Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘You’re Babbling Like a Lunatic’

July 22, 2015 by 6 Comments
Dallas, J.R. Ewing, Larry Hagman, Legacy of Hate

Mr. Misunderstood

In “Legacy of Hate,” an eighth-season “Dallas” episode, Phyllis and Kendall (Deborah Tranelli, Danone Simpson) are in the reception area at Ewing Oil when Pam (Victoria Principal) storms off the elevator.

PHYLLIS: Pam?

PAM: Is J.R. in his office?

KENDALL: Uh, yes, he is but — [Takes a step toward her]

PHYLLIS: No, Kendall.

J.R. (Larry Hagman) is seated, facing the window. Pam enters and slams the door behind her.

PAM: You filthy snake.

J.R.: I take it this is not a social visit?

PAM: Why? Just tell me why. I was out of your life, out of your family’s life, off your precious Southfork. Why would you pull such a ghoulish trick on me? Do you really need to hurt me that much?

J.R.: [Turns to face her] What are you talking about? You’re babbling like a lunatic.

PAM: You know what I’m talking about! The trip to San Serrano! The trip to Jamaica! The trip you manipulated me into taking so that I’d look for Mark Graison.

J.R.: What?

PAM: You know how much he means to me. What kind of sick pleasure did you get out of sending me island-hopping around the Caribbean with Gerald Kane?

J.R.: Who? Who are you talking about?

PAM: [Slams her fist on the desk] You know who, damn it! The pilot that you hired to lead me on that wild goose chase!

J.R.: Now just slow down. Some nut’s been telling you stories about me and you’re believing him.

PAM: He’s not a nut and I believe him.

J.R.: I never liked you a hell of a lot, you know that, Pam? But I never thought you were stupid until now.

PAM: Stupid? [Pause] Maybe. Maybe because in the past when I’ve threatened you, I haven’t followed through. But this time it’s different, J.R. Because this thing with Mark disgusts me more than anything you’ve ever done before.

J.R.: Pam, there’s been a misunderstanding.

PAM: Shut up! Just sit there and listen! [Leans in] Cliff and your cousin Jamie want to split up Ewing Oil. And they asked me to join their fight, but I said I wouldn’t because of Bobby. Well, that won’t stop me anymore. You have no heart. You have no feelings. You can’t be hurt like other people. But you have one soft spot, one weakness — and that’s Ewing Oil, the only thing you’ve ever really loved. Well, I’m going to join Cliff, and I’m going to back him up all the way. And Cliff and Jamie and I are going to take your company away from you. And then I’m going to watch you hurt. [Turns, leaves, slams the door behind her]

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

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Critique: ‘Dallas’ Episode 179 — ‘Legacy of Hate’

July 22, 2015 by 18 Comments
Dallas, Legacy of Hate, Pam Ewing, Victoria Principal

Girl on fire

Who doesn’t love the first scene in “Legacy of Hate”? Pam storms into J.R.’s office and demands to know why he sent her on a wild goose chase for her presumed dead fiancé, Mark Graison. J.R. plays dumb and denies everything, which only infuriates Pam more. She vows to get even by joining Cliff and Jamie’s legal fight to seize two-thirds of J.R.’s business. “You have one soft spot, one weakness — and that’s Ewing Oil, the only thing you’ve ever really loved,” Pam says. “Cliff and Jamie and I are going to take your company away from you. And then I’m going to watch you hurt.”

Hot damn! Often when these characters clash, J.R. threatens and Pam reacts. The dynamics here are reversed. At one point, she shouts, “Shut up! Just sit there and listen!” Under different circumstances, I might complain that a line like that further undercuts J.R., who’s already lost too much mojo this season. I could also point out that the wild goose chase scheme is unusually cruel, even by his standards. But if this is what it takes to reignite the spark in Victoria Principal’s character, I’m all for it. Make no mistake: This isn’t the namby-pamby Pam of recent seasons. This is Digger’s daughter, the fierce, feisty gal who refuses to be pushed around. Isn’t it nice to have her back?

I have to believe Principal is thrilled more than anyone. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen “Dallas” give the actress material like this; not even Pam’s years-in-the-making confrontation with Katherine was this emotionally charged. Larry Hagman is impressive too. Even though the audience knows J.R. is lying, you kind of want to believe him, don’t you? The scene also gives Hagman some fun one-liners, which he tosses off with typical effortless brilliance. (My favorite: “I never liked you a hell of a lot, you know that, Pam? But I never thought you were stupid until now.”) Is Hagman trying to upstage his co-star? Or is he merely giving her what she needs to get worked up? Whatever the case, their chemistry has never crackled quite like it does here.

Credit also goes to first-time “Dallas” director Robert Becker, who shows us what we need to see and then gets out of the actors’ way. When the sequence begins, Becker shoots Principal marching off the Ewing Oil elevator, through the reception area and into J.R.’s office. Once she’s inside the room, Becker keeps Hagman seated at the desk, allowing Principal to tower over him. The staging underscores how she’s dominating him. Another nice touch: Before Pam barges into the office, Kendall tries to stop her. Phyllis pipes up and says, “No, Kendall.” It’s telling that Phyllis would rather risk J.R.’s wrath than Pam’s.

The scene is easily one of “Dallas’s” best episode openings, ranking alongside the cattle drive that begins “Bypass” and Bobby’s heroics during the Southfork fire in “The Road Back.” Nothing else in “Legacy of Hate” matches the drama of J.R. and Pam’s confrontation, although Bobby and J.R.’s fight in the Southfork swimming pool comes close. I also like the episode’s quieter moments, including a good scene where Miss Ellie has a late-night heart-to-heart chat with J.R. in the Southfork kitchen. (He sips a beer, of course. Don’t the Ewing brothers ever drink milk to help them get back to sleep?) In another nice scene, Clayton offers to give Jamie one of his oil companies if she agrees to call off her lawsuit against the Ewings. It’s an outright bribe, but Howard Keel is so gentlemanly, he makes the offer seem perfectly honorable. I also like hearing Clayton refer to the Ewings as his family.

