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, 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.
Casting and creation
Background
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.Casting
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 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 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... really good. , 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 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:
"I've considered for two years, and in the last six months, it's seemed real clear to me. I realized that my job would become my career if I stayed. Some people stay with a series until the end, you know, and afterwards they often have some problems, I think, finding new opportunities. And I wanted a career after Dallas. There's great sadness in leaving my friends and the show – I was never bored with it – but I'm not at all ambivalent about this. I'm realistic about taking care of myself financially. I didn't want to walk away blindly without plans. My plans are set. I have a project with a network that is ready to go that I can't talk about yet. It's a drama mystery."
Principal also reunited with several former cast mates in the Dallas reunion special titled Dallas Reunion: The Return to Southfork that was televised in 2004, marking her first public appearance with them since her exit from the show.
Potential return
In 2010, TNT announced it was producing a new, updated series of Dallas. The new series is a continuation of the original series, and primarily centered around J.R. Ewing's son John Ross Ewing III, and Bobby Ewing and Pam's adopted son Christopher Ewing, though various stars of the original series will be reprising their roles. With the Dallas continuation set to air in June 2012, rumors began swirling that Principal could make a return to the show as Pam. On March 28, 2012, Yahoo.com reported that Principal's return to the show was a definite possibility.They said, "Victoria Principal could be set to make a shock return to legendary drama series Dallas after stars Patrick Duffy and Jesse Metcalfe let slip producers want her in the show's upcoming reboot. The actress' character, Pamela Ewing, was written out of the series in 1987, when viewers were told she had only months to live after fleeing the Texan dynasty." In an added piece, they said: "But the storyline was left open-ended, and it's now emerged Principal – who is the only surviving member of the show's original cast not signed up for the relaunch later this year – could be brought back to Dallas in an explosive plot." Jesse Metcalfe said, "She hasn't – she hasn't as yet. But I think for the producers of the show, it's an open invitation."
The Staff of Yahoo.com said that Principal was "the one major missing piece" of the new Dallas and made notion that a possible return could potentially happen in the future, critically saying: "The drama. The mystery. The intrigue. Specifically, where is Victoria Principal?" Entertainment Weekly said that Principal was "certainly missed" as original character Pam when reviewing the new series. Morgan Jeffrey of Digital Spy said that Principal was "unlikely" to return to the new series due to lack of interest in the project, but the door would always be open. He said, "She's indicated that it's something she's not interested in."