People, Production, Writing That Took Away From "that Could Really Happen"

[Bill Dilks]

Dallas Reality Checks...

First, for years there has been the feeling of everyone living in the same house it not realistic. But remember, back then, SF was considered a sizable home. And a Texan ties to a ranch is personal. So, tho' it's a stretch, to me it's still within the realm of possibility.

The first, and biggest to me, was the Ray/Lucy issue, ignored over later on. I didn't care for it, but like the dismissal of the dream season, it had to be done.

Cars? Mens' affairs? Womens' affairs? Homes? Relationships? Character interaction? Do you have any glaring issues?

 

[Richard Channing]

Well, the Wes Parmalee storyline for a start. Although I enjoyed the drama of it all, expecting us to believe that, no matter how much plastic surgery they had had, that a family would not know, or be sure, if they were talking to their father/husband or not. You'd just know if it was them or not. And the voice and the personality would still be the same and would be impossible to mistake. So that one really pushed it beyond the bounds of plausibility for me.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Well, the Wes Parmalee storyline for a start. Although I enjoyed the drama of it all, expecting us to believe that, no matter how much plastic surgery they had had, that a family would not know, or be sure, if they were talking to their father/husband or not. You'd just know if it was them or not. And the voice and the personality would still be the same and would be impossible to mistake. So that one really pushed it beyond the bounds of plausibility for me.

Although wealthy families have indeed had imposters invade their spaces. Hard to believe, yes, but anything bizarre DALLAS ever did had its twin somewhere out there in the real world.

 

[Swami]

Some of the wonderful observations that the late great Sir Terry Wogan made about Dallas are very much characteristic of this. Seemingly the most opulent family on TV, with walk-in wardrobes and wire coathangers, holding weddings in front of the garage and such like.

Also the relatively small size of Southfork itself does require viewers to suspend reality a bit; Patrick Duffy once said that if the house really was as big as the show made it out to be, you'd be halfway into the back pasture.

Swami

 

[Taylor Bennett Jr.]

Dallas Reality Checks...

First, for years there has been the feeling of everyone living in the same house it not realistic. But remember, back then, SF was considered a sizable home. And a Texan ties to a ranch is personal. So, tho' it's a stretch, it's still within the realm of possibility.

The first, and biggest to me, was the Ray/Lucy issue, ignored over later on. I didn't care for it, but like the dismissal of the dream season, it had to be done.

Cars? Mens' affairs? Womens' affairs? Homes? Relationships? Character interaction? Do you have any glaring issues?

the first ranch location was far more appropriate in size, of course - a giant house with a cottage each for the 3 sons. It's hard to imagine the sweeping cinematography of the first Barbecue in the newer setting.

It was missing the intimate pool and patio setting, though, which was so central to the series going forward.

 

[Taylor Bennett Jr.]

Well, the Wes Parmalee storyline for a start. Although I enjoyed the drama of it all, expecting us to believe that, no matter how much plastic surgery they had had, that a family would not know, or be sure, if they were talking to their father/husband or not. You'd just know if it was them or not. And the voice and the personality would still be the same and would be impossible to mistake. So that one really pushed it beyond the bounds of plausibility for me.

as I say on here often, Wes pronounced the first ‘s’ in ‘business’ for god’s sake! Preposterous!

 

[Lastkidpicked]

The Wes Parmalee storyline for a start. Although I enjoyed the drama of it all, expecting us to believe that, no matter how much plastic surgery they had had, that a family would not know, or be sure, if they were talking to their father/husband or not. You'd just know if it was them or not. And the voice and the personality would still be the same and would be impossible to mistake. So that one really pushed it beyond the bounds of plausibility for me.

as I say on here often, Wes pronounced the first ‘s’ in ‘business’ for god’s sake! Preposterous!

The greatest part of the Wes Parmalee storyline is when Wes barges into the Oil Barron's Ball and announces that he is Jock Ewing. "If you want to do business with Ewing Oil, you will be doing business with me!"

And when he walks off the stage, Jeremy Wendell practically runs over to start doing business with him. Jeremy caught up to him before Wes even got completely off the stage!

 

[Bill Dilks]

Some of the off-the-rack clothing caught my eye. Many of JR's clothes were very ill-fitting...not that he had much of a shape to show off. But wardrobe could've done better.

Then there was, in style or not, Pam's sack dress in dvds7e01. Maybe it was a loaner from Miss Ellie. I may be knit-picking...

 

[Sarah]

You're welcome about the pictures @Justine
I am glad that you enjoyed it.

Cool that your photo was on the cover @Sarah I didn't know it actually made the cover before.

Some of the off-the-rack clothing caught my eye. Many of JR's clothes were very ill-fitting...not that he had much of a shape to show off. But wardrobe could've done better.

Then there was, in style or not, Pam's sack dress in dvds7e01. Maybe it was a loaner from Miss Ellie. I may be knit-picking...

View attachment 16993

How dare you! JR is a fine figure of a man. A ride as we say over here. Perfectly proportioned from head to toe

 

[Bill Dilks]

Watching dvd s7e12. Katherine is with an investigator she hired to find out info on Jenna's history.

The worldly and snobbish Katherine asks about "Marchetta", pronouncing the soft CH as in "cheese". The worldly Katherine would certainly know the "CH" in Italian is spoken as the English language "K", as in "mar-KAY-ta". I'm just wondering if this was discussed to pander to the American audience's thinking this would be "CH" as in cheese, because that's the way it looks. Possibly, or it just got by everyone at the time.

