The WORST casting choice in Dallas history

[B.J. Ewing]

Well I'm going to shock tellytalk posters here and go out on a limb with my choice...

Charlene Tilton as Lucy Ewing.
​

From the get go - up against established actors - her acting chops were woeful. Any of the daytime soap darlings could have easily taken this role on but every time I do a re-watch I could easily skip any scenes of Lucy. It's not until Mickey makes an entrance Charlene shows some acting ability. There I've said it, laid bare for all to whip out their ferocity towards me.

Go for it tellytalkers, fire up those keyboards....I dare you ​

Oh, you... You... Poison dwarf!!!!!

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Yesterday Priscilla was at the Venice Film Festival (Italy) to present the film about her life with Elvis.

Her life has been filled with tragedy, but she could have chosen to improve her acting.

She had started out on a convincing career in Dallas ... but by the 1986-1987 season became a miserable actress.

Priscilla was okay-ish in her first season, and I only had a problem with her in her final year, as her rebound relationship with Ray was somewhat less than compelling. Up until them, her imperfect performance I could chalk up to the character's affected neurosis.

And the idea that Jenna's nose job since Francine Tacker had just altered the woman's psychology in some way -- they say the anesthesia lurks inside the brain for ages!

Oh, you... You... Poison dwarf!!!!!

Same with Charlene: I could comfortably write off Charlene's acting as her nerdy-Sag neuroses. Just like I could rationalize Joan Collins' inability to do "vulnerable" as Alexis' manipulative posing (and I still can).

 

[Laurie Marr]

I'm inclined to agree. I'm rewatching the dream season now and I just can't warm to Jack. Like you say he's a decent actor but I think the role needed someone with a different kind of charisma that Dack Rambo exhibits. And considering that he was pretty much Bobby's replacement, he needed much better storylines than the ones he got to establish him as a core character. So they got the casting and the writing wrong with him. The character could have been a keeper if handled better.

The character of Jack was so poorly defined that he seemed to drift from loyal sibling, to grifter on a whim. The Dimitri Marinos snoozefest didn’t help endear the character to audiences either. And there’s something else: Rambo’s incessant chuckling in almost every line of dialogue was pretty alienating. He always appeared so damn smug.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

The character of Jack was so poorly defined that he seemed to drift from loyal sibling, to grifter on a whim. The Dimitri Marinos snoozefest didn’t help endear the character to audiences either. And there’s something else: Rambo’s incessant chuckling in almost every line of dialogue was pretty alienating. He always appeared so damn smug.

Anyone with pants that stuffed would appear smug if only because of the discomfort.

 

[southfork88]

Anyone with pants that stuffed would appear smug if only because of the discomfort.

In my opinion the most annoying thing about Jack, besides the incessant giggle, was the constant checking of his lower parts step by step, outdoors or indoors indifferently. Perhaps he was afraid that something would fall to the ground while walking?

 

[Laurie Marr]

In my opinion the most annoying thing about Jack, besides the incessant giggle, was the constant checking of his lower parts step by step, outdoors or indoors indifferently. Perhaps he was afraid that something would fall to the ground while walking?

Well observed. I suspect Dack was afraid that the prosthetic parcel of his priapic prowess might escape from the bottom of his pants mid-scene.

 

[Barbara Fan]

, but most of all Cally.

How she got her Equity or Screen actors guild card since its USA, I will never know, it was embarassing and cringy

It made JR seem like some dirty old man and pervy - she could have been his grandaughter and it was just ...................YUK!

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Cally never bothered me, even if the mismatch marriage was bound to be short-lived.

In my opinion the most annoying thing about Jack, besides the incessant giggle, was the constant checking of his lower parts step by step, outdoors or indoors indifferently. Perhaps he was afraid that something would fall to the ground while walking?

Well observed. I suspect Dack was afraid that the prosthetic parcel of his priapic prowess might escape from the bottom of his pants mid-scene.

I mean, it's not beyond the realm of possibility. I've certainly known guys who.... well.... could Speedo into oblivion, to the point of veritable absurdity. That said, such enthusiasm wasn't in evidence in Rambo's '60s TV western with Walter Brennan -- but then Brennan was an old geezer and, hence, less attractive.

Not that I looked or anything. Because that would wrong.

Larry once referred to Dack as "spraying on his jeans." And I don't think he meant: genes.

That probably got Dack -- and his dack -- fired.

The only time I had a problem with Jack was during the dream season, but I had a problem with most of the characters during the dream season; except for, probably, Pam.

 

[Rove]

It made JR seem like some dirty old man and pervy

To think Larry Hagman as Executive Producer chose Cathy. My goodness the quality of Dallas evaporated quickly under the leadership of Lenny & Co when they assumed total control.

 

[LMLDallas78]

To think Larry Hagman as Executive Producer chose Cathy. My goodness the quality of Dallas evaporated quickly under the leadership of Lenny & Co when they assumed total control.

I can imagine Larry did choose her!
Not sure if he wanted to shock, make it comedic or live out a bit of a fantasy......... who knows.
He later referred to it on The Larry King interview, saying she looked about 12.
When Cally appeared I don't think anyone cared enough to think too much of it.