“Legacy of Hate” contains striking bit of continuity too: When J.R. plays Bobby the tape of his conversation with Cliff, the dialogue matches what he says when the exchange is depicted as a one-sided telephone call in “Déjà Vu.” The producers deserve applause for going to the trouble of making sure the two scenes sync, since I’m not sure even fervent fans would have noticed when these episodes aired weeks apart in 1985. I wish the same attention to detail was observed during “Legacy of Hate’s” next scene. After J.R. learns he’s been ratted out by Gerald Kane, the pilot he hired to lie to Pam, J.R. calls him and threatens to send over some “friends” if he doesn’t leave Texas right away. “Nobody, but nobody, double-crosses J.R. Ewing,” he says. True enough, but since when does J.R. give his enemies this kind of warning?

There’s also some humor in “Legacy of Hate,” although I’m not sure it’s intentional. When Mandy walks out on Cliff after Jamie interrupts their romantic dinner at home, she says, “I’m getting out, because three’s a crowd.” Could this be a sly reference to the sitcom that featured Jenilee Harrison before she arrived on “Dallas”? There’s an even funnier moment during J.R. and Bobby’s pool fight. After J.R. lands in the water and Bobby leaps into the water to punch him some more, watch Hagman. His face breaks into a comical, bug-eyed expression straight from his “I Dream of Jeannie” days. The expression is visible only a second, which makes me wonder if Hagman did it to amuse the crew, the stuntman or maybe just himself.

This is the kind of thing fans probably would have missed when this episode aired 30 years ago, before we all had the ability to search, scan, pause and replay scenes. Seeing it now is a reminder that no matter how many times we watch this show, there’s almost always something new to discover.

Grade: A

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Dallas, J.R. Ewing, Larry Hagman, Legacy of Hate

Slam dunk

‘LEGACY OF HATE’

Season 8, Episode 18

Airdate: February 1, 1985

Audience: 22.2 million homes, ranking 1st in the weekly ratings

Writer: Arthur Bernard Lewis

Director: Robert Becker

Synopsis: Pam and Bobby each confront J.R., who denies sending her on a wild goose chase. Cliff gains Pam as an ally in his fight with Jamie but loses Mandy’s support. The Ewings are stunned when Cliff and Jamie try to freeze Ewing Oil’s assets. Scotty tells Bobby they must find Naldo’s girlfriend, Veronica Robinson. Eddie cheats on Lucy with Betty.

Cast: Burke Byrnes (Pete Adams), Larry Cedar (Martin), Roseanna Christiansen (Teresa), Lisa Cutter (Model), Patrick Duffy (Bobby Ewing), Stephen Elliott (Scotty Demarest), Eric Farlow (Christopher Ewing), Rosemary Forsyth (Ann McFadden), Linda Gray (Sue Ellen Ewing), Larry Hagman (J.R. Ewing), Jenilee Harrison (Jamie Ewing), Susan Howard (Donna Krebbs), Steve Kanaly (Ray Krebbs), Howard Keel (Clayton Farlow), Ken Kercheval (Cliff Barnes), Fredric Lehne (Eddie Cronin), Sarah Partridge (Model), George O. Petrie (Harv Smithfield), Priscilla Beaulieu Presley (Jenna Wade), Victoria Principal (Pam Ewing), Donna Reed (Miss Ellie Farlow), Sherril Lynn Rettino (Jackie Dugan), Dean Santoro (Raymond Furguson), Deborah Shelton (Mandy Winger), Danone Simpson (Kendall), Charlene Tilton (Lucy Ewing), Deborah Tranelli (Phyllis), Morgan Woodward (Punk Anderson), Kathleen York (Betty)

“Legacy of Hate” is available on DVD and at Amazon and iTunes. Watch the episode and share your comments below.

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Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘J.R. Ewing?!’

July 20, 2015 by 8 Comments
Bail Out, Dallas, Pam Ewing, Victoria Principal

Truth hurts

In “Bail Out,” an eighth-season “Dallas” episode, Pam (Victoria Principal) stands in her office doorway and greets pilot Gerald Kane (James Cromwell), who has flown from Corpus Christi to see her.

PAM: You’ve certainly come a long way for just a conversation.

KANE: I figured I owed it to you to say what I have to say to you in person.

PAM: Well, please sit down. [They sit.]

KANE: I surely don’t feel too good about what I’ve done.

PAM: Well, what have you done?

KANE: I’ve lied to you, Mrs. Ewing. I never flew Mark Graison down to the Caribbean. Truth of it is, I’ve never even laid eyes on the man you were looking for. I know I should have told you all this before, and I tried to three or four times when we were down there but … well, I never could convince myself to do it until now.

PAM: [Dumbfounded] But what about San Serrano? Mark was in the clinic down there. And just yesterday, Dr. Miller was here. The doctor from the clinic in Jamaica? Well, he came here with another doctor who actually saw Mark in Hong Kong.

KANE: I don’t think so.

PAM: What do you mean, you don’t think so? You think they were lying too? Well, why would they lie to me? Why would you lie to me?

KANE: I was … persuaded to.

PAM: Who persuaded you?

KANE: Somebody who convinced me that it would be easier on you if you still believed that Mark Graison was alive. And I went along with it because I saw how desperately you wanted to believe.

PAM: [Rubs her temples] Mark Graison is alive and there’s no doubt about that.

