New People article on Charlene Tilton

There is a very interesting article on Charlene Tilton published on people.com. It's worth reading. I knew that she didn't have a great childhood but the details mentioned here were new to me. What a strong woman.

Dallas Star Charlene Tilton Reveals 'Tumultuous' Childhood with a Mentally Ill Mother and Absent Father

At the height of her fame on Dallas, Charlene Tilton was struggling in secret to help her mentally ill mother. Today, the actress is loving a revived career and life as a grandmother in Nashville

people.com

 

[Lastkidpicked]

What a strong woman.

Thank you for sharing this.
The memory that stands out for me the most about Charlene is when she was let go from Dallas. People told her, "Say that you are leaving to pursue other career interests."
Charlene shot back, "I'm not going to say that. They fired me."

Strong woman indeed.

 

[Miss Texas 1967]

Very interesting. I found it sad but also sweet that Charlene understood Lucy as a character. Thanks for sharing.

 

[DallasFanForever]

She’s certainly had no easy life. She has every right to be bitter and hostile if she chooses but obviously that’s not the case. What a strong person, and I have the upmost respect for her.

 

[southfork88]

I also remember that Charlene's mother had cancer and at that time survival from this disease was not so likely. The interview does not even mention the other husband, Nick Capaldi.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

I'm rather fond of little Lucy, a shame they dropped her from the show.

Charlene was a lovely actor, I respect her for not kowtowing to Lorimar and telling everyone that they fired her from Dallas.

 

[Monzo]

In the current People print issue March 20, 2023 the article about Charlene Tilton can be found on pages 60 to 63.

It's a great issue. Priscilla Presley is on the cover with Lisa Marie and Riley (6-page-coverstory), plus Scream VI, Gloria Gaynor, Lucy Liu and Michael B. Jordan with great articles.

To Charlene's article: It's mostly personal, mentioning that she used her $15,000-per-week Dallas paycheck to try to help her mother. It is said that after Tilton left Dallas in 1990, “there was a lot of stress. I wasn’t working, and I wasn’t taking care of myself.“ Instead, she cared for her daughter and her mom, who later moved into a live-in facility, but the cost drained Tilton’s savings. “My house was foreclosed. I left everything except what we could fit in a one-bedroom house.”
At the end of the article it is reported: Now Tilton - who appeared on some 500 magazine covers at the height of her TV fame - splits her time between her grandsons and acting, mostly in TV movies or for faith-based streaming services. “When I was on Dallas and doing bathing suit magazine covers, I couldn't wait to get older," she says. “I always saw myself as a character actress. I'm petite and curvy, not tall and thin. I'm not elegant, I'm spunky. What I love about the age I am now is it brings different characters."

 

[lbf522]

The writers gave up on Lucy too soon. Even Dallas TNT did not use her well. There were possibilities to do with her that were not better explored. Good for her for not sugar coating her leaving and saying they fired her. She owed them nothing.

Before she returned, there was this article in the National Enquirer that said that Lucy was coming back and work at Ewing Oil. That looked promising so I was surprised when Lucy's return was a waste. So either the National Enquirer had it wrong or the writers changed their minds for whatever reason.

 

[Miss Texas 1967]

The writers gave up on Lucy too soon. Even Dallas TNT did not use her well. There were possibilities to do with her that were not better explored. Good for her for not sugar coating her leaving and saying they fired her. She owed them nothing.

Before she returned, there was this article in the National Enquirer that said that Lucy was coming back and work at Ewing Oil. That looked promising so I was surprised when Lucy's return was a waste. So either the National Enquirer had it wrong or the writers changed their minds for whatever reason.

They had Ray and Lucy back in the pilot and the two had nothing of interest to say, which was bizarre considering there was literally a plotline with Bobby trying to sell Southfork in the same episode. You sort of got the feeling Lucy and Ray were together too, which again, bizarre considering that was dropped early on in the original show.
I don't know what I expected from a set of writers who had "collectively" seen the show though

 

[DallasFanForever]

The writers gave up on Lucy too soon. Even Dallas TNT did not use her well. There were possibilities to do with her that were not better explored. Good for her for not sugar coating her leaving and saying they fired her. She owed them nothing.

Before she returned, there was this article in the National Enquirer that said that Lucy was coming back and work at Ewing Oil. That looked promising so I was surprised when Lucy's return was a waste. So either the National Enquirer had it wrong or the writers changed their minds for whatever reason.

I’ve always felt that the miniseries Lucy was the best Lucy and she should’ve been brought back to those roots at some point. Making her badder, more corrupt, perhaps a little more like Uncle J.R. could’ve worked better for her had they pulled the trigger.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

I’ve always felt that the miniseries Lucy was the best Lucy and she should’ve been brought back to those roots at some point. Making her badder, more corrupt, perhaps a little more like Uncle J.R. could’ve worked better for her had they pulled the trigger.

