Community hub
Recent from talks
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Pam Ewing
Pamela Jean "Pam" Barnes Ewing is a fictional character from the CBS primetime soap opera Dallas. Pamela is portrayed by actress Victoria Principal, first appearing on the show in the first episode, titled "Digger's Daughter", which was first broadcast on April 2, 1978. Dallas follows the trials of the wealthy Ewing family in the city of Dallas, Texas, which Pam has married into. Principal played Pam until the end of season 10 in 1987, when the character crashes her car into a truck carrying butane and propane and her body is severely burned. A year later, she was briefly played by actress Margaret Michaels in an attempt to write the character out. Pamela's storylines in season 1 focus on her relationship with her new husband, Bobby Ewing (Patrick Duffy), and her fight against the considerable suspicion and hostility from within the Ewing family, due to Pamela being a member of the Barnes family. Pamela's love for Bobby remains a strong character trait throughout her tenure on the show, noted for its similarities to Romeo and Juliet, with two people from hostile families falling in love.
In the early years of Dallas, Principal took measures to add depth to her character. She initially was very distant from the cast and they assumed she didn't like them. Series producer Leonard Katzman confronted her about the issue and she said, "I like everybody. It's just that I want to feel like an outsider, like Pam Barnes does, being married to a Ewing." Principal also took to other ways of improving her character, such as taking voice lessons to perfect a Texas accent. Her relationship with Patrick Duffy's character, Bobby, was a central component to the show, and when Duffy returned to Dallas in 1986, after being killed off a year earlier, the entire previous year had been written off as Pam's dream.
Principal received positive reviews for her portrayal of Pamela and a Golden Globe nomination in the category of "Best Actress in a Television Series" at the 40th Golden Globe Awards. She was nominated for a Soap Opera Digest award for "Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role on a Prime Time Serial" in 1986, while also sharing a nomination with Patrick Duffy for "Favorite Super Couple: Prime Time" in 1988. Hal Erickson of MSN.com opined that Pamela's exit from the series was open ended and left the audience hanging.
Before the creation of Dallas, series creator David Jacobs had quite a different idea of what he envisioned the show to be. He wanted to create a television show based on "family issues and examining relationships at the middle class level". The Production Company, CBS, initially turned down his original idea, as they wanted something more "glitzy" to put on the air, with wealthier characters. After the success of Dallas, Jacobs' initial idea would later become the Dallas spin-off Knots Landing. He initially conceived Pamela as the central character of the Texas-based serial. The role was created specifically for actress Linda Evans to star, and was indefinitely called "The Untitled Linda Evans Project" that was set in Indianapolis. He described her character as, "a semitrashy lady who marries into a rich Texas family". After crafting the backstory of the Ewing family, Jacobs began to realize that the show couldn't be settled simply around the character of Pamela. He wanted it to be based around the entire clan and their lives as wealthy oil people living in Dallas, Texas. Evans was ultimately not offered the part, but ironically would later go on to play Krystle Carrington on Dynasty, a rival show to Dallas.
After Jacobs decided that Evans would no longer play Pam, he began searching for another actress to play the character. The role was eventually won by then 28-year-old actress, Victoria Principal. Principal won the role over another finalist, Judith Chapman, who was known famously for her work in daytime television. Shortly after Principal's role on Fantasy Island, a friend pointed her in the direction of Dallas and "a part in it that was written for you". Eventually, Principal received a copy of the script "and read it and thought [my friend] was absolutely right". Acting as her own agent, she set up a meeting with the producers of Dallas. Lee Rich, an executive producer in 1979, recounted: "We had all heard rumors about Victoria. This is a small town. Victoria's background, her so-called past, was a plus. We felt that she had experienced life and could understand the part." Jacobs later said, "Victoria, of all the actors, went for the role the most aggressively. And that sort of determination just became part of the character." Prior to being cast in Dallas, Principal had starred in a few small roles in movies and television specials. These works include Earthquake in 1974, and Fantasy Island in 1977.