KANE: Believe me, Mrs. Ewing. The whole thing was a hoax. Now I don’t know about these doctors you saw, but … well, if I could be bought off, so can they.

PAM: You mean that somebody paid you to lie to me?

KANE: Yes.

PAM: No one has any reason to do something like that to me.

KANE: Obviously somebody has.

PAM: Who? Tell me who! I want to know their name!

KANE: J.R. Ewing.

PAM: [Screams, slaps him] J.R. Ewing?! [Sobs]

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

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Critique: ‘Dallas’ Episode 178 — ‘Bail Out’

July 20, 2015 by 17 Comments
Bail Out, Dallas, Linda Gray, Sue Ellen Ewing

Truth to power

Bobby springs Jenna from jail in “Bail Out,” while Sue Ellen liberates her own tongue. After discovering J.R. has cheated on her yet again, she stops playing the dutiful wife and begins speaking her mind, even if it means telling loved ones things they don’t want to hear. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen Sue Ellen assume the role of Southfork’s resident truth-teller, although when it’s happened in the past, it’s usually because she’s been drinking. Our heroine is sober in “Bail Out,” making this episode another early glimpse of the independent, wiser character she’ll become in “Dallas’s” later years.

In the first act, Sue Ellen wakes up — a metaphor, perhaps — and has coffee with Miss Ellie in the dining room. When the conversation turns to Jamie’s efforts to split up Ewing Oil, Ellie is surprised to hear Sue Ellen hopes Jamie succeeds. “We have to keep what is ours. That company means everything to this family,” Ellie says. Sue Ellen gently points out Ellie’s hypocrisy, reminding the Ewing matriarch she once tried to force the sale of the business to keep J.R. and Bobby from fighting over it. Ellie defends herself, saying this situation is different because her sons are no longer at each other’s throats. She also urges Sue Ellen to think of John Ross, who’s poised to run the company someday. Sue Ellen’s response: “I know. That used to matter to me very much. Maybe he’d be better off without it.”

Did you ever think you’d hear Sue Ellen Ewing say such a thing? After all, this is the woman who spent “Dallas’s” earliest episodes in a virtual race with Pam to bear the Ewings’ first grandson. Now she’s admitting what’s she’s known for some time: being a Ewing wife and mother isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Sue Ellen’s newly brutal honesty is also on display later in the episode, when she warns Jenna about the Ewings’ looming war with Jamie. Sue Ellen predicts the battle will cause Bobby to revert to the cutthroat tactics he used during the contest for Ewing Oil. “Wait and see,” she says. “The Ewing boys are alike in certain ways. I found it out, and so did Pam.”

You may not like everything Sue Ellen has to say in “Bail Out,” but you have to admire “Dallas’s” willingness to allow the character to change. You also have to admire Linda Gray’s ability to make Sue Ellen’s evolution so believable. In the scene with Donna Reed, Gray’s delivery is beautifully heartfelt. (It helps that the conversation takes place right after Sue Ellen awakens, so Gray gets to perform with little makeup and her hair a little messy. It’s Sue Ellen, unvarnished.) Gray also is impressive in her scene with Priscilla Beaulieu Presley. It would have been easy to bring an air of classic Sue Ellen bitchiness to this exchange, but Gray takes a different approach. She treats her character’s speech as a helpful warning, not a hurtful threat.

The other standout performer in “Bail Out” is Victoria Principal, who is fantastic in the episode-ending scene where pilot Gerald Kane visits Pam and confesses he lied about flying Mark Graison to the Caribbean to seek a cure for his disease. This tightly written, three-minute exchange requires Principal to exhibit a range of emotions — shock, anger, disgust — and she hits each one with precision. (Future Oscar winner James Cromwell is also quite good, making Kane’s guilt and shame palpable.) The best moment comes when Pam demands to know who paid Kane to lie to her. “No one has any reason to do something like that to me,” she says, but of course she must know in her heart who’s responsible. When Kane tells her the culprit is J.R. Ewing, Pam strikes him and repeats the name: “J.R. Ewing?!” It’s a testament to director Michael Preece that this doesn’t come off as a campy soap opera slap. Instead, it feels genuinely reflexive, as if Pam can’t help lashing out.

Speaking of J.R.: He finally seduces Mandy in this episode, luring her to a high-rise hotel suite under the ruse that she’s visiting something called “Club 1900.” When she arrives, she’s in no mood for his charms and angrily tosses a glassful of champagne in his face. He responds by grabbing and kissing her hard; she squirms for a few seconds but eventually melts in his arms. It’s not quite as unappetizing as the scene where J.R. forces himself on Sue Ellen in the second-season classic “Black Market Baby,” but it’s uncomfortable nonetheless. Other moments in “Bail Out” also evoke earlier storylines, including one where Ray encourages Lucy and Eddie to get soil samples before starting construction on their housing project. It’s a subtle nod to Ray’s disastrous foray into the real estate business during the fourth season. Sue Ellen and Ellie’s conversation about John Ross’s future also has echoes of Mama’s memorable speech (“Where will this all end?”) during the contest for Ewing Oil.

Homages like these have become a hallmark of “Dallas’s” eighth season. Each one feels like a treat for fans who absorb every last detail of the Ewings’ lives. You have to admire the show’s willingness to honor fans this way. Is it any wonder so many of us continue to reward “Dallas” with our loyalty?

Grade: B

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Bail Out, Dallas, J.R. Ewing, Larry Hagman

Cheers!

‘BAIL OUT’

Season 8, Episode 17

Airdate: January 25, 1985

Audience: 22.2 million homes, ranking 1st in the weekly ratings

Writer: David Paulsen

Director: Michael Preece

Synopsis: Bobby bails out Jenna and reunites her with Charlie. Sue Ellen warns Jenna about the looming battle for Ewing Oil. Cliff and Jamie gather evidence for their lawsuit. J.R. and Mandy have sex. Kane tells Pam that J.R. paid him to lead her on a wild goose chase.

