The Lasting Legacy of Dallas: A TV Show That Hooked a Nation

On April 2, 1978, the new television show Dallas would premiere on CBS. It would go on to change the shape of television programs as we knew them and would last for an incredibly long 23 years. 

With the Dallas TV show, we were given a program that was full of cowboy hats, bad blood, sex, family feuds, money, and shoulder pads. It was an absolutely ridiculous and extravagant soap opera that captured the attention of a generation. 

It managed to capture both the zeitgeist of the Seventies as well as the Eighties and also had an incredible cast. 

Are you interested in learning more about the legacy of Dallas? If so, then continue reading and we’ll walk you through everything you need to know!

It Laid the Groundwork for Peak TV

Many people would agree that after the start of the new Millenium, we entered a golden age of TV. But that golden age didn’t start from nowhere. It was thanks to shows like Dallas that we are able to watch such engaging and entertaining shows today.

The Ewing family in Dallas gave us the foundation that would be exploited by critically acclaimed shows like Breaking Bad, Mad Men, and The Sopranos. 

The premise of the show was basically a Western remake of The Godfather. The Ewings were supposed to be based on the Corleones – a mafia family that was ruled by a powerful patriarch who realizes that his sons have been turned into monsters. 

But Dallas also utilized something that The Godfather was missing – women. No other TV show at the time had women who were as charismatic, tyrannical, and demanding as the women in Dallas. 

Sue Ellen, played by Linda Gray, was one of the most incredible cryers to ever wear mascara. Victoria Principal’s Pam had a voice that both scared and enticed men. And Morgan Brittany’s Katherine spent most of her time making bedroom eyes at her brother-in-law, Bobby Ewing. 

Of course, Katherine would go on to shoot Bobby, and then try to kill him with lethal injection at the hospital, and then try to run him over with her car. 

And make sure to read more about what the cast is up to now for even more entertainment.

The Importance of Knowing About the Lasting Legacy of Dallas: A TV Show

As we can see, the Dallas TV show deserves your reconsideration as one of the greatest shows of the last century. Whether you grew up watching it, only knew other people who watched it, or you were born after it went off the air, you should consider giving it a rewatch.

Dallas offers up everything that people love about television today, except that it did it first and with a lot more style and fun.

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