Mary Crosby’s Departure....

[TJames03]

Crosby’s Kristin was such a great character it was kinda surprising that they killed her off so 100 percent. She could have always been out there somewhere alive and popping back and forth into the Ewing’s lives causing trouble. She prob was the most famous secondary character ever to be in the show. Was she let go or did she leave of her own accord?

 

[tommie]

She was never on a proper contract, so she wasn't really "let go" in the same way they let go of people like Tilton, Howard et al. They just stopped hiring her; I assume they wanted a big cliffhanger and Kristin was the biggest character they could kill off without chopping someone from the main cast.

Did they regret it? Probably - I mean, Katherine was basically Kristin 2.0 and a natural evolution where her character might've gone (of course with adjustments).

 

[Rove]

Such a shame Mary (Kristin) was let go all for the sake of plot. Upon the BIG reveal she had shot JR I liked how the writers threw in a great twist with..."Now wouldn't that be a scandal. Jock Ewing's grandson, jail baby." Mary's portrayal of Kristin was explosive and I believe there was a lot more life in the character especially if the writers kept Kristin pregnant with JR's child rather than the miscarriage. There would have been some tense scenes at Southfork if Kristin turned up occasionally with JR's child and only JR, Sue Ellen and Kristin knew the truth.

 

[TJames03]

Yes, there was YEARS worth of story left in her character. Boo!

 

[tommie]

Such a shame Mary (Kristin) was let go all for the sake of plot. Upon the BIG reveal she had shot JR I liked how the writers threw in a great twist with..."Now wouldn't that be a scandal. Jock Ewing's grandson, jail baby." Mary's portrayal of Kristin was explosive and I believe there was a lot more life in the character especially if the writers kept Kristin pregnant with JR's child rather than the miscarriage. There would have been some tense scenes at Southfork if Kristin turned up occasionally with JR's child and only JR, Sue Ellen and Kristin knew the truth.

I mean, they pretty much ended up using the blueprint for Kristin when they created Katherine - it's such an obvious nod to Kristin that it makes me wonder if they thought about bringing her back before they created Katherine. In theory, Bobby and Pam still could've adopted Christopher from her (just say Kristin is strung out, on drugs and desperate for cash) and a few years down the line she could've returned and firmly into Bobby and Pam's orbit, but of course also JR and Sue Ellen's.

I think it was incredibly short-sighted to kill her off, because honestly, besides the cliffhanger there wasn't much plot that couldn't have happened with Kristin still alive.

 

[Barbara Fan]

With hinsdight, she should have been around an awful lot longer - but Kristin did go down in history as the girl who shot JR and is the answer to many a crossword clue!

 

[Justine]

Yes, Kristin (and Mary) had so much more potential. With that said, however, I'm also pleased she didn't stick around too long so the writers messed up the character - which often occurs on shows when actors stay beyond their sell-by-date. Sometimes, short and sweet is best.

 

[ArchieLucasCarringtonEwing1989]

Killing off Kristen when they did was pointless, I think TPTB knew it too since they created Katherine was another crazed sister in law to the Ewing’s.

The 1984 cliffhanger was basically the 1980 cliffhanger all over again.

Katherine was who Kristen could have evolved into over time, plus like Katherine she too had fallen for Bobby.

 

[Top Jimmy]

Yes, Kristin should have been around a lot longer. She could have been a recurring character like Heather Locklear's Sammy Jo in "Dynasty," showing up from time to time causing trouble. Heather Locklear eventually became a regular, and I don't know if Kristin should have stayed for the long term, but she did have a lot of untapped potential.
I remember reading in an interview Mary gave for this website, that she didn't know what else she could have done with Kristin had she stayed, but the cast was like a family to her, so she really missed that when they wrote her off. It sounded like she had mixed feelings about leaving. Being JR's shooter gave her opportunities and she was probably anxious to try other roles, but she was sad to leave the cast.

 

[Taylor Bennett Jr.]

I thought she and Alan Beam should have stayed around for at least another year. They would have been a fun couple, scheming and backstabbing others an ultimately each other.

