It's hard to believe it's been over twn years since "Knots Landing" ended it's fourteen-season run on TV. In case you didn't know, "Knots Landing" was my favorite nighttime soap opera, and to this day remains one of my all-time favorite TV shows. The show is television's second longest running drama (after Gunsmoke) and ran from 1979 to 1993. For fourteen seasons, we were caught up in the lives and loves of Karen, Valene, and Abby. In addition to being one of the longest-running drama shows in prime time, it was also the first prime time series to have the death of a major character, Sid (Karen's husband and Abby's brother) in season 3. The show was a pioneer for dealing with social issues - rape, drug abuse, illiteracy, and the environment were things the residents of Knots Landing had to face. At this time, other nighttime soaps shied away from things like this, and instead focussed solely on the rich and beautiful.
The show was a spin-off from the popular "Dallas" and gave the opportunity for both shows' characters to crossover from time to time. Lucy left Dallas and visited her parents Gary and Valene in Knots Landing, and Abby went to Dallas a time or two to see ol' J.R. Speaking of Abby, my favorite Knots character, she wasn't all bad. Unlike the other nighttime soaps, the villians on Knots had major soft spots that the writers showcased. While she would lie, cheat, and steal with the best of them, Abby's vulnerability was her children. We saw her fight to get her daughter off of drugs, and we even saw her give a kidney to her neice.
I found out just the other day that Warner Bros. will be releasing "Knots Landing" on DVD in early 2006. I joined thousands of other Knots fans by signing a petition to get the show on DVD, and I guess it worked. And please mark your calendars for December 2 - CBS will be airing a Knots Landing reunion. The show was filmed in July, and from the pictures I saw online, my beloved Donna Mills, Abby herself, looks as good as did when the show was on the air.
Do you think "Desperate Housewives" will last for fourteen seasons like "Knots Landing?" My guess is no. And I think the ladies of Seaview Circle could teach those gals on Wisteria Lane a few things. After all, they are the original desperate housewives.
3 comments:
Most good comedy and soap shows don't seem to last but ten years at the most. How I remember back when me and you sought to cultivate an appreciation of ballet and opera but still ran back to the studio apartment (the doll house as many affectionately referred to) to witness the evil antics of Jill Bennett and her never ending quest to put Val down for good. This must have been nearing the days of taping on the VCR because I was so poor back then I couldn't afford one which provided the reason for running stoplights in order to catch the show firsthand. Speaking of the VCR, I've never connected mine back from 2001 because the reruns of truly good shows are usually broadcasted in reruns over the 150+ channels that satellite provides. Wonder what Val is doing right now?
MP, I remember one Thursday night in particular. We were at the ballet, and left a bit early and raced like Dale Earnhardt Jr. in your white Mercury back to the doll house, stopping along the way at Kro-ghetto, where I vividly remember clutching a bag of tortilla chips while you were holding a six-pack of Coors Light, and we both ran through the store like wide receivers running toward the end zone in an attempt to get to the TV and see if Jill was in deed dead in the trunk of a car. Yes, that is one long sentence, but forgive my grammar.
Yes, I remember that night at the Second Street Kroger. I was clutching the steering wheel just as Jill Bennett did with the butcher knife. It's strange to think that it was only 16 years ago but to a youngster, that was an eternity. That same Kroger still exists in its entirety and it's still exactly the same.
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