Steve Kanaly and Susan Howard

[MarkDallasAddict]

I was watching what looked to be a recent clip of an interview with Patrick, Linda, Charlene and Steve. In one segment Steve said he preferred it when Ray was single, it was better for the character and the suggestion was better for him as an actor. He mentioned that he and Susan argued as characters and in real life. I had no idea and assumed it was happy families. He did go on and make some compliments about her, but given that we don't see so much of her in connection with Dallas, I wondered whether the cast got on with her. Anyone have any tales they can share perhaps?

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Steve said that when Ray was single, he had more interesting things to do, and when Ray and Donna were getting along, he didn't. I don't get the impression it was anything personal between Kanaly and Susan Howard. But if they argued occasionally as actors, that's only natural, I would think. They did those NRA spots together, after all.

Susan garnered the ire of Lenny Katzman, apparently, when she criticized publicly the use of the dream scenario, so her days were numbered on DALLAS.

 

[Billy Wall]

I saw a Fairly recent clip where Ray and Donna returned to Southfork.

 

[Sarah]

Susan is quite vocal and I like her couldn’t give a s*** attitude. She spoke out for us when there was the whole furore at SF in 2008, insisting that people who had paid demand refunds etc. She’s a nice person from what I know and one of the site members here is very close to her.

Don’t really know anything about her relationship with Steve but always thought it was friendly enough.

 

[DallasFanForever]

I really hope they got along as they had such great chemistry onscreen and made for a terrific fictional couple.

 

[MarkDallasAddict]

Thank you so much for the replies, I was delighted to read (from you) that there was nothing in it and that they did get along! That is great as I loved the characters of Ray and Donna, and I especially loved Susan's portrayal of Donna as a strong woman in what was still mainly a man's world of politics and business - quite ground breaking in its day and I wish she had stayed in the show. Hopefully Susan's role will be remembered fondly in years to come and people will look to Donna as a trailblazer for equality.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

I loved Susan Howard as Donna. Ray and Donna were great together. I could cheerfully slap Lenny Katzman about the face for letting her go in season ten!

 

[pete lashmar]

I loved Donna and I liked Ray. I think the problem with their characters came down to the writers (again!).

As soon as they came up with the Ray gets jealous at Donna's success that was kind of the end of Ray as a good character, after that - he became the lesser of the two and we had to endure his whining.. The writers should have really built them up as a power couple because their on screen chemistry was fantastic.

 

[DallasFanForever]

loved Donna and I liked Ray. I think the problem with their characters came down to the writers (again!).

As soon as they came up with the Ray gets jealous at Donna's success that was kind of the end of Ray as a good character,

His constant jealousy and resentment of her success got old for me after awhile. It made it look like he was just happy being miserable and that made no sense because all of her success should’ve made him happy since it was his success as well.

 

[pete lashmar]

His constant jealousy and resentment of her success got old for me after awhile. It made it look like he was just happy being miserable and that made no sense because all of her success should’ve made him happy since it was his success as well.

The writers took a good character (ignoring him having sex with his niece in the barn) and slowly and gradually turned him into a loser. Then the writers paired him with Jenna and it was game over.

Meanwhile Donna, a hugely popular, warm and intelligent woman gets the chop and is axed from the show and poor Susan never got the recognition she deserved.

 

[Ollie james]

I liked Donna she was the only one of the female cast I could see as a natural successor to Miss Ellie but the character was axed rather than developed.

 

[James from London]

I thought Ray was a great, consistently written character throughout. His flaws, especially his ongoing sense of inadequacy, were a fundamental part of who he was. That they eventually cost him his marriage felt sad but true in the way good drama should. I also thought Donna's last year on the show was one of her best. The only time I didn't really like the pair was in the Dream Season when all their differences and idiosyncrasies were ironed out, and they could have been any generic couple in any sentimental movie of the week.

 

[Grangehill1]

Another case of an actor thinking he knows better than the producers. Ray and Donna were so much better together than as separate characters. They hardly argued so I don’t think he felt inadequate with her.

I adored them together in the dream season and hated what they did to them the year after.

Susan Howard’s portrayal of Donna after the dream season is painful to watch. All the energy and fun has left the character and she spends a year moping around. How she didn’t realize the writing was on the wall and she was going to be written out is anyone’s guess.

It’s bizarre. In one year the producer wrote out Pam, Donna, Jamie and Mandy and got rid of Ewing Oil. Too much change for the audience! She should have kept Susan Howard. Terrible decision.

Have Donna get back with Ray and head off together the end of season 11

 

[James from London]

Another case of an actor thinking he knows better than the producers.

He didn't say he knew better; he just expressed a preference for what he enjoyed doing.

In one year the producer wrote out Pam, Donna, Jamie and Mandy and got rid of Ewing Oil. Too much change for the audience! She should have kept Susan Howard. Terrible decision.

Another case of the viewer thinking they know better than the producers?

 

[Sarah]

Another case of an actor thinking he knows better than the producers. Ray and Donna were so much better together than as separate characters. They hardly argued so I don’t think he felt inadequate with her.

I adored them together in the dream season and hated what they did to them the year after.

Susan Howard’s portrayal of Donna after the dream season is painful to watch. All the energy and fun has left the character and she spends a year moping around. How she didn’t realize the writing was on the wall and she was going to be written out is anyone’s guess.

It’s bizarre. In one year the producer wrote out Pam, Donna, Jamie and Mandy and got rid of Ewing Oil. Too much change for the audience! She should have kept Susan Howard. Terrible decision.

Have Donna get back with Ray and head off together the end of season 11

I will give you a tenner if you can spot the part of this statement that I absolutely think is the best decision since the beginning of time.

 

[Grangehill1]

He didn't say he knew better; he just expressed a preference for what he enjoyed doing.

I said ‘think’, not ‘say’ - completely different meanings

Another case of the viewer thinking they know better than the producers?

And you think Season 11 was better without Pam, Donna, Jamie, Mandy and no Ewing Oil?

 

[James from London]

And you think Season 11 was better without Pam, Donna, Jamie, Mandy and no Ewing Oil?

Jamie's departure generated some great story. The downfall of Ewing Oil was a great story. I really liked Pam, Donna and Mandy, but Pam's was the only absence I really felt in Season 10, Season 11, the 1987/8 season, and VP wanted out so that was that.

 

[DallasFanForever]

I adored them together in the dream season and hated what they did to them the year after.

I loved them in the dream season as well. I think they had some of their best material to work with that season. It’s a shame none of it really happened and then they broke up permanently.

 

[Grangehill1]

Jamie's departure generated some great story. The downfall of Ewing Oil was a great story. I really liked Pam, Donna and Mandy, but Pam's was the only absence I really felt in Season 10, Season 11, the 1987/8 season, and VP wanted out so that was that.

All generated great story but nothing happened afterwards. Season 11 feels like the worst hangover on record that just goes on and on and on. So many characters missing, no sense of place, new guest characters who keep all the Ewing’s apart.
Donna wasn’t really missed in season 11 because they’d made such a hash of her character in season 10 you couldn’t bare watching any more of her moping around. But it didn’t need to be like that.
Much rather have a scene with Ray and Donna than Jenna
Much rather have a scene with Jamie and Cliff than April
Much rather have a scene with JR and Mandy than Kimberley Cryder (what a terrible character)

 

[Seaviewer]

To quote a line from Groucho Marx, you may "think me a sentimental old fluff", but I did like the way everyone ended up in happy couples in the dream season. But drama does require conflict; perhaps that's all Steve was trying to say.