizzes Famous Roads Internet Sea Safari, The Most Powerful Countries Ever 100s of fantastic websites http://www.lonympics.co.uk/ Dallas Cowboys