Larry Hagman, of
Dallas TV fame, has passed at the age of 81.
I am a child of the 70's and 80's, and was living in the Dallas area circa 1979-1981 and Houston, after that. There were four channels at the time. We all watched
Dallas. Yes, we all knew who JR Ewing was. And, like much of America, I also wondered who had shot JR.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirZ6AjzoyiLVV696XNx-nGKjRlVG7lKtLX_8Yb3ggaDJ1TuJUnsw_Eieo7Hpzrqa8bVCZGAOE8PdlPFWd_7O-kADAJGRmhPynLVWtNrknWxHDyLpbtfKF3gV2g9pkgT2UjA-vT0R5Je5c/s400/jr-and-enemys-jr-ewing-32083071-800-1111.jpg) |
He drinks your milkshake |
Son of actress Mary Martin and a native Texan, Hagman's relationship with Texas continued on and off for most of his life.* Hagman was a major wheel in TV, both in the US and abroad, where the show ran in re-runs well past when the show had been cancelled.
Later, I'd start watching re-runs of
I Dream of Jeannie, where Larry Hagman played astronaut Tony Nelson. He got to be on TV with Barbara Eden every week, and that ain't bad.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlP7sxPu0-dcRTpMhyYCLzqTfXYnwyuGLFi2vqk1WHIBhAvq6HYWHZRS0xWndtDkv6nnnlpLztjMpUGKPzH16-DOHTFlATRIJR4jUwSVimuBVcK4RYs7C7-GLWNsXXUUxUc1MQGtSuKMM/s400/I-Dream-Of-Jeannie-i-dream-of-jeannie-20736413-1706-2200.jpg) |
Major Nelson was never any Darren-like pushover |
Readers of this blog will also remember him from
Superman: The Movie as the Army officer who bravely steps up and assists Valerie Perrine when she fakes an auto accident to distract a convoy for Lex.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQGZxqFCIyTDdL8aFR7Iz94XelPkI8lSMgNoqs4owTbnCi2GpLHJU0K7EI0Iro-oKgxmrx0ZbYw6RWcc30JekIV99De1HHhsay9sPNYeXu97g8wTdD261kKEAfitSet3I-ORUjnJ_zjPY/s1600/hagman_superman.gif) |
bravely, bravely ponders a stricken Valerie Perrine |
Hagman had recently returned to TV in a reboot of
Dallas, and was enjoying a second wind of stardom.
Hagman passed today in a Dallas hospital.
*As a side note, the more someone is like the villainous JR Ewing, the more likely it often seems that they'll be elected governor in Texas, over and over and over.