Rebecca (Priscilla Pointer) comes clean to Pam (Victoria Principal) in this 1981 publicity shot from “The Prodigal Mother,” a fourth-season “Dallas” episode.
Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘You Are My Mother’
July 24, 2012 by 3 Comments
Mama remembers
In “Dallas’s” fourth-season episode “The Prodigal Mother,” Rebecca (Priscilla Pointer) approaches Pam (Victoria Principal) outside The Store and asks to walk with her.
REBECCA: Years ago, I closed a door in my mind. I sealed off a part of my life. And I thought it would be sealed off forever. It almost was. I led a comfortable life, happily married to a man that I adore. Then you phoned, making a crack in that seal I thought was so strong. We met. And the crack became larger. And then I saw you and your brother. Both of you together. And I couldn’t. [They sit on a bench.] The whole thing, the whole secret, sealed place broke open. And the past came rushing back. Digger Barnes. Hutch McKinney. And the awful, awful pain of having to abandon my own flesh and blood.
PAM: You are my mother.
REBECCA: Yes, I am.
Pam grabs Rebecca’s hand.
REBECCA: And although you haven’t known me, the newspapers have made it impossible for me to ignore you or Cliff. You can’t imagine the unhappiness of seeing one’s own children and not being able to talk to them.
PAM: That’s what I don’t understand. Why couldn’t you?
REBECCA: [Tears begin streaming down her face] My husband has no idea that I was married. Or that I have two children. He knows nothing about Hutch McKinney. He is not a well man. I think if he found out now, the shock would devastate him.
PAM: Why didn’t you tell him before?
REBECCA: I never divorced Digger. I was afraid that if I tried, he’d find me, and drag me back to that awful life. [Voice begins cracking] Pamela, I saw a chance for happiness, and I took it. Don’t blame me for that.
PAM: Do you mean that now that I’ve found you, we can’t see each other?
REBECCA: [Shakes her head no] I wanted to talk to your brother too. [Voice cracks] I don’t think I could go through this again.
PAM: Well, it’s probably best if you don’t.
REBECCA: Pamela, try to understand. To lose one family in a lifetime is horrible. To lose a second….
PAM: I’m sorry. [Touches Rebecca’s face] Oh, I’m sorry.
Dallas Drinks: The Elena
July 23, 2012 by Leave a Comment
This summer, the “Dallas” fans at Dallas Decoder and Cook In/Dine Out are offering “Dallas Drinks,” a series of cocktails inspired by the characters from TNT’s new series. This week: The Elena. Like Jordana Brewster’s performance, this drink is mighty refreshing.
The Art of Dallas: ‘Trouble at Ewing 23’
July 23, 2012 by 2 Comments
Bobby (Patrick Duffy) confronts J.R. (Larry Hagman) over the botched handling of a ransom demand in this 1980 publicity shot from “Trouble at Ewing 23,” a fourth-season “Dallas” episode.
Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘You’re a Ewing now’
July 23, 2012 by 12 Comments
She knows
In “Trouble at Ewing 23,” a fourth-season “Dallas” episode, Ray (Steve Kanaly) finds Miss Ellie (Barbara Bel Geddes) with her horse in the stable.
RAY: Miss Ellie, I’m very grateful to you.
ELLIE: Oh, Ray.
RAY: No. You accepted me into your family. That’s very important to me.
ELLIE: Ray, Jock told me about his affair with Margaret years ago. I know how fond of you he’s always been. Maybe it should have been more of a shock to me, finding out you were his son. It wasn’t. It was as if part of each of us had always known.
RAY: I want to thank you. The last thing in the world I ever wanted to do would be to hurt you or Jock.
ELLIE: I think you may need more adjusting than either of us. You’re a Ewing now. That’s a lot to take on all at once. I know.
RAY: I’ve been Ray Krebbs for too long now. I just don’t plan on changing anything. That’s why I didn’t want anybody else but the family to know about this.
ELLIE: That may not be so easy, Ray. But welcome to the family. [She kisses him.]
RAY: Thank you.
TNT’s Dallas Styles: Marta’s Dress
July 19, 2012 by 12 Comments
Unraveled
All season long, TNT’s “Dallas” has used Marta’s hair and wardrobe to telegraph her shifting moods and evolving identity. This practice continues in “Collateral Damage,”when the bipolar vixen goes off her medication – and eventually, off the deep end.