 

[Toni]

Watching dvd s7e12. Katherine is with an investigator she hired to find out info on Jenna's history.
View attachment 17005

The worldly and snobbish Katherine asks about "Marchetta", pronouncing the soft CH as in "cheese". The worldly Katherine would certainly know the "CH" in Italian is spoken as the English language "K", as in "mar-KAY-ta". I'm just wondering if this was discussed to pander to the American audience's thinking this would be "CH" as in cheese, because that's the way it looks. Possibly, or it just got by everyone at the time.
View attachment 17006

I´m afraid sweet innocent Katty Kathy missed the Italian classes to watch the re-runs of "The Twilight Zone"...

"Yeah, I´d like to order 6 bottles of Coke and a blonde wig...And pronto, beech!"
Here is Kathy reenacting her fav movie "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?​

 

[Bill Dilks]

Trials. They were talking days to trial instead of years to trial. I agree with how they were handled tho'. Gotta keep the story line interest going.

 

[Richard Channing]

The worldly and snobbish Katherine asks about "Marchetta", pronouncing the soft CH as in "cheese". The worldly Katherine would certainly know the "CH" in Italian is spoken as the English language "K", as in "mar-KAY-ta". I'm just wondering if this was discussed to pander to the American audience's thinking this would be "CH" as in cheese, because that's the way it looks. Possibly, or it just got by everyone at the time.

I'm guessing Morgan Brittany just read it that way cause she's not actually as worldly as Katherine.

 

[stevew]

Dallas Reality Checks...

First, for years there has been the feeling of everyone living in the same house it not realistic. But remember, back then, SF was considered a sizable home. And a Texan ties to a ranch is personal. So, tho' it's a stretch, to me it's still within the realm of possibility.

The first, and biggest to me, was the Ray/Lucy issue, ignored over later on. I didn't care for it, but like the dismissal of the dream season, it had to be done.

Cars? Mens' affairs? Womens' affairs? Homes? Relationships? Character interaction? Do you have any glaring issues?

I could buy a ranch family living in the same house. There were company apartments in town and they probably could have hinted at other houses like Bobby with a house in the Bahamas for getaways and Sue Ellen with an NYC apt. and certainly Miss Ellie with a house in Knots Landing. I also think they could have done more with a few cottages on the property for guests. But over all I bought it. I know very wealthy people who built houses by each other on one big piece of property, that certainly could have been part of Dallas.

As for ignoring Lucy and Ray - I’m sure once they found out they were related they’d have kept their mouths shut about it and ignored it.

 

[stevew]

Some of the off-the-rack clothing caught my eye. Many of JR's clothes were very ill-fitting...not that he had much of a shape to show off. But wardrobe could've done better.

Then there was, in style or not, Pam's sack dress in dvds7e01. Maybe it was a loaner from Miss Ellie. I may be knit-picking...

View attachment 16993

Good points but not all rich people care about clothes. I can see JR being one of them and not standing for a fitting. Sue Ellen is the only one I could see thinking about style and I think she usually pulled it off. Pam to me was an off the rack girl. No amount of money would change that.

 

[Jabari Lamar]

As for ignoring Lucy and Ray - I’m sure once they found out they were related they’d have kept their mouths shut about it and ignored it.

I presume that at some point soon after the revelation about his heritage Ray and Lucy had a brief conversation in private about their past and were like "It never happened, deal? Deal!" Then shook hands on it, and that was that. Same Ray and Sue Ellen never talked about thier one night stand afterward. Maybe Pam, whom was the only other person who knew about Ray and Lucy tried to bring it up privately to one or each of them around the time as well, and made a similar pledge of "let's just not talk about it, okay?"

I mean, I don't know what anyone really wanted about this. Simply ignoring it and never bringing it up again was the best option. This isn't like NuDynasty, where after it was revealed that the Colby's were related to the Carringtons they had several people cracking jokes about Fallon & Jeff having slept together when they didn't know they were cousins. As creepy as that may be to many, cousin-relations aren't as taboo as uncle/neice. So they could get away with that.

 

[Toni]

I'm guessing Morgan Brittany just read it that way cause she's not actually as worldly as Katherine.

"Watch out, you little Channing mod!
I know where you live..."​

 

[Bill Dilks]

I can see JR being one of them and not standing for a fitting.

I can see both sides of this for JR. But in the end, as he considers himself a cut above, for me I see the clothes and the fit being part of that egocentric character.

 

[Bill Dilks]

I liked the character of Julie, well played by Ginger. However...as far as development goes...

To us her affair with JR was new...hadn't seen the affair before, and couldn't have...as it was in the first episode that we found out about it.

Julie knew for years that JR was a cad. Then all of a sudden she gets her back up when he lays $100 on her pillow next to her? If she knew JR as well as we're expected to think she did, she would know that's just JR being JR...not treating her like a hooker...just forgetting her b-day and trying to make up for it and not seeing anything wrong with it. And it's also likely his way of remaining detached. I'm sure it happened numerous times before. Why now, all of a sudden, all the hullabaloo?

...just my thoughts on development and backstory.

 

[Bill Dilks]

I'm guessing Morgan Brittany just read it that way cause she's not actually as worldly as Katherine.

Funny, watching a dvds7e15? and Katherine got closer and called him "mar-KET-ta". Not perfect, but guess she's learning...the little girl "Morgan" is growing up.