Let's talk about Victoria Principal's acting

[Snarky Oracle!]

... since we've never done that before.

When DALLAS was brand new, Principal was (as Larry later said) a little green and relatively inexperienced, but she brought a grit and intensity to the role of Pam Ewing -- and, obviously, she was drop-dead-and-dream absolutely gorgeous. There was obviously an intelligence there, a Capricornian gravitas, which mostly worked. And even when she stumbled occasionally, that could be chalked up to Pam's own inexperience in dealing with the ruthless rules and personalities of the Ewings' world.

Then she cut her hair. Mid-way through the first full season (Season 2 per DVD) she moved out of Southfork, goes to the beauty parlor and adopts a new shag hairdo, and something changes in her performance: she becomes more frozen, more doll-like, and seems to go too far in her quest to play "the nice girl" and so the show seems to swallow her up for a while.

Why? Principal appears to be aiming for unthreatening "likeability" but it robs her of much of her substance for a time, so Pam really does become mere arm candy... Did Victoria make this decision herself? Did she cleverly decide to try and avoid Katzman's reportedly-misogynistic eye by taking on this new uber-docile demeanor?

But something happened by the Spring of 1982, several episodes before Cliff attempts suicide. The show re-focuses (after having been a bit listless since 'Who Shot JR?' wrapped up) and so does Victoria's acting. I often think of her line-in-the-sand being the scene where she goes to confront and threaten creepy photographer Roger. It totally works, you completely believe her, and Principal rarely if ever takes a bad step performance-wise for her remaining five years on the show.

Again, why?

Everybody says Victoria Principal is very smart, so she must have realized something wasn't quite working. Was it the early competition from S2 of DYNASTY where the Krystle-vs-Alexis dynamic was really crackling (remember, DYNASTY didn't suck yet)? Whatever the impetus for the change, Victoria really relaxes and focuses in her acting, effectively imbuing her delivery with a certain low-grade contemptuousness (whether the script or the scene required it or not) and suddenly Pam Ewing seemed "real" once again.

Anger, even low-key anger, can sometimes help an actor find his or her footing, and that approach seemed to work for Pam -- even if it caused her to be a smidgen too harsh with Lucy after she was raped (as Victoria was still tinkering with, and adjusting, her performance). Larry, initially circumspect, agreed, later saying the Victoria had become "an excellent actress."

By the time she left the show, Susan Howard (who was fired simultaneously) admitted, "I don't know how they could do the show without (Victoria)" and the producers quickly proved they couldn't.

What drives me nuts is the "she was always great!"/"she always sucked!" crowds whose brain plasticity lacks the flexibility to keep two opposing thoughts in their heads at the same time -- an issue Victoria clearly has little problem with herself.

I mean, Victoria would never have handled this scene this well just a year earlier:

 

[Mustard]

Pam early on was so sure of herself, high self-esteem etc. When Pam had the neurofibromatosis news and then her second miscarriage after falling off the horse (Season 3 DVD), that was the start of what would end up with her contemplating suicide and needing psychiatric treatment some 2 seasons later. There was a change in her character at that time to the "frozen, doll like" expression, but isn't that the character as she changes? I seem to remember Victoria saying that she liked Pam most in the early episodes, where she was feisty, and that the later change was from the brass, but after the events of Pam's life she was bound to change a bit.

A later change again, with the Roger storyline you mention and also getting Christopher. That made Pam in a very good state mentally for the first time in years, probably since before the second miscarriage. The Battle of Ewing Oil in Jock's Will, and all the fallout from that, changed things again.

Dallas without Pam doesn't really work because of Pam's links to all the dynamics and conflicts in the show that make it tick. Season 11 DVD not only doesn't have Pam, but doesn't have Ewing Oil either, and you can feel that the threads of the show no longer join up as they should. I'd be interested to know whose idea it was to have Pam drive into the oil tanker, and whether it was supposed to kill Pam off or not. If they never intended to kill Pam off, they'd have been better off getting Margaret Michaels in straight away as replacement if Victoria was adamant on leaving. I'm sure Dallas would have continued declining anyway, but Michaels as a regular Pam from Season 11 DVD onwards would have certainly slowed down the decline quite a lot. The thing is, the Dallas brass had already been burned with a botched recast controversy (i.e. Miss Ellie) and bringing back a character from the dead (i.e. Bobby), so they were scared to repeat those mistakes.

