Dallas
With the 1980 episode that answered the question "Who Shot J.R.?," Dallas became the most-watched program in the history of television. The originator of the prime-time soap opera, Dallas' serialstories about the exploits of a Texas oil family provided fodder for water-cooler gossip as well as real bookie-joint wagering. The program enjoyed a 13 year run, making superstars of Larry Hagman, Victoria Principal, Patrick Duffy, and others. The program foundered in the early 1990s and is remembered more than any other program as the epitome of the unabashedly capitalistic Reagan era.
Premiering April 2, 1978 on CBS, the series revolved around the relationships and tribulations of patriarch Jock Ewing and wife "Miss Ellie" (played by Jim Davis and Barbara Bel Geddes) and their three sons: J.R. (Hagman), the deceitful, conniving businessman who with his father ran the family oil company; Bobby (Duffy) a freewheeling playboy as the series began; and Gary (first David Ackroyd, then Ted Shackelford), a weak-willed alcoholic who long ago had fled the family's Southfork Ranch. J.R.'s wife was boozy Sue Ellen (Linda Gray). Bobby, in the series' first episode, eloped with Pamela (Victoria Principal), the sexy daughter of family arch-enemy Digger Barnes. Their marriage set the stage for years of conflict, especially with Pamela's brother Cliff (Ken Kercheval).
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