KNOTS LANDING

[Soapsuds]

David Jacobs was nuts!!

[Khan]

When you think of KL, you think of two moments in particular: when Ciji Dunne's lifeless body washes up on the shore; and when Val comes face-to-face with her twins for the first time since their birth.  Two seminal moments in the show's history that prove why KL was, in many ways, the best of the '80's primetime soaps.

[Khan]

That's why the storyline with Val's twins was wrapped up so quickly in the next season.  David Jacobs wanted it over and done with, even though Michael Filerman rightly knew that keeping it going for a while would help the show's ratings.

I'm no psychoanalyst, but I think Jacobs viewed himself deep down as a sellout.  He wanted to produce artful shows that would win tons of awards and lavish praise from the press.  Instead, he became successful producing stuff that, to his mind, was the equivalent of dime store novels.  I don't think he ever totally appreciated just how much his shows meant to a generation of viewers.  To me, that's the great tragedy of his life.

[kalbir]

I don't know about anyone else, but to me Knots Landing starting tanking in the aftermath of Val's babies. Empire Valley became a mess and Joshua's descent into madness and eventual death was difficult to watch.

Edited December 5, 2023 by kalbir

[Vee]

He seemed to adore KL in most interviews. Dallas, less so.

[Khan]

I think he loved the actors, though, more than he loved the storylines; and when I say "the actors," I'm referring to the core group: Michele Lee, Kevin Dobson, Ted Shackelford, Joan Van Ark, William Devane, Donna Mills, etc.

As for DALLAS, I think we all know why he wasn't as enamored with that show as he was with KNOTS: he wanted it to be "Giant" or "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," with Pam as the central character, but it became all about J.R. instead.

Blame David Paulsen.  As good as he was for DALLAS and, to a lesser extent, for DYNASTY, he was all wrong for KNOTS.

Edited December 5, 2023 by Khan

[Liberty City]

Any update on the remaster?

[titan1978]

Those three seasons are Knots in my mind. From Ciji to the twins. I loved the whole show,  but that’s the core to me, the greatest era.

Edited December 6, 2023 by titan1978

[kalbir]

Agree, seasons 4-6 were the peak of Knots Landing.

[j swift]

Refresh my memory, please

Abby has the inspired idea in the S6 finale to tell Val that she got the call about the location of the missing twins because someone was asking for Mrs. Ewing, so it gave her plausible deniability.

Then I recall in S7 that Sumner (and his mother) had pages from a journal that could implicate Abby, so she did a bunch of stuff to keep it hidden. Like trick Laura into thinking she was having an affair with Greg.

But, in the end did Abby get away with it or did Gary or Val ever learn her part in the kidnapping?

[Khan]

IIRC, there was a scene, set at some dinner party or function, where Abby, fed up with being blackmailed by so many people, tells all (while wearing a stunning Travilla original, lol).

Edited December 6, 2023 by Khan

[j swift]

Were there repercussions?

[Khan]

Not that I recall.  Nobody went to jail or anything; and by this point, people were used to Abby's shenanigans.  The real takeaway was that Abby was back in control after being dominated or manipulated for so long.

[te.]

No, because Abby managed to turn it around and once again make it seem like she was the innocent baby-saver while simultanously confessing to get Olivia, Greg et al off her back. 

[j swift]

@te.& @Khan I have to say, I admire that choice.  Abby was constantly compared to JR who got away with tons of BS.  So, it is kind of nice to have a female protagonist who wasn't always punished for their misdeeds.  Abby was a rich powerful woman, and it is refreshing that she was able to benefit from the privileges that she fought so hard to gain.  Especially because the kidnapping was not really directly her fault, it was more of a lie of omission.

Edited December 6, 2023 by j swift