Dallas (TV series)

Dallas was a long-running primetime television soap opera about the Ewings, a wealthy Texas oil family. It aired on the CBS network from April 2, 1978, to May 3, 1991. It was broadcast around the world, and is probably the most famous and successful American soap opera outside of the U.S.

Famous episodes

Dallas is also known for three famous episodes that made TV history:

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• "A House Divided" and "Who Done It?" - The 1979-1980 season ended with the show's anti-hero, J.R. Ewing, being shot (in the episode "A House Divided"). Viewers had to wait all summer (and most of the fall due to a Hollywood actors' strike) to learn whether J.R. would survive, and which of his many enemies was responsible. "Who Done It?" aired on November 21, 1980, with the revelation that Sue Ellen's sister Kristin, shot him in a fit of anger. It was one of the highest-rated episodes of a TV show ever aired. A session of the Turkish parliament was even suspended to allow legislators a chance to get home in time to view the episode. The great success of this stunt helped usher in the practice of ending a television season with a big cliffhanger. This entered into United States popular culture, with t-shirts printed with such references as "Who Shot J.R.?" and "I Shot J.R.!" being common over the summer.
• "Blast From The Past" - One of the show's stars, Patrick Duffy, left the program in the spring of 1985. His character, Bobby, was plowed down by a car and died, on camera, on May 17, 1985. When Duffy agreed to return to the show in 1986, producers ended the 1985-1986 season, on May 16, 1986 with a shot of Duffy emerging from a shower. Fans had to wait until September 26 to learn how the writers would explain Duffy's return. Most were disappointed with the solution: Bobby's ex-wife, Pam, had dreamt the entire previous season, including Bobby's death; an example of retroactive continuity. This caused a conflict elsewhere, as references to Bobby's death were made in the spin-off TV show Knots Landing. After this, Dallas and Knots Landing effectively cut ties as they then took place in different universes!

Exterior locations were shot at the Southfork Ranch, which is now a tourist attraction and a convention center. It is located in Plano, a suburb north of Dallas. Many of the show's exteriors, including shots of each protagonist's respective skyscraper offices, were also shot in the Dallas area. The majority of the series' dramatic action was filmed in California at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios. The series was produced by Lorimar.

Related Topics:
Southfork Ranch - Plano - Dallas - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer - Lorimar

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