Knots Landing

[j swift]

I was trying to remember if it was Sam Behrens (Danny Waleska) or Doug Sheehan (Ben Gibson) who gave a stinging exit interview to TV Guide when his character was written off of Knots.

I know it was an ex-GH actor.  He basically said that there was no room for a new male character because the women were the focus of the show and the existing male actors were unwelcoming.  It all came off as very bitter, despite the fact that both characters were the center of a lot of drama.  But, since we rarely saw either actor after their time on the show, I cannot recall which one said it.

I think of it as a real "don't bite the hand that feeds you"-type of lesson.

Edited April 3, 2022 by j swift

[Chris 2]

Eh - hard to shed a lot of tears for him when there were so many other male-oriented shows (including soaps such as Dallas).

Doug Sheehan had a four year run on the show - that’s pretty good for someone who is essentially coming between the one of the main couples on the show.

[FrenchBug82]

It is hard for me to hear "This is a female-oriented" show and think this is supposed to be a critic.
I realize the bitterness is speaking but it is a good thing that KL was centered around its female characters when all was said and done.
Sheehan had a good run but I do remember he wasn't happy and I think he asked to be written out so I think it is possible he was frustrated and unhappy there.
There'd be no way Behrens would have been surprised and bitter to be written out considering what his character was. He was a guest star for a season, nothing more. He'd have to have been deluded.

[Khan]

I can't blame Doug Sheehan for feeling bitter and unhappy and wanting out.  Everyone BTS was so sold on Gary and Val being endgame that they made Ben look like a damn fool in the process.

The thing is, most TV series are supposed to be targeted toward women, as advertisers still consider women - and women 18-35 in particular - to be the biggest consumers and the most willing to try the newest products on the market.  If you're a male actor going to work on a TV series, you know that; and if you don't, you should.

Agree.  Besides, Sam Behrens might be a great guy IRL, but on-camera, he's always been dull and devoid of chemistry with anyone, male or female.  Even if Danny hadn't turned out to be a total psychopath, they would've been forced to write him off, as there was simply nowhere they could have gone with him.

[FrenchBug82]

Granted I am not an artist so I don't know the feeling of wanting to walk away from a good-paying job because you want to "be challenged" but this feels like cutting off your nose to spite your face.
While everyone understood Gary was the endgame, by the time Sheehan chose to walk away Val and Ben were going very well, were very solid and were surprisingly popular considering, well, that they weren't the endgame. They weren't putting Gary and Val back together anytime soon.
There was a LOT of story yet to be told with the character, even from within the confines of the Val triangle, let alone if they managed to use him in other directions which they might have!

His exit story, which wouldn't have happened if he hadn't asked to leave, was ironically the only really garbage "we-don't-know-what-to-do-with-you" story he really was given.
He was paid very well to play a character on a high-rated primetime show. I can't possibly understand what would have creatively bothered him so much that he would want to walk away from the job when there was no sign the character had exhausted its potential IMO.

[Soaplovers]

I think Gary and Val took a long time to reunite because she and Ben were popular together.  I remember my parents saying Val was too good for Gary..and that she had more in common with Ben.  Both were writers, both jogged,  both loved the ocean, and both had a quirky sense of whimsy.

I actually liked him with Abby better.

[FrenchBug82]

That's what I am saying. I think a LOT of people felt that way and it is a testament to the talent of everyone involved - actors and writers.
There was a lot more story that could be told - the dilemna between the man who is right for you and the passion that is toxic but that you can't get out of your skin - especially with the twins still hanging over them.
They didn't reunite Gary and Val properly until much later so besides ego I don't see why Sheehan should have cared that Gary/Val would be the end game. The end game was a long ways away!


I actually found a piece that I think might bw what is mentioned above from People in 1985 and not only does he come off as something of an a** to me here, but he confirms that
1) it is about ego ("Second-fiddle"? Dude was given plenty of material; he wasn't going to get top billing over the OG)
2) it is amazing when you think he was still ON THE SHOW and was a year away from leaving when he was saying those things 

https://people.com/archive/tired-of-playing-second-fiddle-on-knots-landing-doug-sheehan-starts-tooting-his-own-horn-vol-24-no-22/

So I would have to imagine it didn't make him very popular on-set either.
 

[j swift]

Thank you, I was searching the TV Guide archives and it was driving me nuts. 

Actor's egos are something to behold.  The guy not only successfully moved from daytime to primetime, while still at a viable age, but also had a fragrance contract with Este Lauder/Aramis, and messes it up by whining about being the third wheel. Ben had potential to be paired with multiple other people after Val, and his role as a muckraking journalist could have easily played into future stories with Greg.

He had some further success with sitcoms, but, according to IMDB, he hasn't worked for the past 20 years.

Edited April 4, 2022 by j swift

[Chris 2]

He sounds terribly misguided. There’s nothing employers love more than their employees complaining publicly about their jobs. And we’re not talking about someone who was drop-dead handsome or had charisma to spare or was the second coming of Olivier.

[Chris B]

When you consider how late he joined the show, Doug Sheehan got really good screen time until he left.I also actually loved his exit espionage storyline. I know the writers tried to bring him back later, but said he wouldn’t even respond to the request. This explains why lol. 

[Soapsuds]

Ha! Doug was cute in a puppy way but the actor and character of Ben was dull as dirt.

I cringed everytime Ben took his shirt off.

[FrenchBug82]

In a weird way it really worked for me and for Knots Landing's appeal to me that I was not sexually attracted to any of its multiple male leads over the years - and trust me, I am usually super easy taste-wise.

I am not going to bash anyone and I saw the charisma in many but Gary, Greg, Mack, Ben, Larry, Richard, Sid, Nick...
I mean there are a few supporting characters I would have - Karen's sons - but very very very few were classically handsome.
None of them really were TV-show good-looking. It helped ground the show very much IMO and I am pretty sure it is part of KL as a female-centered show.
 

[Joseph]

did Knots ever get a pianist? Anne Perhaps? She was the richest bitch around

[Soapsuds]

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[FrenchBug82]

Always found hilarious the TV show trope of finding someone in distress... STOPPING in your tracks to take the time to scream their name and THEN rush to their side.