Well she was a bit wild even after the mini series.

The writers found the character difficult to write for which was the main reason why Charlene was eventually shown the door!

 

[Bobby Southworth]

I always felt it was a shame that when they brought her back in season 12, she basically had one, that's right, one story-line, with Casey Denault, and then she was basically just used for a zinger or two with JR, or to be Cally's cheerleader. Why did they bother if that's all they were going to do with her? I'm assuming as earlier pointed out or suggested, more was probably initially planned. They should have stuck with that.

 

[DallasFanForever]

Well she was a bit wild even after the mini series.

Yes, but not wild enough. They toned her down too soon.

I always felt it was a shame that when they brought her back in season 12, she basically had one, that's right, one story-line, with Casey Denault, and then she was basically just used for a zinger or two with JR, or to be Cally's cheerleader. Why did they bother if that's all they were going to do with her? I'm assuming as earlier pointed out or suggested, more was probably initially planned. They should have stuck with that.

I was excited for the character’s return but it ended up being such a letdown. They should’ve had her come back with a vengeance, perhaps a stake or claim on something that ends up dividing the family.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

Yes, but not wild enough. They toned her down too soon.


I was excited for the character’s return but it ended up being such a letdown. They should’ve had her come back with a vengeance, perhaps a stake or claim on something that ends up dividing the family.

When she came back she didn't do much. Casey Denault tried to manipulate both her and April for his own ends. This was a retread of the storyline she had with Eddie Cronin.

It was lovely to see her back but the character was largely wasted because again they didn't know how to write for her.

 

[Snowcat]

I saw the article. I had no idea what a difficult life she had. Charlene Tilton did an awesome job playing Lucy. But I never cared for Lucy. I do think they could have done much more with her when she returned. The way she fell for Casey showed no character growth on her part. I’m glad Charlene said forget it & left soon after. The writers really did her a disservice

 

[pete lashmar]

Nice article, just goes to show that you never really know what's going on behind the scenes in people's lives.

As for the character of Lucy, after bosses decided to reverse their original plans for Pam and give her the light to Larry's dark they should have put Lucy centre stage as a manipulating trouble maker. Not many of her stories were particularly strong but, in all honesty they really needed a better actress if the character was going to be more fully rounded.

TV bosses just do not understand that viewers are turned off by whinney characters, and if their acting ability isn't great it just adds to a big turn off. (Charlei Wade was the same). Lucy's rape should have been a shocking plot, but it just fell flat - with a better actress and better writing a revenge plot would have worked amazingly well - but Lucy became a victim in the series as a whole and she should always have been a fighter.

 

[lbf522]

Lucy was better in the mini series as a mini JR. That could have made for a good storyline or two.

 

[Monzo]

If you want to hear a podcast with Charlene Tilton, you can find her on an episode of Dishing With Digest. Dallas is talked about a lot. What I found most interesting is the question about her exit in 1985. Charlene Tilton replied:

"Leonard Katzman called me to come into the studio one day, said he had to talk to me, I didn’t think anything of it. That was, like, the farthest thing from my mind, and I wasn’t working that day. So I drove to the studio. And he told me, and I cried a little bit, then he cried a little bit. And I didn’t talk to anybody else about it. I didn’t talk to the other cast or anybody. So, just finished out the season, knowing I wasn’t coming back. But what they told me what they wanted me to do was to come out and say that I’m choosing to leave the show because I want to go and start a feature film career, and I want to see what other opportunities are out there for me. And they basically wrote these statements for me to come out and say, and I said, “No, thank you. So that’s not the truth. The truth is, you are letting me go. And it’s not because of anything I’ve done. And I’m fine with the truth.” And I’m glad I did. Because I mean, and I just said, “You know, I had a seven-year contract, and they chose not to renew it.” And that was the truth. End of story. That was it. Well, the fans did get up in arms and they sent a lot of petitions and a lot of letters and they ended up bringing me back."

 

[Laurie Marr]

I’ve always felt that the miniseries Lucy was the best Lucy and she should’ve been brought back to those roots at some point. Making her badder, more corrupt, perhaps a little more like Uncle J.R. could’ve worked better for her had they pulled the trigger.

Quite. Was JR really just her uncle? One of the plot lines hinted at but which, sadly, went on unexplored on the show.

 

[Rove]

Even Dallas TNT did not use her well.

The showrunner had little respect for those legacy characters. Out of Larry, Patrick and Linda it was Patrick grabbing the most attention. Esther Shapiro (From Dynasty fame) questioned where the hell was JR Ewing during that season premiere of TNT Dallas. Lucy and Ray's - blink and you'll miss them appearance - was an insult to both actors and audience.