Bobby Ewing
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Bobby Ewing | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | April 2, 1978 Digger's Daughter |
| Last appearance | April 24, 1998 Dallas: War of the Ewings |
| Created by | David Jacobs |
| Portrayed by | Patrick Duffy |
| Information | |
| Gender | Male |
| Age | 60 |
| Date of birth | 1949 |
| Occupation | Senator Part owner of Ewing Oil |
| Family | Jock Ewing (father) (deceased) Ellie Farlow (mother) J.R. Ewing (brother) Garrison "Gary" Ewing (brother) Ray Krebbs (paternal half brother) |
| Spouse(s) | Pamela Barnes (1978-83, 1986-87) April Stevens (1990, deceased) |
| Children | Christopher Ewing (adopted)
Lucas Krebbs (via Jenna Wade adopted by his half brother Ray Krebbs) |
| Relatives | Lucy Ewing Cooper (niece) John Ross Ewing III (nephew) Clayton Farlow (stepfather) |
| Address | Southfork Ranch |
Robert James Ewing, commonly called Bobby Ewing, is a fictional character central to the long running TV soap opera Dallas. The youngest son of Jock and Ellie Ewing, he was portrayed by actor Patrick Duffy between 1978 and 1991, although both the actor and the character left the show briefly during 1985-1986. The show was originally planned to center around Bobby's marriage to Pamela Barnes (Victoria Principal) but ended up being centralized around his older brother, J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman).
Like his older brother, Bobby was a successful oil baron, but he lacked J.R.'s ruthlessness and insisted on playing fair which resulted in his limited success in the oil business. Bobby could be seen as kind-spirited or naive in what was portrayed as a vicious, cut-throat business. The brothers had many run-ins with arch rival and brother to Pamela, Cliff Barnes.
The oil industry was not Bobby's only interest. From time to time he also took part in the raising of cattle on the family ranch, Southfork. He was also a state senator in Austin for a while and for the most part drove a red Mercedes-Benz SL with the license plate EWING 4.
Bobby's most defining character trait was his altruistic desire to do the right thing and do what was right. This almost always put him in the crosshairs with his older brother J.R., who was far more ruthless. Bobby was one of the few characters on the show to openly take a stand against J.R. on numerous occasions (at times physically), yet the two never forgot they were brothers.
In addition to the differences between their treatment of others, as well as their conflicting views on morality, another reason for JR and Bobby's rivalry was their parents preference for Bobby. Growing up, and even into adulthood, Jock and Ellie made no secret of the fact that Bobby was not only the son they were most proud of, but also their favorite. They often expressed pride in Bobby's compassionate treatment of others, and this was a source of great anger for JR, although it should be noted that Bobby went out of his way to earn this respect, as he openly showed more concern for and attention towards his parents than J.R. ever did.
Contents |
[edit] Cliffhangers
Bobby featured in a number of cliffhangers. In Season 1, after Pamela suffered a fall, she lost Bobby's unborn child, the couple again suffered this misfortune in Season 3. At the end of Season 6, Bobby saves the lives of Ray, J.R., Sue Ellen and John Ross when Southfork Ranch was set on fire. He was shot by Katherine Wentworth in Season 7.
[edit] Patrick Duffy leaves and returns
At the end of the 1985 season, Patrick Duffy expressed his desire to leave the series. Thus, his character of Bobby died when he was run over by a car driven by his sister-in-law, Katherine Wentworth. This proved to be a mistake as it left the show without one of its most popular characters. Larry Hagman persuaded Duffy to return to the series the following season. Dallas scriptwriters created a storyline which featured Pam waking up to find Bobby in the shower (in the May 1986 cliffhanger episode) - with the realization that the storylines of the preceding season, including the accident, were nothing more than a lengthy dream sequence (thus invalidating the entire 1985-1986 season of the show).
[edit] The shower scene
Patrick Duffy and Victoria Principal didn't appear in the same scene when he returned at the end of Season 9, Principal had her scene shot on her own whilst Duffy had footage of a soap commercial merged into the scene.
[edit] Season 10
Season 10 saw Pam leave Bobby after she was involved in a car crash which resulted in her suffering severe burns. She ran away from the hospital and Bobby never saw her again.
[edit] Series finale
In the final episode, Bobby is first on the scene after hearing a gun shot from J.R.'s room uttering the words "oh my god." The camera never shows what Bobby actually saw and it was thought J.R. committed suicide although in subsequent films it was explained JR shot a mirror.
[edit] Other romances
Bobby also had a long time on off relationship with Jenna Wade and the two were briefly engaged. In 1990, Bobby married April Stevens but in the last season, April was kidnapped on their honeymoon in Paris before being shot dead.
Bobby always had an interesting relationship with his on again-off again sister-in-law Sue Ellen Ewing. They kissed on several occasions, but a relationship never materialised.
In the fifth season, Bobby adopted a boy named Christopher, who was the son of his deceased sister-in-law, Kristin Shepard. He also has a son named Lucas from his relationship with Jenna Wade.
[edit] Reunion films
When Dallas released the films J.R. Returns and War of the Ewings, Bobby had a relationship with Julia Cunningham (J.R. Returns) before taking over Ewing Oil. In the follow up film (War of the Ewings) he is no longer with Julia and the reasons are not even explained. He eventually starts a relationship with Jennifer Jansen.