 

[pete lashmar]

I absolutely love Cally when she first arrives in Dallas, the Oil Barons Ball scene is classic, as is Lucy's makeover of her. But Cally should have been written out a few episodes later IMO, it wounded J.R as a character and was the beginning of making him weak and feeble.

 

[southfork88]

Adoro Cally quando arriva per la prima volta a Dallas, la scena del Ballo dei Baroni dell'Olio è classica, così come il suo restyling da parte di Lucy. Ma Cally avrebbe dovuto essere scritto qualche episodio dopo, secondo me, ha ferito JR come personaggio e ha iniziato a renderlo debole e fiacco.

Cinderella in Texas.

 

[Taylor Bennett Jr.]

prosthetic parcel of his priapic prowess

poetic!

 

[Rove]

it wounded J.R as a character and was the beginning of making him weak and feeble.

The very thing which Lenny accused the creative types of doing to JR during the Dream Season, yet when Lenny assumes control I thought JR became a shadow of his former self during those awful last seasons. I could understand if we saw a slow decline of JR's character after repeatedly becoming a target by those wishing him harm or his constant battle to get control of Ewing Oil but the writing wasn't up to par.

 

[the-lost-son]

There are characters like JR's son where the audience has a certain expectation how James should be portrayed. But as always it comes down to the writing.
Of course, it was a huge miscast, but I mean how can you come up with "Beaumont" as the last name for good old JR's son. The motorcycle and all the rest...it was just wrong on so many levels.
TNT Dallas (imho) managed to do a better job with JohnRoss.

It's hard to tell if the last +2 years suffered more from miscasting or poor writing, probably both.

I just rewatched S5 (DVD6). It's just so cleverly written. It's not just the central plot about the fight for Ewing Oil with all its repercussions, it's the care for detail (realistic oil prices, Puerto Rico papers, JR buying the same Mercedes again after SE crashed, Raoul&Teresa going to the movies etc.) but foremost you did not know where the storylines were going. All these insinuated plots, like SueEllen and Clayton with Miss Ellie's insecurities, the role of Katherine or Holly Harwood, the introduction of Mark Graison... The secondary characters were all used in a meaningful way, like Harve Smithfield, Punk, Aunt Lily, Fenton Washburn or Dr. Danvers as well.

And the additions worked as three dimensional no matter how small their screen time was, like the McLeish brothers or Walt Driscoll for example. I especially love the dialogue that season. It feels like a completely different series years later.

In regards to your thread, I blame the writing foremost, but still my choice is James Beaumont.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

There are characters like JR's son where the audience has a certain expectation how James should be portrayed. But as always it comes down to the writing.
Of course, it was a huge miscast, but I mean how can you come up with "Beaumont" as the last name for good old JR's son. The motorcycle and all the rest...it was just wrong on so many levels.
TNT Dallas (imho) managed to do a better job with JohnRoss.

I sometimes wonder if a Richard Grieco could have worked at the time.

It's hard to tell if the last +2 years suffered more from miscasting or poor writing, probably both.

Yes.

just rewatched S5 (DVD6). It's just so cleverly written. It's not just the central plot about the fight for Ewing Oil with all its repercussions, it's the care for detail (realistic oil prices, Puerto Rico papers, JR buying the same Mercedes again after SE crashed, Raoul&Teresa going to the movies etc.) but foremost you did not know where the storylines were going. All these insinuated plots, like SueEllen and Clayton with Miss Ellie's insecurities, the role of Katherine or Holly Harwood, the introduction of Mark Graison... The secondary characters were all used in a meaningful way, like Harve Smithfield, Punk, Aunt Lily, Fenton Washburn or Dr. Danvers as well.

And thank you, Mr. Paulsen -- gone by 1988.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

The very thing which Lenny accused the creative types of doing to JR during the Dream Season, yet when Lenny assumes control I thought JR became a shadow of his former self during those awful last seasons. I could understand if we saw a slow decline of JR's character after repeatedly becoming a target by those wishing him harm or his constant battle to get control of Ewing Oil but the writing wasn't up to par.

Yes, seeing JR on the descent was fine -- at least, to me. But having the show around him do the same was not.

 

[DallasFanForever]

Yes, seeing JR on the descent was fine

I didn’t like it. I felt what they should’ve done with him as he got older was make him darker; more hostile and even bitter. It was still the most important character and watching him descend was difficult for me.

 

[LMLDallas78]

I didn’t like it. I felt what they should’ve done with him as he got older was make him darker; more hostile and even bitter. It was still the most important character and watching him descend was difficult for me.

Oh wow, I like that! Instead of making him mellow in his old age they could've made him darker.
I just never thought of it like that. Very ingenious of you DFF.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

I didn’t like it. I felt what they should’ve done with him as he got older was make him darker; more hostile and even bitter. It was still the most important character and watching him descend was difficult for me.

I can't disagree with that. JR could have burned out and wilted in certain ways, while getting darker.

The show itself should certainly have gotten darker, but instead did the reverse.