I’ve always wondered why JR loved Bobby but hated Gary. JR loved his family. Now that I’ve learned Gary was born while Jock was at war it makes more sense. 1. Gary was the new baby who took all of his mama’s attention. His dad wasn’t there to compensate & pay attention to him. 2. When Jock got back from war he wasn’t bonded with Gary. That made Miss Ellie even more protective of him. 3. When Bobby was born both parents were present. JR could love him like a little brother. And I think there was a big age gap. Regarding Gary, he was the soft brother that didn’t like to hunt & wrote poetry. JR & Jock couldn’t relate. Then Gary ran away & abandoned his wife & child. JR said he couldn’t handle responsibility. Jock was tough on his boys & taught them the value of hard work. He & JR couldn’t respect this behavior. Of course, JR is to blame for separating Lucy & Valene. Then Gary came back & ran away again. Jock was excited to have him back. Of course he was disappointed in his behavior. A lot of people like to pin this one on JR. I completely disagree. Gary was an adult at this point. He should have been honest with his family instead of running away & abandoning Lucy for a second time. If they didn’t like it, that’s their problem. He didn’t give them a chance to understand. I was glad to see Gary redeem himself & remarry Valene & start a life with her. Jock was happy to see him sobered & settling down. He was facing life instead of running away. Jock couldn’t relate to Gary & Gary caused him a lot of disappointment. But he loved him. He was also protective of Miss Ellie getting hurt. JR actually hated Gary & wanted him out of the family completely. JR would double cross Bobby when it came to business. But he also loved Bobby & would never hurt him just for the sake of hurting someone. I think with Gary it goes back to childhood & being ignored by his mama.
Jock Ewing Fan
Telly Talk Star
Good points. I never could figure JR's attitude toward Gary.
I think that once, JR said something to the effect that he wanted Gary to be more of a man, go to college, and that that girl (Valene)
was no good for him.
I wonder - did JR ever seduce Valene? Maybe not but it might explain somethings.
Maybe JR subconsciously knew he needed a strong brother to compete against - that was Bobby, not Gary.
Maybe, as you indicated, with a Father who preferred Bobby and a Mother who preferred Gary,
conflict was inevitable
Billy Wall
Telly Talk Dream Maker
JR was like Jock, he didn’t respect Gary because he didn’t fit into what he thought a man should be. The one time that I remember JR having respect for him was one of the few times I saw Knots Landing. JR made some offer to Gary and pretty much told him what he could do with his offer and JR smiles and said, “I wish our daddy was alive to see this.”
Speaking of JR and Gary. Gary had one of the best zingers on Dallas when he came back when Jock was still in South America. He told JR “It’s funny how you got Lucy, but you can’t get your own child.” Lol
Speaking of JR and Gary. Gary had one of the best zingers on Dallas when he came back when Jock was still in South America. He told JR “It’s funny how you got Lucy, but you can’t get your own child.” Lol
Mustard
Telly Talk TV Fanatic
Gary thinks way outside the box, is unpredictable, has demons, yet also has huge potential. That makes J.R. very uneasy. In contrast, Bobby is predictable as a strong standup guy who plays the Ewing power games, a rivalry that J.R. embraces. Miss Ellie said something good once "Bobby was given everything that J.R. had to fight for and Gary didn't care about".
I don't think J.R. hated Gary personally, although might have resented Gary's closeness to their mother. His antagonism towards Gary was business. Gary is a potential threat, which is all it takes for J.R. to treat him as a real threat "Do unto others before they do unto you", so keep Gary down, call him a loser, get him away from Southfork and Dallas, so Ewing Oil is all mine (J.R.'s) and Gary won't try to muscle in on the action. He was happy for Gary to be a success in California, away from J.R.'s territory so to speak.
I don't think J.R. hated Gary personally, although might have resented Gary's closeness to their mother. His antagonism towards Gary was business. Gary is a potential threat, which is all it takes for J.R. to treat him as a real threat "Do unto others before they do unto you", so keep Gary down, call him a loser, get him away from Southfork and Dallas, so Ewing Oil is all mine (J.R.'s) and Gary won't try to muscle in on the action. He was happy for Gary to be a success in California, away from J.R.'s territory so to speak.
Imagine how insecure that made J.R. back in the early 1960s. His younger brother with a wife and daughter at Southfork. J.R. was around his mid 20s at the time, not married and no children. Gary and Val were teenagers. And how long before Gary and Val have a son?
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I agree that JR didn’t hate Gary. I never thought of it from that perspective. Gary could have usurped JR‘s place had Lucy been a boy. I never watched Knox Landing
Mel O'Drama
Admin
Absolutely. Gary's potential was the reason JR viewed him as a threat.
He sums it up perfectly from 50 seconds into this scene:
Abby said:
JR said:
I have always wondered about JR and Gary's relationship so I like this thread. When on Dallas TNT, Gary was at the reading of JR's will, a part of me had hoped that JR would say something nice to Gary like how he wished they had a better relationship but then that probably would not have been in JR's character.
Still, I would have liked to have there been a nice scene between them even for five minutes.
Still, I would have liked to have there been a nice scene between them even for five minutes.