 

[tommie]

Yes, Kristin should have been around a lot longer. She could have been a recurring character like Heather Locklear's Sammy Jo in "Dynasty," showing up from time to time causing trouble. Heather Locklear eventually became a regular, and I don't know if Kristin should have stayed for the long term, but she did have a lot of untapped potential.

Yes, a character like Kristin, Sammy Jo or Katherine work best in small bursts and not as a permanent season-after-season player since it's hard to justify why people would even want them around. So having them reappear every now and then is usually the better option because you can give them real stir-the-pot stories and then have them leave to let the characters simmer down a bit. Otherwise you run the risk of what happened to Sammy Jo once she became a regular - they ended up domesticating her to a ridiculous extent.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Had there been a Season 15 (per DVD count) after Mama died, I wanted Julie Grey's twin sister, to return in the form of Tina Louise, and for Kristin's death to be re-investigated, thus permitting Mary a few flashback cameos.

 

[Willie Oleson]

I wanted them to find TNT Pam, alive and (relatively) well, who, because of numerous necessary facial reconstructions - ignoring the miraculous work on the Pam-recast in OldDallas which would give The Fans yet another reason to sceam blue murder - has accidentally ended up looking like a dead ringer for an older version of Kristin - played by Mary Crosby, of course.
Just for the sheer mind-bogglingness of it all.

 

[stevew]

I wanted them to find TNT Pam, alive and (relatively) well, who, because of numerous necessary facial reconstructions - ignoring the miraculous work on the Pam-recast in OldDallas which would give The Fans yet another reason to sceam blue murder - has accidentally ended up looking like a dead ringer for an older version of Kristin - played by Mary Crosby, of course.
Just for the sheer mind-bogglingness of it all.

Was a bit of a stretch for me to believe JR was gelding Chris to inherit billions from his mother in the remaining days of his life instead of securing his own legacy to John Ross. Maybe if he’d found Pam and bought her out of Barnes Global to help keep her in hiding.

 

[ArchieLucasCarringtonEwing1989]

Yes, Kristin should have been around a lot longer. She could have been a recurring character like Heather Locklear's Sammy Jo in "Dynasty," showing up from time to time causing trouble. Heather Locklear eventually became a regular, and I don't know if Kristin should have stayed for the long term, but she did have a lot of untapped potential.
I remember reading in an interview Mary gave for this website, that she didn't know what else she could have done with Kristin had she stayed, but the cast was like a family to her, so she really missed that when they wrote her off. It sounded like she had mixed feelings about leaving. Being JR's shooter gave her opportunities and she was probably anxious to try other roles, but she was sad to leave the cast.

I think they should have sen Kristen off to Knots Landing, in the episode she crossed over to, she got on well with Val, which is ironic seeing as Val disliked Kristen’s sister; Sue Ellen, I would have her cause all sorts of trouble but Val would be the one who wants to see the best in her, and try to help her.

I guess the Knots team wanted an original character to be the female JR so Kristen was out and in came Abby

 

[Taylor Bennett Jr.]

I wanted them to find TNT Pam, alive and (relatively) well, who, because of numerous necessary facial reconstructions - ignoring the miraculous work on the Pam-recast in OldDallas which would give The Fans yet another reason to sceam blue murder - has accidentally ended up looking like a dead ringer for an older version of Kristin - played by Mary Crosby, of course.
Just for the sheer mind-bogglingness of it all.

I'd like for Mary to have shown up as a mysterious new ranch forewoman (in these enlightened times, it's no longer an all-male endeavor). Here and there, she'd drop hints that she knew more about the history of Southfork and the Ewings, and especially the Barnes-Ewing feud, than just a random drifter cowgirl should know.

Then one day at a Ewing Barbecue (the episode title could be Barbecue 38 or something like that), she'd mention that Bobby had been notified of his first wife's first pregnancy on the day of the Barbecue in 1978 via a lousy riddle while he was wearing just a towel - something only Pam and Bobby (and those of us who watched that episode) could have possibly known.

A shocked Bobby would ask the forewoman, named Bess Farmalee, how she could have possibly known that. In response, as dramatic music swells, 'Bess' announces to everyone that she's really Pamela Barnes-Ewing-Graison-Plastic-Surgeon-Guy's-Last-Name and she's come back to reclaim Bobby and her rightful position as the Lady of Southfork Manor.