 

[CeeCee72]

Pam evolved and changed over time, and I think a lot of that was due to VP's constantly improving acting skills. She was inexperienced at first, but grew into the character. Mid-way through the show she could stand toe to toe with some of the better actors on the show (LH & BBG) acting wise.

I personally think the show could have survived VP's exit if it had been handled better. Mummy Pam, the Katherine red herring, Pam just up and leaving Christopher, Bobby just acting like he didn't care - it was all too silly. If they had made it clear Pam was taken by Katherine and that Bobby was determined to find her, that would have been a wonderful plot (even if Bobby never succeeded).

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Some of the changes in Pam were, obviously, a result of changes in the narrative. But a lot of it was just because Victoria felt compelled to do it differently -- and sometimes it didn't completely work (and sometimes it very much did).

And once her performance improved, they started writing to it. (Just as when Linda Evans' performance began tanking on DYNASTY -- she was quite good in the first two seasons, believe it or not -- they essentially ceased writing for her).

So it's, like, chicken-or-the-egg stuff. (I eat both).

I still say re-casting core characters in primetime shows tends not to work. I still prefer Margaret Michaels as an imposter (perhaps even her first cameo when Cliff meets Pam and then, after he leaves, she discusses her upcoming death with the doctor). I didn't mind, and may have preferred, Pam's disappearance kept a bit of a mystery, but, sadly, it was a mystery the producers didn't find terribly mystifying -- and they barely wrote to it.

I mean, it took nuDALLAS, deeply flawed though it was, 25 years later to really even address it!

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

Victoria was a lovely actor but she matured & got better over the course of the show's run.

She also had a special relationship with Jim Davis who played Jock because she resembled his dead daughter Tara.

I've often wondered if other cast members were put out by her special relationship with Jim?

In any event she was an important cast member and played one of the most pivotal roles in the show's history.

 

[Chris2]

Very well put, Snarky. I wish that we could have seen Victoria play the first year of the show (with feisty Pam trying to fit in at Southfork) with the same acting skills she had honed during her later years on the show.

 

[Jock Ewing Fan]

She improved with time, but I always thought some of the earlier shows worked better, simply because the show was evolving and
there was more impact in some ways.
Never cared for the Pam character, but the show was never the same after she left.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

She improved with time, but I always thought some of the earlier shows worked better, simply because the show was evolving and
there was more impact in some ways.
Never cared for the Pam character, but the show was never the same after she left.

I loved Pam.

Victoria is a lovely actress and it's lovely watching both her, Patrick & Charlene growing up on the show.

 

[Snowcat]

I binge watched seasons 1-10. I’m going through season 11 very slowly. Skipping several days between episodes. Also, I know Pam’s disappearance is coming. I’m not looking forward to it. I always liked Pam but I love early Pam. Season 10 she was on my nerves A LOT. The way she freaked out about Jenna having Bobby’s baby was ridiculous. Jenna was in the sucky situation, not her. She was completely unreasonable. Then when Lucas was born she did a complete 180. She told Bobby they would work it out. Just like that she was fine with it. Also, the way she ran away makes her lose all credibility. Everything I hear her say to Bobby about how he will never lose her, etc. it makes it hard to enjoy the moment. I’m thinking “yeah right!” Even if she disappeared & came back as Margaret Mitchel, would have been better. Cliff could have pushed her more. He could have said “you’re abandoning Christopher like mama abandoned us”. Or tell her she’s the only person he has. Tell her how can I forget having a sister. Or say “I know you too well to believe what you’re saying. Tell me the truth about why you’re not coming back.” She would have broken her act & come back. Then she could have died with Bobby by her side. We would all have closure. It is better for all parties to know she died rather than abandoned them. I’m so glad she wasn’t alive in the reboot. I can’t imagine her being alive all these years & never reconnecting with her family, especially Christopher.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

I want to honour one of the show's greatest actors.

