Even after the show’s overall ratings began to slip,
cliffhanger episodes in the spring and their resolu-
tion in the fall were able temporarily to boost the
program back into the top ten. Another famous cliff-
hanger occurred in the May 16, 1986, season finale,
when Pam Ewing woke up and found her husband
Bobby—who had been killed at the end of the previ-
ous season and buried at the beginning of the 1985-
1986 season—standing in the shower. He said “Good
morning,” and the season ended, leaving viewers to
wonder how Bobby could be alive, or if Duffy was
even playing the same character. Explanations for
the actor’s return were easy to surmise: Bobby had
been killed off, because Duffy had wanted to leave
the show. However, in the following season,Dallas’s
ratings had fallen, as the central conflict between
the two brothers had been replaced by situations in-
volving international intrigue, which viewers found
less interesting. Meanwhile, Duffy’s attempt at a ca-
reer outside ofDallashad not been particularly suc-
cessful.
Hagman’s personal appeal and the producers’ of-
fer of a huge salary increase convinced Duffy to re-
turn. The question remained, however: How could
Duffy’s character, Bobby, plausibly be brought back
to life? The writers developed three different solu-
tions to the problem. To mislead
the cast, the crew, and reporters,
three alternative resolutions were
filmed. In a notorious and later
parodied turn of events, the cho-
sen solution was that the entire
previous season, one year’s worth
of episodes, had been Pam’s bad
dream. Characters that had been
introduced were discarded, situa-
tions were erased, dead charac-
ters were brought back to life, and
the series picked up again from
the end of the 1984-1985 season.Impact Dallasbecame the most
popular television program in the
world and an icon of popular cul-
ture. More than ninety countries
reported empty streets during
the hourDallasaired. Viewers be-
came involved and were often
consumed by characters and their
activities. People wore T-shirts dis-
playing J. R.’s face, some stating “I hate J. R.,” others,
“I love J. R.” Strangers found a common language,
discussing episodes ofDallas. Scholars based articles
and dissertations onDallas; it became one of the
most studied texts in the history of television.
It many ways, the show echoed the excesses of the
1980’s, not only through its location in Texas, but
also in its focus on the rich. Some described the show
as a caricature of the 1980’s decadence with its focus
on conspicuous consumption, greed, and J. R.’s
credo: “It’s not what you get that matters; it’s what
you can get away with.” As the luster of the era faded,
so did the popularity of the show. As Hagman noted,
“Dallasdied with the Reagan era.”Subsequent Events After 356 episodes,Dallas
ended on May 3, 1991, in a two-hour conclusion that
showed J. R. losing everything and contemplating
suicide. Two made-for-television movies,Dallas: J. R.
Returns(1996) andDallas: The War of the Ewings
(1998), followed.Further Reading
Geraghty, Christine.Women and Soap Opera: A Study of
Prime Time Soaps. Cambridge, Mass.: B. Blackwell,- Discusses the patriarchal elements of the
270 Dallas The Eighties in America
The cast ofDallasposes in this publicity shot from 1980. Clockwise from left: Patrick
Duffy, Victoria Principal, Jim Davis, Larry Hagman, Linda Gray, Charlene Tilton, and
Barbara Bel Geddes.(Hulton Archive/Getty Images)