The Bold and the Beautiful spoilers tease that Bill (Don Diamont) may have taken a card out of J.R. Ewing’s (Larry Hagman) playbook. Was Dollar Bill shot by any one of a number of suspects, or did he stage his own shooting in order to frame his nemesis, Ridge (Thorsten Kay)?
Longtime television fans recall the sensation that was Dallas, CBS’ iconic nighttime soap opera that initially ran from 1978-1991. The 1980 season-ending cliffhanger ‘A House Divided’ was shown on March 21, 1980.
That episode arguably remains the greatest television teaser of all-time, as J.R. was shot by an unknown assailant. At the time it was the highest-rated episode in U.S. television history, as more than 80 million people witnessed the event. A worldwide sensation played out that spring, summer and fall, affirming that great writing, intricate behind-the-scenes planning, leak containment, superb casting and superior acting combines to create indelible entertainment.
A Writers Guild strike pushed the start of the next television season back two months. So fans didn’t learn until later in the fall who shot Hagman’s ultimate villain.
The stretched reveal actually was completed by the fourth episode, actually titled ‘Who Done It?’, on November 21, 1980, as Kristin (Mary Crosby, the only daughter of Bing Crosby) was tagged as the shooter.
Sue Ellen’s (Linda Gray) husband was having an affair with her sister. Per J.R.’s pillow talk request, Kristin spied on his business rivals. A seeming snub at services rendered led to the shot that was hotly debated across the pre-social media world.
As B&B fans know, Bill has been involved with many women. He’s wronged them in various ways, destroyed Liam’s (Scott Clifton) life by sleeping with Steffy (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood), alienated his other son, Wyatt (Darin Brooks), literally crushed Sally’s (Courtney Hope) business and is responsible for the misery of countless other fictional souls who live in B&B land.
Any one of the characters cited could have pulled the trigger. However, Ridge, like Cliff Barnes (Ken Kercheval) before him, stands as the greatest enemy of this show’s top villain.
Devoted fans of the original Dallas also followed its revival on CBS’ offspring cable network, TNT (2012-2014). That incarnation included the real life death of Hagman being worked into the script.
Hagman was dying from cancer during that time, as was J.R. In a most poignant career statement, Hagman endorsed the character he was most associated with meeting his demise.
J.R. staged his own actual murder, framing Cliff in the process. Hagman’s character had his henchman, Bum (Kevin Page), commit the crime. J.R. knew that he was going to die within days and used his mortality against Cliff.
TPTB are aware of in-house history. So it’s possible that B&B has evoked elements of J.R. Ewing’s past, in one form or another? Maybe only Justin (Aaron Spears) knows?
Bill Spencer has been shot. But was it Ridge, as Diamont’s character asserts? Considering soap opera history, is that the most precise question to ask regarding this latest cliffhanger mystery? Could Bill have staged his own shooting to frame Ridge? CDL is a leading source for everything linked to The Bold and the Beautiful. Check back regularly for B&B spoilers and news!
