I
haven’t blogged much lately on a personal front. There has been a
lot of stuff going on, but trying to find the words to say it in an
eloquent manner is kind of eluding me at the moment. But, hopefully
it will. I have been blessed to have been a little bit of here,
there, and everywhere lately – I’ll share more info about that
later...But, today, I must write about bidding adieu to an old
friend.....
This
past Friday, I was in West Tennessee, and I was checking Facebook for
what seemed like the 173,321st time of the day. And, I saw the news
which hit me like a bullet through the heart - “TNT Cancels
Dallas.” You know how sometimes you expect something to happen, but
when you see it – it still hits you? That’s how I felt Friday
afternoon about 4pm. A 40-year old man....sad about the cancellation
of a...soap opera? Yes, and let me explain.
Back
in the late 1970s, Television was a great place – and that was just
with three or four channels. One of my favorite parts of the week was
watching “The Dukes Of Hazzard” on Friday nights. At four or
five, I don’t remember what the appeal was – maybe the car, maybe
the “cool” factor – I was much too young to have lusted after
Catherine Bach – that came later – but Friday nights were it for
me. I don’t recall having a specific bedtime at that age, but my
parents seemed to also enjoy this show that came on after
it....called “Dallas.” I figured out that if I acted interested
in the show, I could put off bedtime from 9 until 10pm. But, the
funny thing was....I actually became interested in the show – and
all the way until the final episode of the CBS original aired on May
3, 1991 – (I took off from school that day. Trust me, I remember!),
I was hooked on the weekly trials and tribulations of the most
dysfunctional family that ever resided west of the Mississippi –
the Ewings. Friday nights – no matter what else was going on in my
life growing up – were big because of the happenings at Southfork
Ranch.
Why
Dallas? I think it always offered a bit of pure escapism. The first
eight seasons of the show were about as brilliant as dramatic TV gets
– after that, it was kind of hit or miss, but it was still “Must
See TV” to me. Of course, at the center of the drama was the
villainous JR Ewing, played by Larry Hagman. Back in my high school
days, I actually dressed in a business suit and cowboy hat and
carried a briefcase on “Character Day” as JR himself. (Suffice to
say, I never was cool at DCHS, but I was me)......Maybe I wanted to
be JR – have that quick wit, that power with women. Heck, I’m 40
and I still do!
You
know how a lot of people who are fans of “Star Trek” are called
“Trekkies?’ I’m the same way....with “Dallas.” Outside of
my closest family....I probably know more about the Ewing family tree
than mine.....So, reruns and reunion movies over the years were
always huge events. And, then in 2012, came word that TNT was going
to bring the show back. And, in June of that year – the 18th
to be precise, I was there. The continuation of the show was
entertaining and fun, and Hagman’s 80-year old portrayal of JR was
more like the early years than the buffoon he was at the end of the
CBS years. But, on cable TV, it’s a tough draw to keep an
audience...and the writing didn’t help at times either. It could be
hit or miss, with a plot started one week – and forgotten about two
weeks later. But, mediocre “Dallas” is still better than most
other TV.....and the show did have its’ high points – such as
season two, which featured the passing of JR Ewing (following
Hagman’s death) and the white-hot chemistry of Josh Henderson as
John Ross Ewing and Julie Gonzalo as Pamela Barnes – a Ewing and a
Barnes together - Sound familiar? (But, to be fair, Gonzalo is so
gorgeous that all one needs is a pulse not to be a little bit excited
if you were doing a love scene with her!)
The
series ended with a cliffhanger episode about three weeks ago –
without word on whether TNT would renew the series for a fourth
season. Friday, the word came. No more “Dallas.” Well, to be
honest, I’m more than kind of bummed. Though I wasn’t always
pleased with every plot twist the past three years, “Dallas” once
again helped me to escape the trials and tribulations of my life –
which were a little bit more serious since 2012 than 1982! And, for
that alone, I am grateful. Maybe another network will pick it up, but
I am not really optimistic. The ratings weren’t that good.....but
if nothing else...the show brought three things to my attention....
- Josh Henderson is going to be a major TV / Movie / Music star. He chewed up the scenery of every plot he was featured in. He made being bad look as fun as Hagman did years ago! And he has as much charisma as any TV star I have seen since Clooney first hit the ER.
- I got to meet Linda Gray when she and Henderson hit Nashville as part of a promotional tour for TNT during the premiere week of the show back in 2012. Next to Elizabeth Montgomery in Bewitched, Sue Ellen Ewing is the absolute bomb of female characters in TV history
- And, we got to hear that classic theme song again – no matter what you might have thought about the show....the theme was larger than life – on a par with Hawaii Five-0 and The Andy Griffith Show.
So,
at least for now, Goodnight, Dallas. It was one heck of a ride!