When we meet Marta in TNT’s “Dallas” pilot, “Changing of the Guard,” the character pretends to be a wealthy land conservationist who wants to buy Southfork and turn it into a nature preserve. She wears her hair up, but once her true motives are revealed – “Marta” is actually Veronica Martinez, who is secretly plotting with John Ross to seize the ranch – we begin seeing her with hair down, literally and figuratively.
By TNT’s sixth “Dallas” episode, “The Enemy of My Enemy,” Marta is in full “Fatal Attraction” mode and determined to steal John Ross from Elena. The tightly wound Marta shows up on his doorstep in a skintight dress, hoping to seduce him, only to be rejected once again.
When John Ross sees Marta again in “Collateral Damage,” she has come undone. The skintight dress has been replaced by something much looser; it falls off Leonor Varela’s shoulder, which seems appropriate given how her character is falling apart.
The dress’s metallic color is also telling. Until now, Marta has been depicted as a duplicitous villainess, but in Varela’s haunting final scene, it’s hard to not feel sorry for her. Marta is neither good nor bad; like all great “Dallas” characters, she lies somewhere in between. It’s another reason why the gray dress is fitting, even if it doesn’t quite fit.
The Art of TNT’s Dallas: ‘Collateral Damage’
July 19, 2012 by Leave a Comment
John Ross and Marta (Josh Henderson, Leonor Varela) confront each other in “Collateral Damage,” the seventh episode of TNT’s “Dallas.”
TNT’s Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘I Hope You Choose Wisely’
July 19, 2012 by 7 Comments
Mama knows best
In “Collateral Damage,” a first-season “Dallas” episode, Elena and Sue Ellen (Jordana Brewster, Linda Gray) discuss John Ross’s business problems while having lunch in a posh restaurant.
ELENA: Why doesn’t he just ask me himself?
SUE ELLEN: Because he’s a man. And worse, he’s a Ewing man. And the Ewings always have to believe that they have everything under control. But the bigger truth is John Ross is a good boy – and he has a good heart. And he doesn’t want you to feel that he’s taking advantage. But his father’s investors are very impatient – and very unreasonable. And the barrels you would be giving him would only help to tide them over until John Ross can get his operation fully going.
ELENA: John Ross knows I want no part of drilling on Southfork. He respects that. It’s what he wants.
SUE ELLEN: You wouldn’t be drilling Southfork. You would be helping John Ross keep his head above water. His father just dumped this into his lap, warts and all. And John Ross is just trying to make the best of it. I want my son to succeed.
ELENA: And so do I. You’re not the only one that cares about John Ross. But I also care about Christopher and Bobby. Don’t you?
SUE ELLEN: Elena, when the day comes that you have to choose between your child and anybody else, I hope you choose wisely. [A waiter places the bill on the table.] And as the sole investor in your growing enterprise [signs the bill], I hope you always make the wise choice.
She rises and leaves.
The Art of Knots Landing: ‘Kristin’
July 18, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Kristin and Kenny (Mary Crosby, James Houghton) are interrupted by his wife Ginger (Kim Lankford) in this 1980 publicity shot from “Kristin,” a second-season “Knots Landing” episode.
Knots Landing Scene of the Day: ‘I’m Pregnant’
July 18, 2012 by 4 Comments
She knows
In “Kristin,” a second-season “Knots Landing” episode, Kristin and Valene (Mary Crosby, Joan Van Ark) argue in the Ewings’ guest bedroom.
VAL: If you’ve got something to say, Kristin, I think you better say it.
KRISTIN: [Looks away, begins tearing up] I’m pregnant. [Sits in a chair]
VAL: Pregnant? [Sits on the edge of the bed]
KRISTIN: I didn’t wanna tell anybody. I thought it would be easier for the baby if I kept it a secret. I hoped to find somebody who would be a father to my baby.
VAL: Do you know who the father is?
Kristin is silent. Val moves off the bed and kneels in front of the chair.
VAL: Do you love him?
KRISTIN: I don’t know.
VAL: Darling, why didn’t you tell me this before?
KRISTIN: I was afraid that if I told you, you wouldn’t help me.
VAL: Oh, no, that is not true.
KRISTIN: You wouldn’t have let me in.
VAL: Oh, no, Kristin. You’re wrong. I would have. I know exactly how you feel right now.
KRISTIN: No you don’t. Nobody does.
Val lays her head in Kristin’s lap.
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