Cast: Beau Billingslea (Dr. Miller), Burke Byrnes (Pete Adams), Roseanna Christiansen (Teresa), Pat Colbért (Dora Mae), James Cromwell (Gerald Kane), Val De Vargas (Patrick Wolfe), Patrick Duffy (Bobby Ewing), Stephen Elliott (Scotty Demarest), Linda Gray (Sue Ellen Ewing), Larry Hagman (J.R. Ewing), Jenilee Harrison (Jamie Ewing), Susan Howard (Donna Krebbs), Steve Kanaly (Ray Krebbs), Howard Keel (Clayton Farlow), Ken Kercheval (Cliff Barnes), Clyde Kusatsu (Dr. Albert Matsuda), Fredric Lehne (Eddie Cronin), Shalane McCall (Charlie Wade), Joe Nesnow (Judge Lanley), George O. Petrie (Harve Smithfield), Priscilla Beaulieu Presley (Jenna Wade), Victoria Principal (Pam Ewing), Donna Reed (Miss Ellie Farlow), Dean Santoro (Raymond Furguson), Deborah Shelton (Mandy Winger), Danone Simpson (Kendall), Charlene Tilton (Lucy Ewing), Deborah Tranelli (Phyllis)

“Bail Out” is available on DVD and at Amazon and iTunes. Watch the episode and share your comments below.

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Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘I Have Earned the Right to Be Here’

July 15, 2015 by 3 Comments
Dallas, J.R. Ewing, Larry Hagman, Linda Gray, Sue Ellen Ewing, Winds of War

Right stuff

In “Winds of War,” an eighth-season “Dallas” episode, J.R. (Larry Hagman) is fixing a drink in the Southfork living room when Sue Ellen (Linda Gray) arrives home and stands in the doorway.

SUE ELLEN: Why don’t you pour one for me? I know you’re not used to drinking alone.

J.R.: [Turns to face her] Well, you must be joking, darlin’. You know you don’t drink.

SUE ELLEN: [Walks toward him] You have no idea how close I came to starting up again. I sat in a bar for an hour, staring at a double vodka. Thinking about Jamie, you, our lives.

J.R.: But you didn’t drink it, did you?

SUE ELLEN: No. Because in the end, you weren’t worth it. Then I drove around for awhile, trying to decide what I was going to do when I got home.

J.R.: Darlin’, I explained that little misunderstanding.

SUE ELLEN: Didn’t you? I almost chose to believe you, rather than leave you.

J.R.: Oh, Sue Ellen.

SUE ELLEN: Oh, I wouldn’t do that. Uh-uh. Because I have earned the right to be here. God knows I have paid the price for that privilege. Jamie really made me look at myself today. And I didn’t like it. And I didn’t like our charade, pretending that we could be happy together.

J.R.: We can be, darlin’, honestly.

SUE ELLEN: Never. I’m moving into Jamie’s old room. I’m going to stay here to protect my son. But don’t you ever come near me. You do what you want, when you want. But don’t you ever explain anything to me again. Because I don’t care anymore. [Turns and leaves]

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

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Critique: ‘Dallas’ Episode 177 — ‘Winds of War’

July 15, 2015 by 16 Comments
Dallas, J.R. Ewing, Larry Hagman, Linda Gray, Sue Ellen Ewing, Winds of War

Scene from a marriage

In “Winds of War,” J.R. insists he’s been faithful when Sue Ellen accuses him of cheating. He’s lying, of course, but why? Is he trying to spare his wife’s feelings, or is he trying to spare himself the embarrassment of another marital implosion? Does he want Sue Ellen to stay at Southfork because he fears she’ll take John Ross with her if she leaves, or does he want her there because he loves her? And what about Sue Ellen? Why does her husband’s fidelity matter to her? Is she in love with him, or is she merely dependent upon him? Does she want him, or does she need him?

None of the answers are clear, not that I’m complaining. Part of “Dallas’s” appeal lies in trying to figure out the mysteries of J.R. and Sue Ellen’s marriage, which will always be the show’s most fascinating relationship. But even when the motivations aren’t readily apparent, we can still see how these two characters are changing. Consider the “Winds of War” scene that ends with Sue Ellen tearfully ordering a double vodka at the Oil Baron’s Club. (“Just bring it, Cassie!”) We expect her to be drunk the next time we see her, since this is how she’s always coped with J.R.’s cheating. Yet in a surprising twist, Sue Ellen comes home sober, explaining to her husband that she stared at the drink for an hour before deciding he wasn’t worth a relapse.

We see changes in J.R. too. When Linda Gray delivers the line about not taking the drink, Larry Hagman’s eyes widen and he smiles slightly — as if J.R. is surprised, and perhaps more than a little proud, that his wife kept her demons in check. As the scene continues, Sue Ellen declares that she isn’t going to leave Southfork. “I have earned the right to be here,” she says. This feels like a moment of triumph for the character and an early glimpse of the grit she’ll display in later seasons. But it’s also an example of how J.R. still has power over her. Despite everything, she still can’t bring herself to leave him. Even when she can say no to booze, she can’t say no to him.

“Winds of War” is written and directed by Leonard Katzman, who sprinkles J.R. and Sue Ellen’s scenes with nods to other memorable moments in their marriage. In their confrontation at the end of the episode, Hagman is dressed in the same blue robe and pajamas that he wore at the beginning of the season, when J.R. won Sue Ellen back after being on the outs with her for more than a year. Also in the “Winds of War” scene, she tells him, “Don’t you ever explain anything to me again.” This recalls one of her memorable lines from their great clash two years earlier, when she chided him as “a terrific explainer.” You can even find allusions to J.R. and Sue Ellen in scenes that don’t feature them. When Bobby goes to Los Angeles and meets Veronica, the girlfriend of villainous Naldo Marchetta, he asks why she stayed with him despite his abusive tendencies. “I loved him,” she says. If a similar question was put to Sue Ellen, would her answer be any different?