In 1977, Aaron Spelling offered Principal a role in the pilot of his television series Fantasy Island, which she accepted, however, she stipulated in the contract for the role to be written out as she was planning to attend law school. However, she obtained the pilot audition script for Dallas and her career ambitions changed. As Principal explained to TV Guide Network in 2004, "I had left acting to be an agent and was on my way to law school, but when a friend dropped off a Dallas script, I read it. When I finished, I knew my life had changed – that part was mine. So I called the [casting] person and said, "I'm sending someone in." She said, "Who?" I said, "Just put down my name. It will be a surprise." And it certainly was a surprise – I showed up with me! I sent myself in for it!" Principal landed the role of Pamela Barnes Ewing on the long-running prime time TV soap opera series Dallas that aired on the CBS network from 1978 to 1991.
Patrick Duffy, who would play Pamela's on-screen love, knew the part was ideal for Principal the minute he set his eyes on her. He recalled that one of the finalists for Pamela "was a remarkably talented young actress from New York...[who was] really good. [Later], in walked Victoria Principal with the tightest jeans I've ever seen and the most unbelievable blouse. I just went, 'Hello, Pam'. I knew she was going to be Pam Ewing." Producer Michael Filerman (Knots Landing and Falcon Crest) offered insight, "Principal really wanted that role...and worked very hard to get it. And there's a humanity about her that's just winning. And the camera likes her very much. The camera just loves her. That's real important." During the pilot filming, Principal became very close with teenaged actress Charlene Tilton, who played Lucy Ewing. Principal explained that "the location shooting was hard on Tilton, who was only seventeen and had never been away from home".
After appearing in ten of the fourteen seasons of Dallas, Principal indicated that she wished to leave the serial to pursue other venues, and chose not to renew her contract. Leonard Katzman, who was the executive producer at the time, was now faced with the show losing one of its main characters. Initially, Principal's departure was made out to be a simple "snag in contract negotiations". Lorimar also made notice that the departure was related to a "financial disagreement", even after Principal's agent gave notice that she was leaving. A show spokesperson commented, "We were unable to reach an agreement and now the producers are revising scripts without her...she turned down our last offer." The Milwaukee Journal noted that Principal was lined up for other venues at the time, included a project serial of her own. However, Principal, saying:
Hub AI
Pam Ewing AI simulator
(@Pam Ewing_simulator)
Pam Ewing
Pamela Jean "Pam" Barnes Ewing is a fictional character from the CBS primetime soap opera Dallas. Pamela is portrayed by actress Victoria Principal, first appearing on the show in the first episode, titled "Digger's Daughter", which was first broadcast on April 2, 1978. Dallas follows the trials of the wealthy Ewing family in the city of Dallas, Texas, which Pam has married into. Principal played Pam until the end of season 10 in 1987, when the character crashes her car into a truck carrying butane and propane and her body is severely burned. A year later, she was briefly played by actress Margaret Michaels in an attempt to write the character out. Pamela's storylines in season 1 focus on her relationship with her new husband, Bobby Ewing (Patrick Duffy), and her fight against the considerable suspicion and hostility from within the Ewing family, due to Pamela being a member of the Barnes family. Pamela's love for Bobby remains a strong character trait throughout her tenure on the show, noted for its similarities to Romeo and Juliet, with two people from hostile families falling in love.
In the early years of Dallas, Principal took measures to add depth to her character. She initially was very distant from the cast and they assumed she didn't like them. Series producer Leonard Katzman confronted her about the issue and she said, "I like everybody. It's just that I want to feel like an outsider, like Pam Barnes does, being married to a Ewing." Principal also took to other ways of improving her character, such as taking voice lessons to perfect a Texas accent. Her relationship with Patrick Duffy's character, Bobby, was a central component to the show, and when Duffy returned to Dallas in 1986, after being killed off a year earlier, the entire previous year had been written off as Pam's dream.
Principal received positive reviews for her portrayal of Pamela and a Golden Globe nomination in the category of "Best Actress in a Television Series" at the 40th Golden Globe Awards. She was nominated for a Soap Opera Digest award for "Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role on a Prime Time Serial" in 1986, while also sharing a nomination with Patrick Duffy for "Favorite Super Couple: Prime Time" in 1988. Hal Erickson of MSN.com opined that Pamela's exit from the series was open ended and left the audience hanging.
Before the creation of Dallas, series creator David Jacobs had quite a different idea of what he envisioned the show to be. He wanted to create a television show based on "family issues and examining relationships at the middle class level". The Production Company, CBS, initially turned down his original idea, as they wanted something more "glitzy" to put on the air, with wealthier characters. After the success of Dallas, Jacobs' initial idea would later become the Dallas spin-off Knots Landing. He initially conceived Pamela as the central character of the Texas-based serial. The role was created specifically for actress Linda Evans to star, and was indefinitely called "The Untitled Linda Evans Project" that was set in Indianapolis. He described her character as, "a semitrashy lady who marries into a rich Texas family". After crafting the backstory of the Ewing family, Jacobs began to realize that the show couldn't be settled simply around the character of Pamela. He wanted it to be based around the entire clan and their lives as wealthy oil people living in Dallas, Texas. Evans was ultimately not offered the part, but ironically would later go on to play Krystle Carrington on Dynasty, a rival show to Dallas.
After Jacobs decided that Evans would no longer play Pam, he began searching for another actress to play the character. The role was eventually won by then 28-year-old actress, Victoria Principal. Principal won the role over another finalist, Judith Chapman, who was known famously for her work in daytime television. Shortly after Principal's role on Fantasy Island, a friend pointed her in the direction of Dallas and "a part in it that was written for you". Eventually, Principal received a copy of the script "and read it and thought [my friend] was absolutely right". Acting as her own agent, she set up a meeting with the producers of Dallas. Lee Rich, an executive producer in 1979, recounted: "We had all heard rumors about Victoria. This is a small town. Victoria's background, her so-called past, was a plus. We felt that she had experienced life and could understand the part." Jacobs later said, "Victoria, of all the actors, went for the role the most aggressively. And that sort of determination just became part of the character." Prior to being cast in Dallas, Principal had starred in a few small roles in movies and television specials. These works include Earthquake in 1974, and Fantasy Island in 1977.
In 1977, Aaron Spelling offered Principal a role in the pilot of his television series Fantasy Island, which she accepted, however, she stipulated in the contract for the role to be written out as she was planning to attend law school. However, she obtained the pilot audition script for Dallas and her career ambitions changed. As Principal explained to TV Guide Network in 2004, "I had left acting to be an agent and was on my way to law school, but when a friend dropped off a Dallas script, I read it. When I finished, I knew my life had changed – that part was mine. So I called the [casting] person and said, "I'm sending someone in." She said, "Who?" I said, "Just put down my name. It will be a surprise." And it certainly was a surprise – I showed up with me! I sent myself in for it!" Principal landed the role of Pamela Barnes Ewing on the long-running prime time TV soap opera series Dallas that aired on the CBS network from 1978 to 1991.
Patrick Duffy, who would play Pamela's on-screen love, knew the part was ideal for Principal the minute he set his eyes on her. He recalled that one of the finalists for Pamela "was a remarkably talented young actress from New York...[who was] really good. [Later], in walked Victoria Principal with the tightest jeans I've ever seen and the most unbelievable blouse. I just went, 'Hello, Pam'. I knew she was going to be Pam Ewing." Producer Michael Filerman (Knots Landing and Falcon Crest) offered insight, "Principal really wanted that role...and worked very hard to get it. And there's a humanity about her that's just winning. And the camera likes her very much. The camera just loves her. That's real important." During the pilot filming, Principal became very close with teenaged actress Charlene Tilton, who played Lucy Ewing. Principal explained that "the location shooting was hard on Tilton, who was only seventeen and had never been away from home".
After appearing in ten of the fourteen seasons of Dallas, Principal indicated that she wished to leave the serial to pursue other venues, and chose not to renew her contract. Leonard Katzman, who was the executive producer at the time, was now faced with the show losing one of its main characters. Initially, Principal's departure was made out to be a simple "snag in contract negotiations". Lorimar also made notice that the departure was related to a "financial disagreement", even after Principal's agent gave notice that she was leaving. A show spokesperson commented, "We were unable to reach an agreement and now the producers are revising scripts without her...she turned down our last offer." The Milwaukee Journal noted that Principal was lined up for other venues at the time, included a project serial of her own. However, Principal, saying: