Jump to content

Knots Landing


Sedrick

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 3.5k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

Posted Images

  • Members

Knots 1st season ratings.

Competition was 20/20 on ABC and Kate Loves a Mystery (reworked Mrs Columbo from the previous season) Rockford Files,and Skag (Karl Malden family drama) on NBC

Episodes

1. 20.1/34 23rd Gary and Val move in and meet the neighbors. 

2. 23.3/36 14th Gary fights JR over an environmental issue. (appearance by Larry Hagman as JR)

3. 20.0/34 36th Karen is tempted into an affair...

4. 19.3/31 30th Laura is raped and lies that it was stranger, not a guy she picked up. 

5. 23.7/40 14th Lilimae turns up attempting to reconcile with Val. aired Friday @10

6. 20.3/34 38th Lucy visits Knots Landing 

7. 22.4/37 21st Motorcylce thugs terrorize the cul de sac.

8. 11.0/21 45th Sid's ex wife visits.  Season low

9. 15.9/25 37th Ginger is harassed by  dead ex boyfriends mother.

10. 19.1/32 31st Karen has a miscarriage, Eric is interested in Ginger's teen sis and Ginger wants to start a family.

11. 17.5/28 41st Richard and Laura clash over her working as he faces money problems.

12. 19.1/33 29th Gary hits the bottle, Ginger worries that Kenny is having an affair,

13. 18.7/32 34th Gary hits rock bottom and goes to AA. Ginger throws Kenny out.

So the ratings were not great and didn't really build, but the show did win it's timeslot a number of times.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I'd forgotten that was Barry Jenner. I know him best as Admiral Ross, Avery Brooks' cohort in the final years of the Dominion War on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

I am nowhere near Robin's run on the show yet but I look forward to it. I do wonder why/how Allan Miller's Scooter abruptly disappeared so soon after he and Laura started hooking up. There was zero mention of him or of Laura leaving his firm.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

KL experienced very big growing pains in seasons two and three.  David Jacobs and his team recognized after season one that the original, "'Scenes from a Marriage' x4" concept wasn't going to be sustainable, but I don't think they were comfortable yet with ramping up the storytelling.  That turning point wouldn't actually arrive until halfway through season four, with Ciji's murder.  IMO, that's when the KL we all knew and loved was born.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Season 2 tried the serial elements for the sake of the elements vs if it made sense for the story or characters.  Abby was just a bored maneater that hit on Kenny, slept with Richard (with Val sometimes seeing some of the signals and looking uncomfortable).  And you saw that Abby's main goal was Gary..so she set it up where Val saw Gary with Judy to the point where Judy correctly guessed Abby's intentions.

Season 3 managed a good blend of serial elements within the self contained episodes.  

And @KhanI agree that KL succeeded because the show was about characters in Knots landing that knew one another personally and professionally.  While FC, Dallas, and Dynasty were tied  to one family and industry.  With KL's concept, more avenues to explore (Melrose Place had the same type of set up and blew it in season 4 thus shortening its shelf life to 7 seasons).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

John Pleshette once made a very good point: just because they're your neighbors, that doesn't mean you're intimately involved with them.  You might wave hi and bye to each other in passing, or share small talk across the hedge about the weather and so forth, but you don't ever really have much to do with your neighbors, and they hardly ever have much to do with you.  I think that, more than any other factor, is what makes season one so uneven in terms of quality. 

You can see almost immediately that David Jacobs and his staff are struggling with how to make the four couples interact in ways that make sense and carry some impact on the stories.  Having Gary work for Sid at Knots Landing Motors is a smart way to have the Ewings and Fairgates interact, but what about the Averys and Wards?  Richard's an attorney; Kenny's a record producer; Ginger and Laura are a kindergarten teacher and housewife, respectively.  How do you bring them into stuff that's going on with the other two couples or at KLM without making it seem like you're shoehorning them in?

You can also see right away that some couples are just easier or more interesting to write for than others.  Gary and Val are good for stories, because of their past history, as established on DALLAS (even if the episodes where J.R., Lucy and Kristin visit are among the show's very worst, lol).  Richard and Laura are also good for stories, because they are the quintessential middle-class couple that's disintegrating under the weight of the husband's ambitions.  They personify Jacobs' vision for a Bergman-esque marital drama better than anyone else on this show.  Karen and Sid are a bit harder to write for, because Karen is so loud and shrill compared to Sid, who often fades into the surroundings; but, as the older, anchor couple, they lend to KNOTS a gravitas and stability that Gary/Val and Richard/Laura can't.

The hardest couple to write for, therefore, are Kenny and Ginger.  Not only are Jim Houghton and Kim Lankford unevenly matched, IMO, but there's just nothing about the Wards that's interesting or sets them apart from the others on Seaview Circle.  I think this is because Gary and Val's presence in the cul-de-sac makes Kenny and Ginger redundant.  You can't tell any good "young couple" stories with Kenny and Ginger, because Gary and Val, as spinoff characters, have that covered.  And while you can tell stories about the lengths Kenny will go to to be a major player in the record industry, they're gonna feel awfully similar to stories about Richard doing whatever it takes - even pimping women! - to pull himself and his family out of middle-class mediocrity.  So, what is left for the Wards to do?  That's why, when they leave after season four, you don't miss them.  (In retrospect, I think making either Kenny or Ginger black, thereby allowing for opportunities to explore the issues that an interracial couple living in Southern California in the late '70's and early '80's would face, would have been a good way to avoid this problem, even if it would have been way ahead of its' time, lol.)

I look at season two (and, to a certain extent, season four) as what could happen when you let Aaron Spelling or his sensibility run a non-Spelling show.  Nothing that happens is properly motivated; characters are too venal, and emotions are too big.  (I still laugh whenever I think of drunk Gary pounding on the glass and yelling to Abby that they are "RUINING LIVES!!!!," lol.)

Again, Ciji's body washing up the shore is probably the moment when the "new" KL rises from the ashes of the "old."  It's hard to explain, but you just feel like that's the moment when the show has finally figured out what it wants to be and how it wants to get there.

Edited by Khan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

What Lisa Hartman wants more than KL stardom is a hit song that isn't a duet with her husband.

Compare that to DALLAS, where the best that they could do was have Sue Ellen sell lingerie.

Edited by Khan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Constance's interview was riddled with horrible technical errors for the first 20 minutes but otherwise was worth watching, mostly just for her great vivacity. 

She didn't share that much about her time at Knots, beyond some of the obvious (she was shocked at being fired), but here are a few comments I remember:

- she didn't have to audition for Laura, as she had worked with David Jacobs beforehand

- the show was almost canceled in season 3...she was in the hospital post-delivery when David Jacobs called to tell her they'd been picked up again 

- she got a lot of inspiration for her performance in Laura's rape episode from a woman who worked in wardrobe and had been assaulted 

- Ava Gardner would call her up and looked out for her, and other people 

- she didn't ask for either of her pregnancies to be written in...she seemed to think Laura had Meg mostly just so viewers would be even more upset when Laura died 

-  the main person she knew pre-Knots was Claudia Lonow 

- she was close to Julie Harris, to the point of Julie letting her stay in her house for a while after she gave birth to her first child as Julie was going to be away doing something for PBS

- she recently had dinner with Bill Devane, John Pleshette, and their wives. 

- she also mentioned meeting up with Michele Lee recently (we saw that photo). She talked a little about the people she doesn't see anymore (like Lisa Hartman) but wishes she did. 

For the game show fans, she touched briefly on her appearances, telling a story about going to Spago one night and having some woman there pushing her chest out and reminding Constance that she had "paid for these" due to all the money she had won for her on a game show.

For her talk about her personal life, when asked about grandchildren, she mentioned that her son (the one who played Jason) learned in recent years that he had had a daughter while in college. A reminder that those long lost kid stories do happen in real life, I suppose...

Edited by DRW50
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.




