Richard Avery. My New Best Friend.

[Jock's Ghost]

Going through my S1 AND 2 of Knots again, I noticed a character i hadn't paid much attention to before. One I had dismissed. Not totally, not like the useless, worthless Kenny and Ginger Ward. One who didn't grab my attention until now.
Knkts has always been a great show because we know people in the cul-de-sac. Richard is very much like me.
He gave this very revealing monolog about the differences between him and Sid, Gary. Its after he tells Laura about turning down the partnership at his office and not accepting the $20,000. He says the other neighbors are ok with humdrum, but he needs his big dreams.
It's too bad the show lost John. He could have added some real ompf in the hazy later years, beyond Laura's death. I know pleshette hated a few of the producers which lead to his exit. Too bad.
I like how Richard is not always correct, polite and occasionally slimy. His flings with Abby were more revealing about her than him.... yet his relationship with Karen was L was always a fun time, some of the series best moments. Karen looking at the good in everyone and Richard having good in him underscored what the series is about.

 

[James from London]

I know pleshette hated a few of the producers which lead to his exit.

I think he exited then hated them (when he returned to direct a few eps).

I love Richard, I love Pleshette. You put him in a scene with any other character and it's always gonna be interesting, His departure and brief return for' Noises Everywhere' were so beautifully done, I wouldn't change them.

I agree, the early seasons seem to reveal more hidden treasures every time I watch them. It took me a long time, but I feel like I finally "get" Kenny and Ginger too!

 

[Billy Nolan]

Oh yeah. I can fully agree with that. I liked Richard too. His character was not one-dimensional. He was multi-faceted and brought a great deal of depth to every role he interacted with in Knots Landing ... He wasn't a "simple" character, but that was exactly what made him so appealing.
I like John Pleshette as an actor in terms of his professionalism anyway.

 

[Spells & Karma]

I love Richard, I love Pleshette. You put him in a scene with any other character and it's always gonna be interesting

Absolutely. He's one of the most fascinating Knots characters for me. I love how imperfect he is. His difficulty in trusting and connecting with the people around him and his defence mechanism of outward arrogance is wonderfully at odds with the themes of community. And JP is the perfect actor for the role.

As far as him leaving when he did, I'm torn. It's been said (I think by John himself) that Richard wouldn't have fitted into the more glamorous middle years, but I don't see that as being an issue. His professional background could have been utilised well in getting him dragged reluctantly into various storylines. And if anything it would have played up his character's sense of not being enough and may have brought out some interesting responses.

But yes, on the whole I'd agree with James that the journey we got was so great I probably wouldn't want to change it. It's a good thing when a particular story leaves you wanting more.

 

[Jock's Ghost]

He seems to have butt heads with every character yet, I never hated him. All of the major characters did things that made me hate them on occasion. Even Saint Sid for being gullible. Never Richard. Even at his most loathsome when he was fooling with Abby. I felt sorry for him. I hated Abby more so it was her on the prowl, not him. He was a louse for doing it, but he didn't cheat just to be a horny male. He was lashing out. Petty as it was.

 

[Grant Jennings]

"Phony Tudor": with just two words we learn a lot about Richard. After Karen introduces herself to Gary & Val, painting a rosy picture of her family as The Brady Bunch: "three kids and a dog" (dog?!), Richard is the next neighbor to introduce himself and he's a lot more transparent. Richard lives in a "phony Tudor" as if to say "all of this - the American Dream - the ideal suburban middle-class life is just an illusion". It's not enough for Richard, he wants (and probably believes he deserves) more.

As much as Knots Landing focused on its female characters, it's the male characters (at least initially) who define the differences amongst the couples living on Seaview Circle. Sid, the oldest and probably a Republican (I'm certain he voted for Reagan) has bought into the American Dream and questions anyone else who doesn't share his view. Why wouldn't Karen be content to be a stay at home mother, changing diapers well into middle-age? Gary, having been born into wealth and not fitting in is desperately seeking normalcy. An alcoholic but also an adrenaline junkie, Gary does his best to keep up the appearance of suburban bread-winner before crashing and burning. Kenny, the youngest, has stars in his eyes and dreams of making it big in the music industry.

 

[James from London]

Sid, the oldest and probably a Republican (I'm certain he voted for Reagan) has bought into the American Dream and questions anyone else who doesn't share his view.

Oh, I'd say Sid was the least judgemental of the original gang, if not the whole series (except, intriguingly, when it came to Eric).

 

[The Averyville Horror]

Richard lives in a "phony Tudor" as if to say "all of this - the American Dream - the ideal suburban middle-class life is just an illusion". It's not enough for Richard, he wants (and probably believes he deserves) more.

I love this idea, that half of Richard wants to put on airs, while the other half tears himself down about it. I can see 1978-ish Richard (pre-series) homing in on the 'fake Tudor' (16975 Seaview Circle) the minute he saw it, since it was unlike the other houses which had the more typically suburban facades, that perhaps in his mind was 'higher-end' because of the attempt at a European look. By 1979, Richard would have realized 16975 was just another suburban house on a suburban street and become bitter about it, realizing once again that one cannot "buy" class and distinction, deciding to make sarcastic remarks about the house being 'fake'. He did not make the connection that it was the house he had chosen to buy. I had assumed that Richard's remarks about the house were simply a reflection of his being an east-coast man transplanted to California, where most everything (and everyone) tends to be fake. Here in Florida, we have a lot of transplants from other areas of the country, so I hear similar attitudes about the artificiality of people trying to fit into the lifestyle here who aren't very good at blending in.