Other “Winds of War” highlights include the final scene, when Cliff persuades Jamie to fight the Ewings for control of their company. Ken Kercheval delivers an urgent, heartfelt speech about how Cliff and Jamie owe it to their daddies to take back what Jock stole from them — and then when she agrees (“Let’s do it!”), he flashes a magnificently malevolent grin. Cliff has learned a thing or two from his nemesis, hasn’t he? Speaking of J.R.: I like his lie to Sue Ellen that the woman he was spotted kissing, Serena, is merely the daughter of “Congressman Hooker” (no stretch there, huh?), as well as Lucy and Eddie’s visit to Harv Smithfield’s office to formalize their real estate partnership. There’s unexpected warmth in George O. Petrie and Charlene Tilton’s exchanges. You get the impression Harv cares about Lucy and doesn’t want to see her get hurt. It’s the kind of small detail “Dallas” does so well.

Donna Reed supplies “Winds of War” with its other nice surprise. At the beginning of the episode, Miss Ellie becomes angry when she learns J.R. has kicked Jamie off Southfork. “Why, J.R.? What brought this on?” Ellie shouts. It’s the first time Reed has raised her voice since arriving on “Dallas” — and the first time she’s displayed Mama’s old fire. I like another scene between Reed and Howard Keel even more. Ellie and Clayton are dining at the Oil Baron’s Club, where she is fretting over Jamie’s future. Clayton encourages her not to make her niece’s problems her own. Ellie sits back in her chair, chuckles softly and realizes he’s right. It ends up being a rare example of two “Dallas” characters coping with their problems through laughter. The exchange also demonstrates Reed’s rapport with Keel, which feels genuinely affectionate.

At the end of this scene, Clayton asks Ellie if she’s ever considered running away from home. Reed smiles again and says, “A lot. But I think I’ll stay around and see how it all turns out.” For the first time, I wish she had been given that chance.

Grade: A

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Cliff Barnes, Dallas, Ken Kercheval, Winds of War

Grinning season

‘WINDS OF WAR’

Season 8, Episode 16

Airdate: January 11, 1985

Audience: 23.6 million homes, ranking 1st in the weekly ratings

Writer and Director: Leonard Katzman

Synopsis: After Sue Ellen’s friendship with Jamie collapses, she moves out of J.R.’s bedroom. Jamie leaves Southfork and agrees to join forces with Cliff to fight for control of Ewing Oil. Bobby finds Charlie in California. Lucy and Eddie form a business partnership.

Cast: Patrick Duffy (Bobby Ewing), Stephen Elliott (Scotty Demarest), Eric Farlow (Christopher Ewing), Linda Gray (Sue Ellen Ewing), Larry Hagman (J.R. Ewing), Jenilee Harrison (Jamie Ewing), Susan Howard (Donna Krebbs), Steve Kanaly (Ray Krebbs), Omri Katz (John Ross Ewing), Howard Keel (Clayton Farlow), Ken Kercheval (Cliff Barnes), Fredric Lehne (Eddie Cronin), Shalane McCall (Charlie Wade), George O. Petrie (Harv Smithfield), Priscilla Beaulieu Presley (Jenna Wade), Victoria Principal (Pam Ewing), Donna Reed (Miss Ellie Farlow), Sherril Lynn Rettino (Jackie Dugan), Deborah Shelton (Mandy Winger), Danone Simpson (Kendall), Gail Strickland (Veronica Robinson), Charlene Tilton (Lucy Ewing)

“Winds of War” is available on DVD and at Amazon and iTunes. Watch the episode and share your comments below.

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Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘You Bastard’

July 13, 2015 by 7 Comments
Dallas, Linda Gray, Lockup in Laredo, Sue Ellen Ewing

What goes up …

In “Lockup in Laredo,” an eighth-season “Dallas” episode, J.R. (Larry Hagman) comes home from work and enters the Southfork foyer, where Jamie (Jenilee Harrison) is ending a phone call with Bobby.

J.R.: Did I just hear you say you talked to Judge Samuelson?

JAMIE: Yes. Bobby needed to get in touch with him.

J.R.: Well, the judge is a very important man. I should have done that.

JAMIE: I know, and Bobby wanted you to. But you weren’t there so I called him myself.

J.R.: Well, listen young lady, you don’t just pick up a phone and call people like that. You should have waited for me. [Puts down his hat, enters the living room]

JAMIE: Waited for you? I did more than that. I went out to try and find you.

J.R.: [Stops in his tracks] Find me?

JAMIE: I called the restaurant where you were at, but you left specific orders that you did not want to be disturbed. So I went there myself because it was so important. And there you were, hugging some tall, gorgeous blond who seemed to know you pretty well.

Sue Ellen (Linda Gray) comes down the stairs in the background.

J.R.: That woman happens to be a business associate.

JAMIE: Ah, another business associate. Like the one you were hugging at the barbecue? Only this time, you weren’t just hugging her. You were groping her and kissing her, and you probably spent the rest of the afternoon in bed with her.

J.R.: That’s a hell of an assumption on your part.

JAMIE: You didn’t come back to the office all afternoon. J.R., how could you do that to Sue Ellen?

SUE ELLEN: I’d like to know the answer to that question myself.

JAMIE: Sue Ellen.

SUE ELLEN: You bastard. I knew things between us were too good to last.

J.R.: It’s not what it looks like. This girl saw it wrong.