  • Recent Posts

    • I think Joss does know the material and maybe just plagiarized some of Emma's data?   Despite all her actions I do think the show pretends Joss is smart and this class is sort of in her new wheelhouse as a degree. Gio playing Carmen was super high pitched to me.  He's a talented musician but that was screechy lol. TBH, we all know I love Sonny to a fault, but I would rather stare at Rebecca Herbst's opening picture for an hour than listen to Sonny and Jason blather on about giving up the mob.  You can even try to fake me out at this point.
    • Denise's daytime/soap resume courtesy of Slick Jones' Soap Hoppers thread THE CLEAR HORIZON         Lois Adams       1960 BEN JERROD                        Emily Sanders     1963 GENERAL HOSPITAL          Lorna Hill            May 1965 DAYS OF OUR LIVES           Susan Hunter Martin Peters    1966-73 GENERAL HOSPITAL      Dr.  Lesley Sullivan Williams Faulkner Webber Webber   1973-84; 1996-09;(occasional); 2013; 2017; 2019; 2021 ABC AFTERNOON  PLAYBREAK    "The Gift of Terror"    Laura    4/5/1973 HOTEL                                 Gail McClain         1984 ANOTHER WORLD             Mary Callahan McKinnon (LaSalle) McKinnon   1986-89 SUNSET BEACH                 Sister Beatrice         1997-98 PORT CHARLES Dr. Lesley Williams Faulkner Webber 1999
    • Well as I sit here waiting for my new episode to load on my system, I'm rewatched Friday.   Say what you want, but I will always live for the Dupree family moments. And I love how much Vernon and Anita were being there for Nicole. Tag-team comforting. That was just cute.   I also love...and I've said it before...how BTG does what Y&R used to do with major characters who you think are not going to be in the episode. Have them pop up later in the episode. It was a nice surprise to see Eva appear halfway through. And I knew at some point that SilkPress Sheila would wind up at that house alone with Nicole. Still gasped since it was the only time she was in the episode.    Another thing that I'm loving has been as we are dealing with fallout from the SilkPress storyline which has been the A story...the writers are finally developing the OTHER A story...that's been in the background. That being Martin's Secret. Love the foreshadowing throughout. From Dani vs Bill and asking what else he was hiding to Kat/Smitty talking post another Martin outburst...which are building...to those unexpected Bill/Smitty scenes. Shame on Bill for planting seeds in Smitty's head.    And the unexpected combo was also great. Vernon/Nicole. Kat/Smitty. Bill/Smitty. Even getting another Martin/Ted scene in. I liked that characters aren't just sticking too much into story bubbles.    I definitely enjoying all the fallout from the SilkPress/Eva reveal. Eva might be done, but she ain't out. And I continue to get SMG Kendall vibes. Was she wrong? Yep. But she was partly tricked, too. So she definitely has an underdog vibe written all over her for some redemption. And one of the best plots on the show continue to be Kat vs Eva. So Kat seeing Eva getting closer to Tomas is only going to make that rivalry worse. It's been interesting to see the effects on the whole Richardson family from Nicole to Ted to Martin. And yes, fingers crossed that Martin stays triggered...since it feels like it's building onto his secret.    Oops at Nicole finding out Andre knew about Ted. I do wonder if she might say it to Dani. And then Dani winds up breaking it off permanently with Andre. And yay! Vanessa showed up for her BFF.   I'm enjoying the C plot of the homeless woman. I totally think there's more to her. And it gives Naomi and Jacob a story. I'm sure I've said it before, but I do wonder if it will tie into the crooked cop story or even Joey somehow. And good to see Ashley and Derek...ironically in a C plot.    And good to see we got three cliffhangers again. I hope this week does the same on Friday. 
    • I believe Cecile was intentionally used for comedic elements maybe twice. I mean, start with her being royalty from where? Tanquir!!! LOL From the first moment it's a gag, isn't it? And, her kidnapping Cass? I mean does a serious character do that? Well, literally, if you go another way & it's horror, sure. And, what you describe, a food fight, yeah, it's going to be played for laughs. Not a problem. I can respect different POVs. 