I'm not sure if it has any bearing on Richard's remark, but there is a much later scene where real-estate agent Laura is showing a massive, Tudor mansion to a client. The snobby client remarks about it being a "fake" Tudor, but Laura wisely (not wise-crackingly) points out that yes, it's a fake Tudor since no genuine Tudor homes would have been built after 1603, though some of the beams installed in the home were from that period and imported from Europe. I recalled that scene because the history buff in me got a kick out of Laura schooling that snob on why she wasn't going to be getting a 'genuine Tudor home' in SoCal. Now it sounds like the Averys have some kind of affinity for the Tudors. Maybe in a past life, Richard was Henry VIII and Laura was one of his ill-fated wives.

 

[Chris2]

Richard is a great, nuanced, complex character, one that took talent to create.

 

[cijimccashin]

Richard was definitely a fully realized character. Someone I really related to because he was so complex. I missed him so much when he left and was ecstatic when he briefly returned. He stands out the most than the other male leads.

 

[valkaren]

Richard is a character that I didn't really understand until I got a little older. What adult can't relate to the ideals of always wanting more, living just beyond your means, cultivating a life where people can say 'wow, look how well they are doing for themselves' to mask our own insecurities.

Heck, maybe Richard is more relatable now because that's ultimately what society has become, thriving on the idea that if we can just have a little bit more we'll be happy.

 

[Nightmare on Jimmy Todd St... part 2]

Richard is a great, nuanced, complex character, one that took talent to create.

Very well said. I would just add that he's a character that also took talent to play.
I loved the character, but when he left it felt true to his character for him to leave at that time. I did want him to come back, and it was wonderful when he returned for "Noises Everywhere." He's the only one who pressed the question, "Why did Laura choose to die alone." Brilliantly, the writers left that question unanswered.
Another thing that stands out is when he's lambasting the Seaview Circle squad, Karen is the one who keeps objecting with, "Richard! Richard!"
They had one of the most intriguing relationships on the show.
I can't recall if Richard had any scenes with just he and Greg. Two great characters and two great actors(like WD and JvA) whom I would have loved to have seen in a few "Knots Landing gold" scenes.

 

[Sea - Boo! - Er]

I can't recall if Richard had any scenes with just he and Greg. Two great characters and two great actors(like WD and JvA) whom I would have loved to have seen in a few "Knots Landing gold" scenes.

Pleshette and Devane are also great friends in real life.
As I recall, at some point Greg remarks that he is the most hated man in Knots Landing; Richard replies, "You inherited my title."

 

[thomaswak]

I hated Richard so much when I was a young teen. And I thought he was really not attractive.

Then I grew up, get older, and I recently watch Knots again and I was amazed how Richard was way more interesting than I remembered. And I thought he was also way cuter than in my memories... This time, I could buy that he could "have his way" with women like Laura or Abby.

 

[cijimccashin]

Richard has always been a favorite of mine. He was a honest portrayal of a certain type of men and also relatable. He was a cute little monkey to me lol

 

[Billy Nolan]

In terms of acting qualities, he was really a highlight in the early episodes of the series.
"Richard Avery" would certainly not have received an award for his wardrobe. With amusement I remeber his white suit in the episode "Civil Wives". Either he forgot to put his shirt on or he wanted to impress "Susan Philby" with his hairy chest.

 

[Jock's Ghost]

I think he was the most honest too. He nailed down Gary and Abby from the get go and rolled his eyes but did not judge the Fairgates' polly anna BS.

 

[Jock's Ghost]

Richard is a character that I didn't really understand until I got a little older. What adult can't relate to the ideals of always wanting more, living just beyond your means, cultivating a life where people can say 'wow, look how well they are doing for themselves' to mask our own insecurities.

Heck, maybe Richard is more relatable now because that's ultimately what society has become, thriving on the idea that if we can just have a little bit more we'll be happy.

He felt and was obviously proven correct that Laura didn't want what he was giving her and it made him insecure. She was right, to an extent, but she was not blameless.

 

[Mustard]

Richard captures that cynical attitude that people who have been through a lot of disappointments, failures and insecurities have.

In a way, he's like Cliff on Dallas, except Richard is more underplayed most of the time, while Cliff is bigger on hyperbole. Cliff hates J.R. or the Ewings, while Richard doesn't particularly hate anyone but wants the big dreams and can never seem to get near them so ends up hating himself and feeling like a failure. Laura's success in real estate and her growing confidence as a strong woman after previously being the traditional wife just makes it worse for Richard.

 

[Mustard]

He felt and was obviously proven correct that Laura didn't want what he was giving her and it made him insecure. She was right, to an extent, but she was not blameless.

The new Laura was more suited to Greg Sumner. Richard was more her past. Richard just couldn't cope with Laura, as his wife, being such a breadwinner and so confident in herself.