Ted Shackelford – Dallas Decoder

Critique: ‘Knots Landing’ Episode 6 – ‘Home is For Healing’

June 11, 2012 by Chris Baker 8 Comments

Charlene Tilton, Dallas, Gary Ewing, Home is For Healing, Joan Van Ark, Knots Landing, Lucy Ewing, Ted Shackelford, Valene Ewing

Three if by sea

In “Home is For Healing,” Lucy finally discovers her parents have remarried and moved to Southern California. The moment of truth occurs off-screen, which is a bit unexpected since “Dallas” and “Knots Landing” each spent so long laying the groundwork for what was shaping up to be a Big Reveal.

But no matter. “Home is For Healing” is still a solid episode, thanks mostly to Rena Down’s script, which casts Gary, Valene and Lucy as a broken family that wants to put itself back together but can’t figure out how to do it.

I especially like Lucy in this setting. Her role here – the heiress trying to adjust to life in the ’burbs – is more interesting than what was happening with her at the time on “Dallas,” where Lucy was romancing Alan Beam just to spite J.R.

Charlene Tilton strikes the perfect balance in “Home is For Healing,” making us see Lucy as a young woman who still carries around the heart her parents broke when she was a little girl. Tilton makes Lucy seem vulnerable without being childish. It’s a great performance.

“Home is For Healing” also gets a big lift from Ted Shackelford, who brings brings a lot of heart to the scene where Gary owns up to his failures as a father.

This happens at the end of the episode, when Gary interrupts Val and Lucy’s stroll along the beach. In the midst of Gary’s big speech, he becomes tongue-tied and bows his head, as if he can’t find the words to convey his guilt and regret. In the episode’s DVD commentary, Shackelford laughs at this moment and says he paused because he couldn’t remember his next line. Whatever the reason, it works well because it makes us sympathetic toward Gary and eager to forgive him for his mistakes.

I also love when Lucy agrees to spend the rest of the week in Knots Landing and Gary invites her to run with him and Val in the ocean. Lucy is sweetly reticent – this North Texas landlubber fears the water will be too cold – but Gary doesn’t relent. “Come on, honey,” he says.

We know what Gary is really asking is for his daughter to give him and Val another chance to be parents, which is why it’s so moving when Lucy finally takes his hand and the three of them go frolicking through the surf. It’s a lovely ending to a lovely hour of television.

Grade: A

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Hi, neighbor

‘HOME IS FOR HEALING’

“Knots Landing” Season 1, Episode 6

Airdate: January 31, 1980

Audience: 15.5 million homes, ranking 38th in the weekly ratings

Writer: Rena Down

Director: Roger Young

Synopsis: When Lucy learns Gary and Val have remarried, Val persuades her to come to Knots Landing for a visit. Lucy and Val grow close, but Gary struggles to connect with his daughter. She decides to go home and Val agrees to accompany her, but Gary persuades Lucy to stay for the rest of the week.

Cast: Robert Brian Berger (Charlie), Tricia Boyer (Jill), Joseph Butcher (Terry), Breck Costin (Curt), James Houghton (Kenny Ward), Kim Lankford (Ginger Ward), Michele Lee (Karen Fairgate), Claudia Lonow (Diana Fairgate), Constance McCashin (Laura Avery), Christopher Murray (Les), Don Murray (Sid Fairgate), John Pleshette (Richard Avery), Ted Shackelford (Gary Ewing), Charlene Tilton (Lucy Ewing), Louise Vallance (Sylvie), Joan Van Ark (Valene Ewing)

“Home is For Healing” is available on DVD. Watch the episode and share your comments below.

Filed Under: Critiques, Critiques (Classic), Opinion Tagged With: Charlene Tilton, Home is For Healing, Knots Landing, Rena Down, Ted Shackelford

The Art of Knots Landing: ‘Community Spirit’

June 5, 2012 by Chris Baker Leave a Comment

Gary and J.R. (Ted Shackelford, Larry Hagman) are seen in this 1980 publicity shot from “Community Spirit,” a first-season “Knots Landing” episode.

Filed Under: Art of Dallas, Art of Dallas (Classic), Features Tagged With: Community Spirit, Knots Landing, Larry Hagman, Ted Shackelford

Knots Landing Scene of the Day: ‘I’m Not Afraid of You, J.R.’