SUE ELLEN: Groping and kissing? That’s hard to see wrong.

J.R.: She’s lying.

JAMIE: I’m so sorry, Sue Ellen. I didn’t mean for you to hear this.

J.R.: Well, it seems like there’s a lot of things you don’t mean but you go ahead and do them anyhow, and people get hurt.

JAMIE: I’m not the one hurting people. You are.

J.R.: You’ve got a lot of gall, young lady.

SUE ELLEN: Don’t you dare twist it around. It’s not Jamie’s fault.

J.R.: Well, then whose fault is it? She sees something she doesn’t understand and then broadcasts lies all over the place.

JAMIE: I’m not lying.

J.R.: The hell you’re not. You’ve been lying ever since you first got here — and I’m sick and tired of it. I want you out of this house and off this property right now.

SUE ELLEN: She’s not going anywhere.

J.R.: She’s a troublemaker, Sue Ellen. I want her out of this house tonight.

SUE ELLEN: No!

JAMIE: That’s okay, Sue Ellen. I don’t want to stay here anymore anyway. I’ve had all that I can take. And you know, J.R., I told you I wasn’t going to use that document. I never wanted to hurt the family. But maybe now I will. Maybe now I’ll show you how real a Ewing I am. [Runs upstairs]

J.R.: You heard what she said. I told you we couldn’t trust her.

SUE ELLEN: It’s happening all over again, isn’t it? The sneaking around, the cheating.

J.R.: I’m not cheating on you.

SUE ELLEN: Shut up! I don’t want to hear any more of your lies.

J.R.: She’s the one who’s lying.

SUE ELLEN: I doubt that very much. Jamie and I have built up a wonderful friendship over the past several months, and she cares about it as much as I do. You’re the one who ruined it. I told you to leave her alone, stay away from her, but no. You had to destroy that friendship — just like you’ve destroyed everything else in my life.

J.R.: [Steps forward] Sue Ellen, would you listen to me.

SUE ELLEN: No, I will not listen to you! [Smiles] Congratulations. You had a wonderful day for yourself, didn’t you? You got rid of Jamie, and you got rid of me. [Begins climbing the stairs] I hope she fights you for Ewing Oil, and I hope she wins. Because then you’ll know exactly how I feel tonight.

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

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Critique: ‘Dallas’ Episode 176 — ‘Lockup in Laredo’

July 13, 2015 by 7 Comments
Dallas, Jenna Wade, Lockup in Laredo, Priscilla Beaulieu Presley

Caged beauty

Jenna Wade goes to jail in “Lockup in Laredo,” which is cause for celebration as far as I’m concerned. This is when Stephen Elliott arrives as Scotty Demarest, the high-dollar super lawyer who defended Jock Ewing against murder charges during “Dallas’s” third season and returns here to do the same for Priscilla Beaulieu Presley’s character. With his flamboyant style and thick drawl, Elliott makes Scotty a Texas version of Johnnie Cochrane. He’s a joy to watch and one of the best things about the Jenna-in-jeopardy storyline that dominates this era of the show.

Elliott shines every time he appears in “Lockup in Laredo,” although his best moment comes when Scotty questions Jenna in the jailhouse conference room. The scene begins with Jenna tired of rehashing the events that preceded her arrest and confident she didn’t fire the shots that killed her ex-husband, Naldo. But Scotty’s relentless questioning makes her re-consider everything she thinks she knows about the creep’s demise. Elliott, who honed his talent on the New York stage, forces Presley to keep up with him, bringing out the best in her performance. The contrast between his bulldog theatrics and her quiet, exhausted frustration makes their almost five-minute exchange a scene to remember. (Or “re-mem-buh,” as Scotty would say.)

“Lockup in Laredo” is the 10th “Dallas” episode helmed by Patrick Duffy, who once again demonstrates his knack for visual storytelling. In one scene, Bobby and Scotty examine the evidence found in Naldo’s car. This conversation could have been staged in a conference room too, but Duffy instead brings the characters to the impound lot, filming himself and Elliott inside the vehicle as they poke around the backseat and glove box. It helps the audience feel part of the action, and it’s always nice to see the actors in a new environment. In that spirit, I like the scene that shows Jackie relaxing at home when Cliff calls her, marking one of the few times we see a “Dallas” secretary in her own living space.

Duffy also does a nice job staging “Lockup in Laredo’s” pivotal final scene, which pulls together multiple narrative threads. We’ve been waiting several episodes for Sue Ellen to realize J.R. is getting bored in their marriage. We’ve also been waiting to see what Jamie will do with the legal document that could divide control of Ewing Oil among Jock, Jason and Digger’s heirs. Both storylines come to a head when J.R. arrives home and is confronted by Jamie, who spotted him cheating with Serena earlier in the day. When Sue Ellen overhears the conversation and questions her husband, he accuses Jamie of lying, prompting her to threaten to use her document against him. Sure, this is convoluted plotting, but you have to admire “Dallas’s” ability to advance two subplots in one swoop.

The other reason I like this scene is because it backs J.R. into a corner, which is where he’s always at his best (or worst, as the case may be). Let’s face it: As much as we all love Larry Hagman’s character, he’s gotten a little dull this season. David Paulsen’s script acknowledges as much when Miss Ellie and Clayton stand on the Southfork patio and discuss how troubled everyone at the ranch is these days — with the exception of J.R., who is being downright princely. “Isn’t it funny when everything else is going so badly, he’s the one bright spot in the family?” Ellie says. The moment these words pass her lips, you know she’s going to regret them.

