Old rich vs. nouveau riche...

[Spooky Owl!]

When DALLAS was new, the show had a decidedly New Rich, rednecks-made-good working class vibe, what with the '70s earth-tones and plaid bell-bottoms and white wicker furniture and porcelain dogs and a much-repeated off-the-rack wardrobe, to say nothing of those dentists' offices in the sky which housed Ewing Oil's chief executives. (We laughed about it even before DYNASTY was on the horizon). One got the impression that Miss Ellie may have had a couple of semesters of Ivy League learnin' back east as a young girl, but that brief spate of highfalutin edjumication couldn't counteract the earthy impulses and vulgar Lone Star sensibilities of the Ewings of Southfork.

Oddly, as the show rose and persevered beyond the hype and global hysteria of "Who Shot JR?" in 1980, the DALLAS saga gradually began to morph into a vaguely more Old Rich thing, with a sense of stateliness, time and history, the ranch house like an alabaster tombstone towering over a sea of yellow green grass with the sordid mysteries of Texas contained somewhere within. (The closing campy years notwithstanding).

Sort of.

Over on that overdressed rival knock-off show, DYNASTY, it started out with more of an Old Rich vibe in its first season, the tiny family unit of Blake and Fallon and Steven, alone in that huge brick edifice in the shadow of the Colorado Rockies, the corrupt yellow sunlight streaming in through those inadequate windows like a mausoleum; the prodigal mother, rarely-referred to, her memory quietly haunting her children and ex-husband for more than a decade and a half... Literary references, allusions of ancient political scandal, whispers of high society gossip. Even the new wife, Krystle, despite being raised in relative poverty in rural Ohio, manifested an effortlessly natural sense of grace and elegance as if she were to the manor born, the oil baron's relatives and house staff largely disapproving of her meager beginnings nonetheless.

Someone once described Season 1 of DYNASTY as being "all dark chocolates and cabernet and mahogany." And while that may be a slight exaggeration (the middle class Blaisdels provided the needed contrast) there was more of a feeling that the Carringtons had a rarefied and evocative background --- a shrouded legacy still resonant in the collective memories of the on-screen characters. And who knows what that entailed.

When Blake asserted that he could make a South American country's government fall with a single phone call, you believed it. Just as you assumed Jock (and probably JR) knew who ordered the contract on Kennedy -- even if THE EARLY YEARS prequel insists the Ewing patriarch didn't condone it.

But after that ex-wife, Alexis, emerged and remained in Denver, rising quickly in corporate power and social influence, DYNASTY seemed to drift towards a feeling of nouveau riche -- the bitch slaps, the catfights, the ad hominem non-sequitur insults, the garish designer outfits, the ruthless re-castings and the indiscriminate bedhopping, the sea of white overstuffed furniture against yet another white wall, the program took on a splashy but decidedly down-market countenance that reflected the old axiom that all the money in the world can't buy an ounce of class.

Blake was no longer an intimidating figure, his perplexing blend of coldness and warmth soon reduced to ineffectual paternal bluster; poetically soulful Krystle's head injuries rendering her squeaky and newly vacant; Alexis' pathological vindictiveness for the ages, a well-bred and beautiful woman scorned and banished, soon replaced by her yelling at people to "get out!" of her office and guzzling diet ginger ale in a champagne flute.

Even the failed THE COLBYS spin-off never felt quite as tacky.

How much of these shifts were constructive for their respective shows, and how much were mistakes?

 

[Guzzler’s Frightening Hair]

When DALLAS was new, the show had a decidedly New Rich, rednecks-made-good working class vibe, what with the '70s earth-tones and plaid bell-bottoms and white wicker furniture and porcelain dogs and a much-repeated off-the-rack wardrobe, to say nothing of those dentists' offices in the sky which housed Ewing Oil's chief executives.

That's one kind of nouveau riche for sure. When I think of the term I think of over-the-top and tacky conspicuous displays of wealth, like what we'd see these days in the Real Housewives or something. I guess we had Jock's 'bling' a couple of seasons in, but JR and Bobby drove tasteful cars as opposed to Alex Ward/Mark Graison idiotmobiles. It seemed like the cheapness of clothes and sets may have been as much a function of a limited production budget (and of the times, I guess) as a conscious effort to portray the Ewings in a particular way.

