Dallas

"Dallas" is without question one of the most compulsively enjoyable television programs of all time. I watched it when it was first telecast and still watch the reruns.

Along with "Dynasty", "Dallas" defined '80s excess, Republican values, big hair and everything else. But "Dallas" was also a smartly written program, unlike "Dynasty", which was basically a cartoon (albeit a fun one). The miracle of "Dallas" was how it managed to retain it's major characters for nearly a decade, keep strong storyline pumping for them, unlike most soap operas, which drop characters left and right. But "Dallas" had some of the strongest-written characters in television history: ambitious J.R., dependant Sue Ellen, good-guy Bobby, prim-and-proper Pam, envious Cliff, unassuming Ray, and so many others, whose memory I cherish--Miss Ellie, Donna, Katherine, Mickey Trotter, etc....

Additionally, with the "Who Shot J.R.?" cliffhanger in 1980, "Dallas" created a new marketing tool the television continues to use to this day to retain audiences. Not just soap operas use the season ending cliffhanger; it's been effectively used by such shows as "Friends" and "Will & Grace" recently.

"Dallas" was for many years the most watched program on TV, and continues to be watched by devoted fans, many of them discovering its greatness thru reruns. One episode, and you'll be hooked, too.

Dallas was and still is a TV phenomenon. It took the model of the tired old American soap and turned it into something fresh, fascinating and compelling watched by millions of people around the world. It used for the first time the device of the cliffhanger at the end of the season to keep people coming back for more. Personally I believe the 1981-1984 central seasons were its high point with the titanic struggle between JR and Bobby for control of Ewing Oil plus other strong story lines.

What was the secret of its success and longevity? I believe this is down to 3 factors.

1. The story lines cleverly combined subjects that would appeal to a mass audience - love and sex, glamour, money and power, family problems, and controversial subjects for the time e.g. Sue Ellen's alcoholism that attracted interest and raised awareness.

2. Excellent writing with top notch scripts.

3. Superb acting from the key cast team. I have to single out Larry Hagman's performance as JR, I have never seen any performance to match it in any TV drama. He completely got under JR's skin and while he showed us what a monster the man was, he also made us aware of his redeeming features (particularly his strong sense of family) so that we never quite lost empathy for him. Patrick Duffy, Linda Gray and Ken Kercheval also gave remarkable performances as Bobby the 'good' brother who was never boring, Sue Ellen the wronged wife who eventually found a life of her own and Cliff, JR's neurotic, bungling rival who rarely managed to best him.

Dallas garners its own chapter in the history of television for several reasons. In its heyday this show was very popular! (The Who Shot JR episode remains one of the most watched programs of all time.) Dallas defined the 80's as the 'ME' generation, big hair and Republican values! JR Ewing takes his place as one of fictions most notorious villains. And the show itself conquered new territory. It was trashy television ... with bite!

The story centers around the Ewing family. Their lives center around oil and power (two things that mixed well in the 1980's). Their nemisis is the family Barnes, bitter rivals continuously looking for their fair share of an empire that they claim they helped to build.

The series opens up as Bobby Ewing brings home his new wife Pamela, first daughter to the Barnes family. The soap opera takes off and the sparks fly.

Over a 13 year run the show deals with all sorts of issues. Alcoholism (Sue Ellen is fabulous when she is sloppy!), infidelity, (JR sleeps with just about anyone with a skirt), drugs, impotence, politics, down syndrome, sibling rivalry, neurofibromatosis, breast cancer, divorce, child custody, homosexuality and physical abuse. And what's so great is that it deals with none of these topics well.

Dallas is not a show to be taken seriously, at least not on a cerebral level. If you want serious drama, watch Hill Street Blues. If you want something preachy, watch Facts of Life. Dallas is best watched with brain waves turned down to their lowest level, with a grain of salt and with an ear for catty drama!

Best storyline: Sue Ellen's drinking causes her to have the baby prematurely. No one knows for sure who the baby's real father is (Cliff or JR) - but Pam had better find out soon as she has just learned that she and Cliff are carrying a gene that could kill any children they intend to have. Complicated? Yes. But you gotta love it!

"Dallas" created some HUGE TV moments ... J.R. Ewing's shooting, the "Dream Season" and Bobby returning in the shower ...

Beyond that, though, I especially loved the writing of "Dallas," particularly in the working of J.R.'s various schemes, both at the Ewing Oil offices and offsite. He was just-plain the master manipulator, and while I don't encourage anyone to aspire to this kind of mastery(!), it sure was FUN to watch him in action! Yikes! The way he executed those deals seemed to set the show apart from rivals like "Dynasty."

I enjoyed the way the show evolved in the later seasons. In the last two seasons, in particular, there seemed to be this sophisticated edge that avoided insulting the viewer (as sometimes the campiness of "Dynasty" could). While "Dynasty" was busy being flashy (and hey, I liked that, too -- I was a teen when it originally aired, after all), "Dallas" was playing the game just a bit cooler, calmer, a touch more complicated. Plus, Jeannie aside, Larry Hagman was BORN to do that role. Meow!

to see Dallas for an East European is always a strange experience. under the Communist regime, it was a fairy tale. under the democratic regime - a promise. but, always, in a strange way, more than fiction. because Larry Hagman creates a spectacular bad guy, splendid mixture between Shere Khan and Darth Vader. because it has the gift to be more than one of many soap opera from the same period but a phenomenon. because, its spectacular longevity transforms the viewer in part of story. sure, all is a fiction . but the dose of reality is right for discover the trace of series in every day life. it has the right story and the right actors. this is its success roots. and the seal for a period looking the perfect story for understand the reality escaping from it.