I also enjoy seeing Ray and Donna take another turn as this show’s version of “McMillan and Wife,” this time combing through Sam Culver’s old legal papers to find evidence to refute Jamie’s claims about Ewing Oil’s ownership. This feels a little more organic than their investigation last year into Edgar Randolph’s past, although I’m always bewildered by this show’s inability to give Steve Kanaly and Susan Howard a storyline of their own. (By the way, what’s going on with the oil company Donna bought a few episodes ago?) Likewise, I have mixed feelings about Lucy’s storyline. I wish she had stuck with waitressing a little longer, although I’m intrigued by her foray into the real estate business in “Lockup in Laredo.” It’s not what I would have expected from her, but hey, at least she isn’t being kidnapped again.

Grade: B

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Bobby Ewing, Dallas, Lockup in Laredo, Patrick Duffy, Scotty Demarest, Stephen Elliott

Backseat driver

‘LOCKUP IN LAREDO’

Season 8, Episode 15

Airdate: January 4, 1985

Audience: 22.3 million homes, ranking 3rd in the weekly ratings

Writer: David Paulsen

Director: Patrick Duffy

Synopsis: After Jenna is arrested for Naldo’s murder, Bobby hires Scotty Demarest to defend her. Jamie catches J.R. cheating with Serena and confronts him, unaware that Sue Ellen is eavesdropping. Mandy grows tired of Cliff. Ray and Donna find evidence that Jamie’s document is real. Pam finds no trace of Mark in Jamaica. Lucy suggests she and Eddie go into the real estate business.

Cast: Beau Billingslea (Dr. Miller), Stephanie Blackmore (Serena Wald), Roseanna Christiansen (Teresa), James Cromwell (Gerald Kane), Val De Vargas (Patrick Wolfe), Patrick Duffy (Bobby Ewing), Stephen Elliott (Scotty Demarest), Eric Farlow (Christopher Ewing), Linda Gray (Sue Ellen Ewing), Larry Hagman (J.R. Ewing), Jenilee Harrison (Jamie Ewing), Susan Howard (Donna Krebbs), Steve Kanaly (Ray Krebbs), Omri Katz (John Ross Ewing), Howard Keel (Clayton Farlow), Ken Kercheval (Cliff Barnes), Fredric Lehne (Eddie Cronin), Priscilla Beaulieu Presley (Jenna Wade), Victoria Principal (Pam Ewing), Donna Reed (Miss Ellie Farlow), Sherril Lynn Rettino (Jackie Dugan), Deborah Shelton (Mandy Winger), Charlene Tilton (Lucy Ewing)

“Lockup in Laredo” is available on DVD and at Amazon and iTunes. Watch the episode and share your comments below.

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Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘You Never Fail to Surprise Me’

July 8, 2015 by 4 Comments
Bobby Ewing, Dallas, J.R. Ewing, Larry Hagman, Odd Man Out, Patrick Duffy

Bond of brothers

In “Odd Man Out,” an eighth-season “Dallas” episode, Bobby (Patrick Duffy) is seated at his desk at Ewing Oil when J.R. (Larry Hagman) knocks and enters, holding his hat.

J.R.: Hey, Bob. Say, it’s time to go home. You’ve increased the family fortunes enough for one day.

BOBBY: J.R., I’m not nearly done with the work I have. I’m going to be here for hours yet.

J.R.: Oh? Well, Sue Ellen and I were planning on going out tonight to eat. We’d like you to join us. [Sets down his hat, turns his back, begins fixing a drink] And just to show you how bighearted I am, I asked Jamie to come along. Can you believe that? [Chuckles]

BOBBY: Look, I think I understand what you’re trying to do, but not tonight, all right?

J.R.: Life goes on, Bob.

BOBBY: Look, I don’t need your platitudes either.

J.R.: Hear me out a minute, will you? [Faces Bobby] Do you remember what happened to me when Daddy died? All meaning went out of my life. Everything I’d done, every move I’d made, was to please him. There was no reason to go on.

BOBBY: I remember.

J.R.: And slowly, it dawned on me that there was a reason. That it was important that I go on. I had a little boy that needed me. I had John Ross. Now you have your Christopher at home, at Southfork. The boy needs his daddy. And whatever you believe Jenna did, he is there and he needs you 100 percent, Bobby. Unless, of course, you don’t think he’s worth it.

BOBBY: [Gets up, approaches J.R.] You know, you never fail to surprise me. [Grabs J.R.’s hat, puts it in his brother’s hands, slaps his arm] Let’s go. [J.R. smiles and they exit together.]

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

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Critique: ‘Dallas’ Episode 175 — ‘Odd Man Out’

July 8, 2015 by 14 Comments
Bobby Ewing, Dallas, J.R. Ewing, Larry Hagman, Odd Man Out, Patrick Duffy

Raising the bar

“Odd Man Out” is the 12th “Dallas” episode directed by Larry Hagman, who demonstrates once more that he’s as talented behind the camera as he is in front of it. The main storyline finds Bobby depressed because he believes Jenna dumped him to reunite with her ex-husband Naldo; little does Bob know Naldo is actually holding Jenna captive. This isn’t the richest material in the show’s history, but Hagman makes it compelling nonetheless. He also rewards the audience with several scenes that draw upon the history of the characters and their relationships. With the exception of Leonard Katzman and a few others, did anyone know “Dallas” better than its biggest star?

“Odd Man Out’s” most suspenseful moment comes at the end of the second act, when Naldo leaves Jenna alone to pay their hotel bill. She sneaks into a phone booth, drops a coin in the slot and punches the buttons. An operator comes on the line and tells her the call will cost a dollar. “Damn. Come on,” Jenna says as she dumps change out of her purse, sorts it quickly and inserts more coins. Cut to Southfork, where Bobby sits on the patio, reading a newspaper as the phone next to him begins ringing. He doesn’t answer it right away (is he waiting for Raoul or Teresa?), and when he finally picks up and says hello, Hagman cuts back to the phone booth — where Naldo takes the receiver from Jenna’s hand and hangs up. “Don’t ever try anything like that again,” he says.

The episode takes another dramatic turn at the end. J.R., Sue Ellen and Jamie have taken Bobby out to dinner, hoping to cheer him up. Bobby proposes a toast: “To Jenna Wade and the life she’s chosen for herself, wherever she is and whomever she’s with.” Hagman then cuts to a shot of Jenna, lying unconscious on a hotel floor. A lamp is knocked over, the sleeve of her blouse is torn and there’s a gun in her hand. As she slowly awakens, two police officers burst into the room. “Freeze, lady,” one says. “Drop the gun. Drop it!” Jenna looks bewildered and glances over her shoulder — where she sees Naldo’s dead body. Freeze the frame, roll the credits.

Other standout scenes in “Odd Man Out” showcase the “Dallas” characters. In one sequence, J.R. is having lunch with Mandy when he receives a call from Dora Mae, who tells him Bobby is drinking heavily at the Oil Baron’s Club. J.R. doesn’t hesitate to leave Mandy’s side so he can help his brother. (Something similar will happen in the eighth-season finale, “Swan Song,” except the circumstances will be dire.) Later, J.R. bucks up Bobby by reminding him that Christopher needs him; besides recalling a conversation years earlier where Bobby pulls J.R. out a depressive slump, this moment reminds us how good Hagman and Patrick Duffy are together. In another fun sequence, J.R. plays cupid in reverse: He runs into Pam and makes sure she knows how upset Bobby is over his breakup with Jenna, and then J.R. tells Bobby that Pam is too busy with her search for Mark to care about his problems.

Speaking of Pam: Victoria Principal is wonderful in the scene where Benton, the owner of the San Serrano medical clinic, tells Pam that Mark is alive. The actress cries and laughs at once, which gives the audience the odd sensation of being happy for Pam even though we suspect J.R. is behind her wild goose chase. Hagman also allows “Dallas’s” other leading lady, Linda Gray, a chance to shine. The script doesn’t give Sue Ellen much to do, but that doesn’t mean you should overlook her. In two scenes, Sue Ellen asks other characters where J.R. is. In each instance, Gray delivers her lines with just the right amount of doubt and suspicion, letting us know that Sue Ellen realizes her husband is up to his old tricks again.

“Odd Man Out” also illustrates Hagman’s eye for detail. The episode’s opening shot is a close-up of caviar being dished onto a plate — a signal, perhaps, that the competitive Hagman wanted his show to cede no ground in “Dallas’s” rivalry with glitzy “Dynasty.” Hagman also understood the need for balance, though, which is why he shows Ray, Donna and Dave Culver enjoying a down-home meal around the Krebbs’ dining room table. Ray and Donna are bringing Dave up to speed on Jamie’s claims about Ewing Oil’s ownership, and at one point Ray pauses to ask Dave if he’d care for some corn. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn Hagman suggested this gesture to make the scene feel more realistic. Think about it: When you watch “Dallas” dinner scenes helmed by other directors, do you ever hear someone ask to pass the salt?

Other highlights include a nice subplot about Clayton challenging Miss Ellie’s devotion to her sons by pointing out they are grown men who can take care of themselves. No matter how you feel about Donna Reed’s casting as Ellie, you have to appreciate how the show continues to give meaningful material to its oldest actors. The producers’ efforts to keep Lucy in the spotlight aren’t as successful. In this episode, she shuts off Eddie’s alarm so he’ll sleep in and skip work to spend the day with her. He’s angry when he wakes up and discovers this, and who can blame him? Did Lucy learn nothing from her too-brief foray into the working world?

On the other hand, when Lucy offers to support Eddie financially and he balks, she points out that if the roles were reversed, he probably wouldn’t think twice about supporting her. This is a good point. Lucy may not know much about the real world, but at least she recognizes sexism when she sees it.

Grade: A

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Dallas, Jenna Wade, Odd Man Out, Priscilla Beaulieu Presley

Odd woman out

‘ODD MAN OUT’

Season 8, Episode 14

Airdate: December 28, 1984

Audience: 20.8 million homes, ranking 1st in the weekly ratings

Writer: Arthur Bernard Lewis

Director: Larry Hagman

Synopsis: J.R. urges Bobby to get over losing Jenna. Miss Ellie and Clayton disagree over her involvement in her sons’ lives. Pam visits a Caribbean clinic that Mark supposedly visited two months earlier. Eddie quits his job. Jenna awakens next to Naldo’s dead body as police officers enter the room.

Cast: Don Banning (Roy Crowley), Burke Byrnes (Pete Adams), Pat Colbert (Dora Mae), Timothy J. Cutt (Leonard Boyle), Patrick Duffy (Bobby Ewing), Eric Farlow (Christopher Ewing), Tom Fuccello (Senator Dave Culver), Linda Gray (Sue Ellen Ewing), Larry Hagman (J.R. Ewing), Jenilee Harrison (Jamie Ewing), Susan Howard (Donna Krebbs), Steve Kanaly (Ray Krebbs), Omri Katz (John Ross Ewing), Howard Keel (Clayton Farlow), Ken Kercheval (Cliff Barnes), Fredric Lehna (Eddie Cronin), Michael McRae (Benton), Daniel Pilon (Renaldo Marchetta), Priscilla Beaulieu Presley (Jenna Wade), Victoria Principal (Pam Ewing), Donna Reed (Miss Ellie Farlow), Deborah Shelton (Mandy Winger), Danone Simpson (Kendall), Charlene Tilton (Lucy Ewing), Deborah Tranelli (Phyllis)

“Odd Man Out” is available on DVD and at Amazon and iTunes. Watch the episode and share your comments below.

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