One thing that stood out to me that marked the Ewings as anything but 'old money' was how rough around the edges Jock was, with his 'improper English' and working-class physicality. He had more in common with Ray than with generational-wealth Ivy Leaguers (I remember him showing disgust at the prospect of having lunch with some acquaintances of Bobby who'd gone to Harvard or Princeton or somewhere like that.) You just couldn't picture him playing squash down at the club with the 'gents'.

 

[Lastkidpicked]

How much of these shifts were constructive for their respective shows, and how much were mistakes?

One thing that stood out to me that marked the Ewings as anything but 'old money' was how rough around the edges Jock was, with his 'improper English' and working-class physicality

I don't know if the writers were brilliant, or if they just tumbled to it, but they nailed the rich oil men in Texas perfectly.

I can give you a perfect example from just this week. We were working in a field next to a Southfork type house. I needed to take on some water for my machine. My two options were ride into town, or take water from the barn. I walked up the the guy who was closest to the barn and asked him if I could take on some water. He gave permission.

When I was done, he mentioned that he owned the ranch. "I'm sorry." I said. "I thought you were one of us. If I'd known you were the owner then I wouldn't have bothered you."

The look on his face showed that I had insulted him by assuming he was unapproachable just because he was wealthy. And he very much did believe he was "one of us". I felt bad for the accidental insult.

Think of Punk Anderson. You would imagine the conversation going like this:



"Hello, Mr. Anderson. May I take on some water for my machine?"
"Yes. The hose bib is over there. And please call me Punk."

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

One thing that Old Rich doesn't do is talking about money (except for the annual shareholders meeting) so I guess that disqualifies all of them.
More literally, Old Rich suggests generations of status and wealth while Nouveau Riche is the "overnight" success e.g. filthy rich football players or someone who's invented something very successful in his garage or bedroom.

I guess the 80s soap dynasties was something between Old and Nouveau (with The Colbys as the oldest and most dignified family) and then it also depends on the individual characters - and that didn't always make sense.
I think of Miss Ellie as Dallas Aristocracy (too good for a man like Jock Ewing who saved the Southworths with his dirty new money). All she had to do was dress up a little bit, smile and make a polite request and it was "considered done".
Gary Ewing was Old Money enough to walk away from it, and eccentric enough to want to spend his inheritance on saving Californian trees (thank God Abby was having none of it).
JR was trash, he practically lived in his office and banged hookers in cheap condos.
Then there's Sue Ellen who oozes decorum despite being a former Miss Texas - she would refer to Pam's fashion fundraising concept as "novel" - but her status was oddly counterbalanced when the Daughters of the Alamo sniggered at her tacky little fur. Although that fashion alarm could also suggest that the sniggering Daughters were too interested in the do's and don'ts which creates a sense of wannabe-elite.

Season 1's Carrington Kingdom (physical punishment for disloyal servants, the Dobermanns) felt like like a mix of Tudors and Sopranos.
The most stereotypical Old Money characters were in Knots Landing: Greg and Ruth Sumner-Galveston becauses they seemed completely untouchable.
Ruth the photographer was like the Queen's bohemian sister and Greg was simply always better than everyone else. In fact so good he didn't even have to act smug about it.

The New York Giobertis were Nouveau Riche but they never acted like it, the Tuscany Channings were closer to Old Money but too wacky dysfunctional to consider them a prestigious dynasty. Furtermore, Angela Channing wasn't respected by the Tuscany community, she was feared.

It seemed like the cheapness of clothes and sets may have been as much a function of a limited production budget

Just like the horrible 80s pastel explosion cheapened the look of our beloved prime time soaps.
Alexis' penthouse was actually a very lovely set, at least it looked huge, but they made it look like an upgraded Acapulco hotel room (so much for "palazzo").
These are simply designer mistakes because they made things look too contemporary and cookie-cutter.
By contrast, Zach Powers' penthouse looked wonderfully 1960s which enhanced Zach and Sable's scenes, and the ice-green colour of the Carrington corridors is superb. But then there's Krystle's bedroom in season 2 that looks like a nightmare of vomit.

