Last week, I was speaking with my grandmother who told me that she didn’t have time to talk because Dallas was coming on. I said “Hello – 1980!” The classic television soap opera is back as TNT picks up the story two decades later. I decided to check it out. Dallas reenergized the prime time television soap when it first aired on CBS as a five episode mini-series starting on April 2, 1978. In the late 70’s television was full of big name sit-coms, but a winning dramatic soap had been missing for almost a decade. Initially, the producers wrote the mini-series to be self contained, but once the ratings skyrocketed, the network immediately ordered a second season of 24 episodes that would begin airing the following September. The series centers around the Ewing family and the battle for control of the Ewing Oil empire. J.R. Ewing, played by Larry Hagman, is the head of the family who schemes, double-crosses, and sleeps with just about any woman to advance his oil empire and rake in a profit. Lying, cheating, and stealing served him well. The original series ran for 13 seasons from September 1978 – May 1991 for a total of 357 episodes. The show was appointment television at the time, especially after a move to Friday night during the second season. The original series is known for two of TV’s most classic moments: On the very final seconds of the third season finale A House Divided, while working late in his office, J.R. is shot by an unseen figure. The event skyrocketed the summer finale ratings with everyone guessing “Who Shot J.R.?” This was the first time a cliffhanger was used on TV to keep the audience hooked during the summer reruns. The hysteria was so great, Las Vegas and International...