June 5, 2012 by Chris Baker 2 Comments

Sunny with a chance of courage

In “Knots Landing’s” first-season episode “Community Spirit,” J.R. (Larry Hagman) approaches Gary and Valene (Ted Shackelford, Joan Van Ark) on the beach, moments before Gary is supposed to speak at a rally against J.R.’s offshore drilling project.

VAL: [Slaps a coin purse in J.R.’s hands] Here.

J.R.: Well, what’s that? What is that?

VAL: A couple dollars in change.

J.R.: That’s very kind of you, Valene. What’s it for?

VAL: To call Lucy with.

J.R.: I meant what I said yesterday. [To Gary, but staring at Val] Tell your little woman not to toy with me.

GARY: We know you meant it, J.R.

VAL: Go on. Call her. Call Lucy and tell her. We were gonna tell her soon anyway. But if that’s what you have to do, do it. It’ll hurt her. And it’ll do you no worldly good at all, but we’re all strong. I mean, she’s strong. We’ll all get over it. And whatever pain it causes, it’s better than letting you have your way with us now. So go on, J.R., call Lucy.

J.R.: That’s no reason to upset the little girl.

GARY: No, especially not since Mom and Dad will come down so hard on you for it.

J.R.: Well, that’s figured in my thinking. I’ll admit it. What’s in the envelope, Gary?

GARY: Oh, a few reference notes for our debate.

J.R.: I know you found something snooping around in my office yesterday. And I know I’ve been had by that pretty girl Karen, but –

GARY: First time I’ve ever seen the beauty of being named a Ewing.

J.R.: Give me the envelope.

GARY: I’m not afraid of you, J.R. Not here.

J.R.: Well, you better be afraid for your near and dear because I’m gonna use every ounce of my power to break you, Gary. I swear it.

GARY: The surveys you did and the discovery of an alternate drilling site onshore, out of the way.

J.R.: Do you realize how much money that’s gonna cost us?

GARY: So you make 15 million the first five years instead of 20.

J.R.: That’s Ewing money. It’s your mother and your father’s.

GARY: I think they can get by on 15 million. Cut a few corners.

He begins walking away. J.R. grabs his arm and faces him.

J.R.: Gary, don’t use that survey.

GARY: I’m gonna. Nothing short of a rainout is gonna stop me. And J.R., it never rains in Southern California.

Filed Under: Dallas Scenes of the Day, Dallas Scenes of the Day (Classic), Features Tagged With: Community Spirit, Joan Van Ark, Knots Landing, Larry Hagman, Ted Shackelford

Critique: ‘Knots Landing’ Episode 2 – ‘Community Spirit’

June 5, 2012 by Chris Baker 11 Comments

He lied with his boots on

Part of the fun of watching “Dallas” comes from imagining what it would be like to be a Ewing – to wear those clothes, to drive those cars, to live in that house. For those who also wonder how the Ewings would fare in our world, there’s “Community Spirit.”

“Knots Landing’s” second episode brings J.R. to the Southern California cul-de-sac to squelch the neighborhood’s protest of a major Ewing Oil offshore drilling project. The episode is a hoot, not just because it’s fun to see J.R. out of his element, but also because we get to live vicariously through the “Knots Landing” suburbanites as they use J.R.’s own tricks against him.

“Community Spirit’s” smallest moments are among its best. In one, a frazzled Valene telephones Gary from their kitchen while cool-as-a-cucumber J.R., standing over her shoulder, pulls a book off a shelf and begins leafing through it. “I just love cookbooks,” he says.

In another tiny-but-great moment, J.R. takes a bite of the white-bread sandwich Val has served him.

“Hey, that is good. What do you call this?” he asks.

“Tuna fish,” she hisses.

I also like seeing Gary one-up J.R. at the end of the episode, even if his final line (“J.R., it never rains in Southern California”) is pretty corny.

As good as Larry Hagman’s exchanges with Joan Van Ark and Ted Shackelford are, my favorite moments in “Community Spirit” are J.R.’s scenes with Karen Fairgate, “Knots Landing’s” resident doyenne. We’re used to seeing J.R. interact with Gary and Val at Southfork, so watching him trying to charm Karen reminds us we really aren’t in Dallas anymore.

I particularly love when Karen visits J.R.’s hotel room and pretends to be interested in him, only to skip out at the last minute because she has to pick up her husband Sid’s suit at the cleaners. Has anyone ever left J.R. high and dry for a reason so mundane?

I don’t necessarily buy J.R.’s attraction to Karen, but Hagman and Michele Lee look like they’re having a ball working together. For me, the real joy of watching these old pros comes in hindsight: Hagman is the only actor to appear in every “Dallas” episode, and Lee is the only actress seen in every “Knots Landing” installment during its 14-season run.

This makes “Community Spirit” a meeting of two prime-time soap opera giants. I can’t watch it without smiling.

Grade: A

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Worlds collide

‘COMMUNITY SPIRIT’

“Knots Landing” Season 1, Episode 2

Airdate: January 3, 1980

Audience: 17.8 million homes, ranking 14th in the weekly ratings

Writer: Elizabeth Pizer

Director: James Sheldon

Synopsis: Gary reluctantly helps his neighbors protest Ewing Oil’s plan to drill offshore near Knots Landing. J.R. visits and pressures Gary to back off, but Gary refuses, forcing J.R. to switch to a costlier alternative site.

Cast: Robert DoQui (Joseph Whitcomb), Danny Gellis (Jason Avery), Joseph Hacker (Chip Todson), Larry Hagman (J.R. Ewing), Michele Lee (Karen Fairgate), Claudia Lonow (Diana Fairgate), Constance McCashin (Laura Avery), Don Murray (Sid Fairgate), John Pleshette (Richard Avery), Ted Shackelford (Gary Ewing), Steve Shaw (Eric Fairgate), Joan Van Ark (Valene Ewing)

“Community Spirit” is available on DVD. Watch the episode and share your comments below.

Filed Under: Critiques, Critiques (Classic), Opinion Tagged With: Community Spirit, Joan Van Ark, Knots Landing, Larry Hagman, Michele Lee, Ted Shackelford

Knots Landing Scene of the Day: ‘Knots Landing’s Just a Place’

June 4, 2012 by Chris Baker Leave a Comment

Dallas, Gary Ewing, Joan Van Ark, Knots Landing, Pilot, Ted Shackelford

The day the running stopped

In “Knots Landing’s” pilot, new residents Gary and Valene (Ted Shackelford, Joan Van Ark) walk toward their house after witnessing Sid fighting with Annie.

GARY: Come on, it’s OK. We’ll talk about it while we unpack? Uh, we are gonna unpack, aren’t we? [They stop and face each other.] Val, I’ve been running all my life. I’ve gotta stop sometime.

VAL: This place is not … we can’t…. I don’t know.

GARY: Hell, Valene. Knots Landing’s just a place. Look, I can’t run anymore. This is my last chance not to run.

They walk into the house.

Filed Under: Dallas Scenes of the Day, Dallas Scenes of the Day (Classic), Features Tagged With: Joan Van Ark, Knots Landing, Ted Shackelford

Dallas Scene of the Day: ‘I Should’ve Fought Them’

May 31, 2012 by Chris Baker 1 Comment

Barbara Bel Geddes, Dallas, Miss Ellie Ewing, Return Engagements

Don’t you tell her what she has to do

In “Return Engagements,” a third-season “Dallas” episode, Miss Ellie and Bobby (Barbara Bel Geddes, Patrick Duffy) help Gary and Valene (Ted Shackelford, Joan Van Ark) prepare for their wedding.

ELLIE: Bobby, have you got the tickets?

BOBBY: No, Pamela’s bringing them with the judge.

GARY: Uh, what tickets?

ELLIE: Well, you wanted to settle in California, didn’t you?

GARY: Yeah, but you don’t have to pay for the plane fare.

ELLIE: Don’t you tell me what I have to do. Anyway, the tickets aren’t your present. [Hands him photos of houses] Bobby’s going to fly to California and show you the houses.

They sit.

GARY: I, I don’t get it. [Looks at Val]

ELLIE: Whichever house you like best is yours.

GARY: No, Mama.

ELLIE: And if you don’t like any of them, find another.

VAL: Miss Ellie, we, we couldn’t.

GARY: Mama, we wanna be on our own.

ELLIE: Did you wanna be on your own when you left Southfork? Or did your daddy and J.R. drive you off? You tried to stand on your own feet when you had Lucy – and your family kicked your heels right out from under you.

VAL: But Miss Ellie, we owe you so much. You raised Lucy.

ELLIE: Yes, I raised her. I raised her because the Ewings made it impossible for you to raise her. But I shouldn’t have. I should’ve fought them. I didn’t. I did nothing. Do you think my giving you a house is fair payment? I don’t. If you want to refuse it, refuse it because the gift is small. Otherwise, take it. Please take it.

Gary takes her hand and squeezes.

Filed Under: Dallas Scenes of the Day, Dallas Scenes of the Day (Classic), Features Tagged With: Barbara Bel Geddes, Joan Van Ark, Patrick Duffy, Return Engagements, Ted Shackelford

Critique: ‘Dallas’ Episode 43 – ‘Return Engagements’

May 31, 2012 by Chris Baker 19 Comments

Dallas, Gary Ewing, Joan Van Ark, Return Engagements, Ted Shackelford, Valene Ewing

Talk about baggage

“Return Engagements” is an exercise in efficient storytelling. During the course of this episode, Gary and Valene reunite, remarry, reconcile with his family and decide to relocate to Southern California. Who says “Dallas” is slow-paced?

Much of this feels rushed and underwritten, but there are some exceptions, beginning with the monologue Miss Ellie delivers when she announces her intention to buy a house for the newlyweds. Val points out how much her mother-in-law has already done for her and Gary. “Miss Ellie, we owe you so much. You raised Lucy,” she says.

“Yes, I raised her,” Ellie begins. “I raised her because the Ewings made it impossible for you to raise her. But I shouldn’t have. I should’ve fought them. I didn’t. I did nothing. Do you think my giving you a house is fair payment? I don’t. If you want to refuse it, refuse it because the gift is small. Otherwise, take it. Please take it.”

Scriptwriter David Jacobs’ dialogue here is flawless. Short, declarative statements (“I didn’t. I did nothing.”), delivered with conviction by Barbara Bel Geddes. What a shame these two didn’t collaborate more frequently. It would’ve been wonderful to see Bel Geddes deliver more of Jacobs’ words.

Another lovely moment: Immediately after Ellie’s speech, there’s a knock on Val’s front door and Bobby opens it, revealing Jock. “I believe I have a son getting married here today,” the Ewing patriarch says as he steps into the room. “I’d like to attend the ceremony, if I’m welcome.”

I can’t help but get a little lump in my throat when I watch this scene. Jim Davis delivers his line quietly, almost sheepishly. Jock’s guilt has humbled him.

Also good in this episode: Ted Shackelford, who makes his first appearance as Gary, and Joan Van Ark, who is always wonderful as Val, even if the couple’s reunion is a little pat. Perhaps “Return Engagements” suffers because Jacobs was busy getting ready for “Knots Landing,” which debuted a week after this episode aired?

Interestingly, the most entertaining couple in this episode isn’t the spinoff-bound newlyweds, it’s shipping magnate Eugene Bullock and Sally, his gold-digging young wife. The Bullocks are a plot device – Sally offers Kristin a glimpse of the future she believes she’ll have if she succeeds in becoming Mrs. J.R. Ewing – but E.J. André is a hoot as crotchety Mr. Eugene and Andra Akers is delicious as bitchy Sally.

Maybe they should’ve gotten a spinoff, too.

Grade: B

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Willing victim

‘RETURN ENGAGEMENT’

Season 3, Episode 14

Airdate: December 20, 1979

Audience: 20.3 million homes, ranking 2nd in the weekly ratings

Writer: David Jacobs

Director: Gunnar Hellström

Synopsis: Gary returns to Dallas and with Miss Ellie’s encouragement, proposes to Val, who accepts. J.R., who is on a “business trip” with Kristin, races home to stop the ceremony but arrives too late. Ellie’s gift to the newlyweds: a house in Knots Landing, a Southern California suburb.

Cast: E.J. André (Eugene Bullock), Andra Akers (Sally Bullock), Barbara Bel Geddes (Miss Ellie Ewing), Mary Crosby (Kristin Shepard), Jim Davis (Jock Ewing), Patrick Duffy (Bobby Ewing), Linda Gray (Sue Ellen Ewing), Larry Hagman (J.R. Ewing), Steve Kanaly (Ray Krebbs), Ken Kercheval (Cliff Barnes), Terry Lester (Rudy Millington), Jeanna Michaels (Connie), Victoria Principal (Pam Ewing), Ted Shackelford (Gary Ewing), Charlene Tilton (Lucy Ewing), Joan Van Ark (Valene Ewing)

“Return Engagement” is available on DVD and at Amazon.com and iTunes. Watch the episode and share your comments below.