Seen here in one of the most gut retching scenes which had the show's fans in floods of tears. Myself included.

Whatever you think about Victoria Principal you can't deny that this scene showed how great her acting skills had become.

A shame it was all negated as a dream Pam had.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

A LOT. The way she freaked out about Jenna having Bobby’s baby was ridiculous. Jenna was in the sucky situation, not her. She was completely unreasonable.

Pam did return to domestic whine-ality during Season 10, but a lot of wives might react that way to the news that her new husband was having a baby with another woman.

Schizophrenically, Pam seemed tougher than ever at the office.

Also, the way she ran away makes her lose all credibility. Everything I hear her say to Bobby about how he will never lose her, etc. it makes it hard to enjoy the moment. I’m thinking “yeah right!”

People make this point a lot. But how would anybody feel after a similar accident, when you look in the mirror and want to scream but you look like you already are.

There was no good end for Pam after that, and she felt -- possibly correctly -- that her husband and son would be better off suffering through her disappearance than her physical appearance. Nothing could be salvaged at that point.

I want Bobby and Cliff to eventually learn, after Jeanne O'Brien is proven a fraud and departs the show, that Pam "may have died" and they come to suspect her death was connected to neurofibromatosis --- thus indicating that Digger's daughter was his biological daughter after all (with the suggestion that Rebecca might have lied, or simply been mistaken, about Hutch McKinney having sired Baby-Pamela after all). This speculative revelation coming somewhere in the final season or so.

This would be even more fun if JR was running around for a year thinking he was the biological offspring of Digger and Miss Ellie (a possibility Ellie confesses in the hospital to Clayton, and a drunken Clayton later spills the beans at the ranch) meaning that JR, horrified, thinks he's the half-brother to Cliff and even Pam -- which, of course, Cliff could taunt him over for months.


"...And don't think I'm buyin' you anything for yer birthday, Lil Sis -- or is it 'Big Sis'?, 'cause Bobby tells me you may just be a lot older than you say you are...!"

 

[Chris2]

Pam did return to domestic whine-ality during Season 10, but a lot of wives might react that way to the news that her new husband was having a baby with another woman.

I have no sympathy for Pam. She had a history of running out on Bobby when the going got tough. If she hadn’t left him because she didn’t like the fight over Ewing Oil, Bobby’s relationship with Jenna wouldn’t have happened. Actions have consequences, Pammy.

 

[Mustard]

I have no sympathy for Pam. She had a history of running out on Bobby when the going got tough. If she hadn’t left him because she didn’t like the fight over Ewing Oil, Bobby’s relationship with Jenna wouldn’t have happened. Actions have consequences, Pammy.

That fight over Ewing Oil led to the death of her mother, after Pam and Miss Ellie had tried to stop the fight happening. Pam and Bobby still would have worked it out if Katherine hadn't been up to no good.

 

[Jimmy Todd]

Pam did return to domestic whine-ality during Season 10, but a lot of wives might react that way to the news that her new husband was having a baby with another woman.

Schizophrenically, Pam seemed tougher than ever at the office.



People make this point a lot. But how would anybody feel after a similar accident, when you look in the mirror and want to scream but you look like you already are.

There was no good end for Pam after that, and she felt -- possibly correctly -- that her husband and son would be better off suffering through her disappearance than her physical appearance. Nothing could be salvaged at that point.

I want Bobby and Cliff to eventually learn, after Jeanne O'Brien is proven a fraud and departs the show, that Pam "may have died" and they come to suspect her death was connected to neurofibromatosis --- thus indicating that Digger's daughter was his biological daughter after all (with the suggestion that Rebecca might have lied, or simply been mistaken, about Hutch McKinney having sired Baby-Pamela after all). This speculative revelation coming somewhere in the final season or so.

This would be even more fun if JR was running around for a year thinking he was the biological offspring of Digger and Miss Ellie (a possibility Ellie confesses in the hospital to Clayton, and a drunken Clayton later spills the beans at the ranch) meaning that JR, horrified, thinks he's the half-brother to Cliff and even Pam -- which, of course, Cliff could taunt him over for months.


"...And don't think I'm buyin' you anything for yer birthday, Lil Sis -- or is it 'Big Sis'?, 'cause Bobby tells me you may just be a lot older than you say you are...!"

I really like this scene in which JR tells Pam of she gets back with Bobby he will go scorched earth policy on his battles against Bobby and Cliff, Victoria doesn't have any dialogue at that point, but her facial expression conveys everything. This is a great example of Victoria's acting skills.
Regarding the points made about Pam's actions during the fight for Ewing Oil, there's a lovely scene in season 7 in which Pam admits to Bobby a lot of what went wrong with their marriage was her fault. This is also the scene in which she learns from Bobby about Katherine reading the infamous letter to him. Again, the subtle change in Pam's facial expression and demeanor is very good acting on Victoria's part.

 

[Jock Ewing Fan]

It bothers me that she wouldn't return to Dallas, but that she took a role in that series that lasted half a season, maybe.
VP is good in an ensemble like Dallas, an effective lead in a TV movie, but not a lead on TV or Film, apparently

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

It bothers me that she wouldn't return to Dallas, but that she took a role in that series that lasted half a season, maybe.
VP is good in an ensemble like Dallas, an effective lead in a TV movie, but not a lead on TV or Film, apparently

That's Titans you're on about, I've never seen it.

The reason she left was she wanted to do films I believe and to start her own business.

I haven't seen any of the TV movies that she made after Dallas.

It's a shame she put Dallas behind her but I can understand why she left. She just wanted to move on and do other things, perhaps she didn't want to end up typecast.

Her Principal Secret skincare company is apparently worth millions so she did well for herself post Dallas.

 

[Jimmy Todd]

I wonder if her skin care products are of actual high quality or if Victoria is just very good at marketing.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

I wonder if her skin care products are of actual high quality or if Victoria is just very good at marketing.

In this day and age skincare products really need to work so I'm assuming her product range are high quality.

No amount of marketing is going to sell a substandard product.

 

[Laurie Marr]

Early Pam was the viewer’s representative as she (and we) got to know more about this grotesquely neurotic bunch of millionaires. Principal did that very well and made Pam a very sympathetic character. Her ballsy retorts to the oedipal mess of a family ratcheted up the dramatic tension on numerous memorable occasions. She did that convincingly too.

Then she became obsessed with babies and Principal’s vacant screen presence was neither dramatic or convincing. Was this a sign of her limitations as an actor? Or had she embarked on an 18 month sulk at being saddled with a storyline that seemed calculated to disarm Pam? She would be one of an embarrassingly long list of women on the show who went gaga: Ellie, Sue Ellen, Lucy, Jessica, Katherine, Kristin, Sheila Foley etc etc.

Principal could be captivating on screen, but she also had a tendency to be shrill and petulant. Her child like attacks of lip trembling sometimes robbed her most emotional scenes of their full dramatic potential. Toward the end of her time on the show, however, she appeared to rein this in. She had developed a restraint and was much less mannered.

 

[Taylor Bennett Jr.]

obviously, she was drop-dead-and-dream absolutely gorgeous

Then she cut her hair.

as good as she could look at times in the ensuing years, I've always felt she never recaptured the "wow factor" of the earliest episodes. I guess the long straight hair looked old-fashioned and stodgy as they moved into the 80s, but it really suited her. I liked her when she was more casual, ala this shot from Election:

Victoria was a huge sex symbol of the time, but Pam hanging out at her mother's former mansion with a maid and occasionally little Christopher sometimes came across as someone 20 years older than what she was supposed to be (even Joan Rivers wouldn't have gone that far!)