Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘To the Winner’

Game show

In “Family,” an eighth-season “Dallas” episode, Jamie (Jenilee Harrison) joins J.R. (Larry Hagman), Sue Ellen (Linda Gray), Bobby (Patrick Duffy) and Jenna (Priscilla Beaulieu Presley) for dinner at Southfork.

SUE ELLEN: Well, I think it’s time that we welcomed Jamie officially. So I’d like to propose a toast to the newest member of the Ewing family. Welcome. [Everyone raises a glass and drinks.]

JAMIE: Thank you.

JENNA: I thought that was going to be me.

JAMIE: When are you and Bobby getting married?

JAMIE: [Looks at Bobby, smiles] Uh, one of these days.

J.R.: Well, Jamie, now that you’re a member of the family, we have certain traditions we like to adhere to.

JAMIE: Oh?

J.R.: One of them is dressing for dinner. [Sue Ellen looks crossly at him.]

JAMIE: Well, I’d sure like to but this is as good as it gets.

J.R.: Oh, I take it you don’t own a dress?

JAMIE: Just the one I got to church in, and that’s not near fancy enough for this.

JENNA: [Winks at Sue Ellen] I think we can fix that. I happen to own a boutique. [Bobby clears his throat.] Well, sort of. [Laughs]

SUE ELLEN: That’s right, so we’ll go shopping tomorrow.

JAMIE: I can’t. I don’t have enough money, at least not for clothes.

SUE ELLEN: We’d appreciate the chance to buy them for you. [J.R. does a double take.]

JAMIE: I’m sorry, but you’ve done enough for me just by letting me stay here for a while.

SUE ELLEN: Jamie, it would really give me pleasure.

JENNA: And me.

BOBBY: Look, Jamie, I think I know how you feel, but you should pick up a few things. You might need them.

JAMIE: Lookit, I really appreciate the offer, but I’ve been fixing to get a job. Pay my own way.

BOBBY: What would you do?

JAMIE: I’m not sure. But this is Texas, and one thing I do know about is the oil business. [Smiles]

J.R.: Is that a fact?

JAMIE: [Seriously] Yeah.

J.R.: I suppose that’s from hanging around Jason.

JAMIE: From working with him.

J.R.: Oh, yeah? Where?

JAMIE: All over. Mostly Alaska, though, lately.

J.R.: Hmm. Where in Alaska?

JAMIE: Kenai Peninsula, Point Barrow, the Umiat anticline, Prudhoe Bay.

J.R.: Umiat, huh? Well, I guess you met the man who ran that operation up there?

JAMIE: Slim Whitaker? Nah, I never met him. Heard an awful lot about him, though.

J.R.: Yeah, old Slim. He was the first one to use the drag bit up there.

JAMIE: Not at the Umiat. Drag bit’s for soft formations. [Sue Ellen smiles, dabs a corner of her mouth with a napkin.]

J.R.: What would he have used?

JAMIE: Probably a diamond drill core bit. Maybe a rotary.

BOBBY: I heard he had some pretty hard formations up there.

J.R.: Bobby did a lot of drilling up in Canada. Real hard, frozen.

JAMIE: [Smiles] Oh, really? Did you use the Stratapax? It worked real good at Point Barrow.

BOBBY: No, I didn’t have any luck at all with them.

JAMIE: Oh, so what’d you use?

J.R.: Don’t you know?

JAMIE: No, I wasn’t there. Of course, there was an awful lot of talk about them using a Tundra something or other.

BOBBY: That’s right, the Tundra Torque. That’s it.

JAMIE: [Smiles] Yeah, I knew it was something like that.

J.R.: Uh, just one more thing. In Prudhoe, how deep did they have to drill their test well?

JAMIE: I don’t know. Why you asking me all these questions?

J.R.: Because anybody in the oil business ought to know the answers to them.

JAMIE: Oh, really? Well, how many producing wells are at the Kenai right now?

J.R.: [Pauses] Twenty-four.

JAMIE: A hundred and three. [Bobby stifles a laugh, clears his throat]

SUE ELLEN: Well, if your little game is over, J.R., I’d like to finish dinner.

BOBBY: Yeah, so would I. That’s if you’re through, J.R.

J.R.: I’m through. [Sticks a forkful of food into his mouth] For now. [Smiles]

BOBBY: [Looks at Jamie, raises a glass] To the winner.

SUE ELLEN: [Raises a glass] To the winner.

Watch this scene in “Family,” available on DVD and at Amazon and iTunes, and share your comments below.