I think it's a strange potpourri of Old and New, Class and Trash, but overall it worked. When the story gets more and more confined to their soap bubble shenanigans it doesn't matter anymore how they're being perceived by the outside world. Or maybe it still matters but it becomes more difficult to show it in a convincing way.

 

[Jabari Lamar]

Wow, I never saw those!

I remember, even though I wasn't a Dynasty fan back then, the idea of a crossover with J.R. vs. Alexis was always a dream storyline.

 

[WarriorsFan]

Old money brings to mind families that built their generational wealth in industries like shipping and banking, and based in cities like New York, Boston, Philadelphia, San Francisco. The establishment, if you will.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

It's funny how much music score and orchestration impacts a show, too.

With DALLAS, John Parker's cornpone hillbilly jazzy compositions told us the Ewings were rednecks with a few bucks. The increasing use of Bruce Broughton's scores, from 1979 thru 1985, told us the Saga of Southfork was something more biblical.

DYNASTY's lack of oboe (except for the majestic melancholy of the 1980 pilot) and rambling vapid flautery just conveyed disorientation that added to the confusion of the scripts -- and no Old Money illusions can be maintained with that sort of pointless music.

** the term "vapid flautery" is copyrighted and trademarked by tellytalk.net in perpetuity. All rights reserved, dammit.

 

[The Eyes of Laurie Marr]

I always found it interesting that Forsythe emanated the patrician hauteur of a rich and establishment WASP…..but was in fact raised Jewish. La Collins imbued Alexis with the haughty disdain that is quintessentially English upper crust, but she was from a showbiz family.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

I always found it interesting that Forsythe emanated the patrician hauteur of a rich and establishment WASP…..but was in fact raised Jewish. La Collins imbued Alexis with the haughty disdain that is quintessentially English upper crust, but she was from a showbiz family.

But showbiz often thinks it's upper crust, so it makes sense: Alexis was all about defensive pretense.

I've often thought the Carrington's should have been ostentatiously Catholic, despite the creators being largely Jewish.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

It's funny how much music score and orchestration impacts a show, too.

The score in DALLAS' second season (DVD3) is absolutely fantastic. It feels as if every scene has a unique score.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

Old rich or new rich?

 

[The Eyes of Laurie Marr]

Those nostalgic for the days of empire in the UK would no doubt argue that they are Americans - so they are all new rich.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

Another question...

Since DALLAS was generally better-written, why was DYNASTY's discussions about the past somehow more compelling? DALLAS' current activities were more interesting, while DYNASTY's allusions of painful nostalgia were somehow more personal.

When DALLAS talked about the past, they seemed to be talking about some official history from which they were mostly detached.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

Those nostalgic for the days of empire in the UK would no doubt argue that they are Americans - so they are all new rich.

We don't need to talk about The Empire Strikes Back buddy!

 

[lbf522]

Old rich or new rich?

View attachment 37438

First time seeing the Carrington kids all together. Wished Dynasty had done that. Adam and Amanda coming to the family late would have given them some connection and have them be close like Steven and Fallon were.

 

[Lastkidpicked]

When DALLAS talked about the past, they seemed to be talking about some official history from which they were mostly detached.

That is a very interesting observation
Dallas seemed to intentionally leave history a bit murky. This way, a man like Tom Owens can appear out of nowhere and this begins a whole new discussion of how Ewing Oil came to be.

Notice something interesting about this. Occasionally, somebody pops up from the past, such as the sheriff from Haleyville. When this happens, nobody in the family even bothers to deny the allegations.
They may circle the wagons and protect each other, but deep down they know that those dastardly deeds really did happen.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

That is a very interesting observation
Dallas seemed to intentionally leave history a bit murky. This way, a man like Tom Owens can appear out of nowhere and this begins a whole new discussion of how Ewing Oil came to be.

Notice something interesting about this. Occasionally, somebody pops up from the past, such as the sheriff from Haleyville. When this happens, nobody in the family even bothers to deny the allegations.
They may circle the wagons and protect each other, but deep down they know that those dastardly deeds really did happen.