    • Y&R 1976 Pt 2 Bill is overjoyed when Jill arrives home with grandson. But Kay is furious and checks into legal action, only to find that there are no grounds (the check was returned). Brock Reynolds, Kay’s son from her first marriage, convinces her she can be the baby’s godmother and provide for him out of love.  But just as she’s starting arrangements to do this a legal petition arrives stating that Phillip Chancellor Foster is a rightful heir to and is now claiming his share of Phillip Chancellor’s estate. Jill has to do this, as the Foster family’s finances are now more precarious than ever. In fact, Liz, unable to get her factory job back, has secretly started working for Kay as her housekeeper. Jill explains to Kay that she has to do this for her baby’s sake but will drop the suit immediately if Kay puts it in writing that she will provide for them. Kay, however, retorts that Jill is the one who can’t be trusted—after all, she went back on her agreement to let Kay have the baby. Despite her attorney’s advice to work out an out-of-court agreement, Kay — insists on seeing this through. When Jill takes her little son to Phillip’s grave -on the Chancellor estate, Kay runs her off the property. In court, the geneticist testifies that Phillip could have been the baby’s father, but that Brock could have been, also. Jill then testifies that Phillip was the only man she was ever intimate with, and then only once; that Phillip decided on an immediate divorce from Kay and marriage to her, Jill, so that his baby could have his legal name. But Kay’s lawyer brings up the “dead-man statute,” which holds that conversations with a deceased person are not admissible as evidence because he can’t defend himself. When the  judge upholds this statute, Jill comes close to being held in contempt of court.  Brock takes the stand and substantiates Jill’s testimony that although he and Jill lived together for a time before her marriage to Phillip, they were never initimate. But the judge rules in favor of Kay; little Phillip’s claim is rejected. Jill emotionally tells the judge he has denied a child a decent life and a man  his dying wish.   Brad is told by Dr. Snapper Foster,his brother-in-law that his condition, nephritis of the optic nerve, is stable. The optic nerves are still swollen, but since his headaches have stopped he should continue his cortisone treatment. Brad is still firmly insistent that Leslie not be told.  From the moment they meet, Lance and Laurie charge the air around them with static. They find each other arrogant and egotistical, but when Lance needs a date for his trip to London, he calls Laurie, and she accepts. The pilot of Lance’s private plane cryptically suggests that Laurie turns his boss on because she seems turned off by him. This seems to hold true for Laurie, too. By the end of their London stay, Lance and Laurie have come to a better understanding of each other. Lance tries to tell her that, with talent of her own, she should not be jealous of Leslie. She tells him she has a book coming out, but it won’t be published under her own name. She explains further that she was an outgoing child and her parents didn’t understand that she needed as much attention as the introverted Leslie did. (Laurie has always felt she existed in Leslie’s shadow. Les is married to the man Laurie wanted, and is a successful concert artist, with the fame and recognition Laurie has tried so desperately to achieve. Laurie’s first book, a sexploitation novel, was a failure, and this new book is a novel based on Leslie’s nervous breakdown and recovery—something Leslie is trying to put behind her.) Gwen Sherman, now Sister Magdellen, will soon take her final vows, but still feels God holds her past against her, because nobody could possibly believe that a prostitute could be pure enough to become a nun. She finds her accidental meetings with Greg Foster (they were once in love) increasingly meaningful to her, and she begins to dream of Greg holding her in his arms. Finally, in torment and uncertainty, she tells the Reverend Mother she’s leaving the convent. But on the day of her release, Greg arrives with one of the convent orphans unconscious in his arms.The boy had fallen from a fence outside. When the  boy, Ramon, who had not spoken a word since his arrival, comes to, asking for Sister Magdellen, Gwen sees this as a sign from God and accepts her vocation. She will take her final vows and then enter nurses’ training.  Stay tuned...
    • I was just about to compose a post where I mention this period AW reminds me of JFP's  time on GL (1993-95) where it just reeked of cynicism and desperation. OR ATWT during Black and Stern. The common denominator is P&G. They allowed this stuff to go on.
    • I think the first 4-5 years have many strong spots, some beautiful writing, and I didn't find it that hard to watch, but one of the main issues with the show for me - and this just gets worse - is many of the characters we are told to root for I find extremely unlikeable. 
    • I don't see the people who were brought into AW around 1986 as being that different from JFP, but I don't feel like going back and forth either.
    • Agree to disagree. I think they cared. I think at times fans underestimate both the creative types & the execs. Certainly there can be specific times & specific people when ego & hubris are huge issues. But, basically, and most of the time the people involved very much want things to work. I'm not saying you don't have your Brian Frons or even your JFPs & your Susan D. Lees. We know at the end Chris Goutman had lost his way.
    • Pure bull, those scenes were.ere! The whole Liam story is going to end in disaster, just like Brad's other stories.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy