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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Michael Torrance" data-source="post: 226071" data-attributes="member: 719">DALLAS revived prime-time soap opera for the 1970s (after it had been invented by PEYTON PLACE).Per our good friends at OED, a soap opera is, "a radio or television serial dealing esp. with domestic situations and frequently characterized by melodrama and sentimentality; this type of serial considered as a genre."There were not that many conflicts over the cattle and what not, and even the business deals and betrayals mattered most for their family consequences: J.R. wanted his daddy's praise much more than million-earning deals.Of course anyone can call it whatever they want, but we are at soapchat <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite8" alt=":D" title="Big Grin    :D" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":D" />But DALLAS added some elements that made it (re)define the genre, such as the cliffhanger, and especially made its villain the star of the show and kept him winning rather than get his comeuppance. I think this fueled the show's plot dynamo more than anything: people who hated J.R. kept waiting to see when he would get what was his. People who found the moralistic simplicity of ALL other TV offensive to their intelligence loved that there was a reality principle never seen before: the bad guy does NOT always get punished and does often get away with it.Of course a lot of good casting and good writing did not hurt, but I think the above are what made DALLAS become the world-wide frenzy which no other show had done until then.</blockquote>

Verification: Who played JR Ewing?