Isn't it odd? --- and I think this speaks to DYNASTY's superior potential given inferior handling.

DALLAS' backstory was longer ago, with the rivalry in the 1930s the gist of what we heard about it. In contrast, DYNASTY's backstory was mostly focused on the '50s and '60s, a more recent era of fascination to the baby boomers of '80s culture when the show was produced.

DALLAS gave us precious little information about what the Ewings were doing in the '50s and '60s, other than letting us know that JR didn't kill anybody ("even during the war," presumably Viet Nam), that underaged Val and Gary had a baby circa 1961 named "Lucy," and, according to the EARLY YEARS prequel, toddlers Bobby and Pam first met at a Ewing barbeque (in 1951, before either were even born, depending on what contradictory time frame you prefer --- when that fateful barbecue should probably have been later in the '50s, perhaps some LBJ fundraiser Jock was hosting, when Digger tried to shoot his host).

Of course, DYNASTY tossed out various facts from their more recent history, but nervously countered those details constantly as well, And largely misses the boat on these pregnant historical references.

DALLAS should have gotten dustier and darker in its closing years (instead of doing exactly the opposite) and emphasized the grimier, uglier elements of Texas mythology which the series barely ever touched on during its run. And DYNASTY -- despite its gauche wardrobe and catfights and barbs, oh my! -- should have done a much better job of dishing high society gossip and alluding to international scandal we'd all heard of (which sometimes Season 2 would do, with the fresh arrival of Alexis) in the way the show had once seemed to promise yet lost so quickly on the altar of dumbishly-contrived romances, and circular dialogue which pushed the ostensible narrative nowhere (at least until Paulsen came in for Season 9 when it was too late).

Why did these shows lose their identities mid-way through their runs, so that they just seemed to be attempting to wing it -- or ewing it --- while they sputtered to their finish lines...?

But I wanted to see more backroads dirtiness and an inwardly-looking local flavor as DALLAS wrapped up (something actually almost captured in TNT's nuDALLAS revival in 2012-2014, with its autumnal-wintry tone and renewed creepiness of JR, two of the things the reboot managed to get right) and I wanted more outward-looking power references on DYNASTY which made the viewer feel like the Carringtons had always lived at a level -- geographically, financially, culturally and politically --far above the rest of us.

Each show in its own right offered a different blend of both old rich and nouveau riche, I guess. But it didn't quite happen that way, despite the unique and visible promise of either series.

But then, diminishing returns seems to be the hallmark of series television, and few long-running programs escape that deterioration.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

I also always tended to view DALLAS as Old Testament and DYNASTY as New Testament. DALLAS had heroic figures, but no savior per se.

DYNASTY had a savior: Krystle (even her name was "Christ-le"), who loved and suffered and was used as a doormat and resented and, ultimately, crucified. Alexis the bitchy lovechild of Herod and Salome.

Bad metaphors? Maybe.

But DALLAS, like the Old Testament, was the don't-let-this-happen-to-you generational epic story, with nuggets of eternal wisdom offered along the way, the villains fully in control. While DYNASTY aspired to be a New Testament tale of salvation and redemption, mostly through the sacrifice of Krystle, she bravely enduring the Torments of the Damned so you don't have to... No wonder so many hated her.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

And where did FALCON CREST land within the old-rich/new-rich sweepstakes?

 

[Mustard]

Those nostalgic for the days of empire in the UK would no doubt argue that they are Americans - so they are all new rich.

So many Americans are basically the descendants of Britain's and Germany's heretics and criminals, and of adventurers who were looking to "start over". That's the culture of the US, just as Australia is Britain's old penal colony, thus the loveable rogueishness, yet "pragmatic realism", of Aussie culture. Americans are mostly dreamers, especially the newer ones and the ones who tend to travel southwards and westwards.

Britain is an old society. As a result, it's far more sarcastic and cynical in a way that a lot of "aspirational" Americans would just never understand, except perhaps in the northeastern USA (and parts of the midwest), i.e. the oldest civilized part of the country, which were once the industrial heartland of the US yet are now the Rust Belt, or "left behind" rural areas.