Linda was a virtual unknown when she landed the role of Sue Ellen, the long-
suffering, alcoholic wife of J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman), and the dark-haired
former model skillfully played the character through 13 seasons of affairs and hangovers and multiple marriages and all kinds of traumas..
Linda had guest-starred in only a few series and TV movies when she became Sue Ellen. "Dallas" executive producer Leonard Katzman said in "The Complete Book of Dallas" that "Linda hadn't done much of anything... we
didn't realize what a gold mine we had."
Co-star Victoria Principal recognized Linda as an amazing beauty. In an
interview with www.dallasfanzine.com, Victoria said, "She was just stunning,
her natural beauty and grace and spirit really was impactful. I will never forget
that first impression of Linda."
Linda told the website www.ultimatedallas.com that the producers were set to cast her friend Mary Frann, an actress who later landed the lead female role on “The Bob Newhart Show.” Linda said casting director Ruth Conforte lobbied hard for her. The producers' initial logic for not auditioning Linda was that she was a brunette and they already had a brunette for the series, Victoria Principal.
Linda described her “Dallas” audition:
“It was a one way phone call... with JR, but he was telling me that he was not coming home for [their son] John Ross' birthday because he had to work late or he had something to do, but I knew he was with somebody else. So it was very sad. In the audition I did cry because I knew he was lying to me.
“And I knew -- it was the first time in my life -- I knew in the room that I got the job. It was one of those... intuitive things.”
Linda recalled for www.dallasfanzine.com going to Dallas, the first time she'd ever been to Texas, to shoot the first episode in the winter of 1978. “There was snow. It was very cold and they had these things I'd never experienced, being a California, girl – an ice storm.”
“Dallas” was originally scheduled as a five-part mini-series on CBS in the spring of 1978. Linda was surprised to learn that the network ordered an entire season of episodes.
“We were all unemployed actors. It was a good gig, a good five show gig,” she told www.ultimatedallas.com “I thought, 'Oh this is fun. OK, great. I get to play with these great actors. Perfect.' And then we had no idea. We had that long summer off, and then they said, 'The good news is we've been picked up. The bad news is you have to go back down there and film it.'"
Of course, “Dallas” became a blockbuster that paved the way for future night-time soaps. It appears on many “100 Best TV Shows” lists. And the infamous “Who shot J.R.” show was the highest rated episode in American TV history at the time.
Playing the same character repeating the same scenes eventually bored Linda, so she asked the producers to shake up Sue Ellen's character.
“I was bored to death...it was still basically two things. She was drinking and having an affair,” Linda said to www.dallasfanzine.com. “I thought, if an actor gets bored, the audience can pick up on it.”
To appease Linda, the producers had Sue Ellen hit bottom with her drinking, and Linda loved playing crazy, alcoholic Sue Ellen. She cut her hair and said she spent only 20 minutes in makeup before shooting each day, as opposed to the normal two hours – one hour for makeup, one hour for hair – to become the beautiful Sue Ellen.
“'Dallas' was a man's show. And I think people tend to forget that,” Linda said in her interview with www.ultimatedallas.com. “Because the women were the reactors. Sue Ellen reacted to whatever JR did and she responded in her way.
"But we have to remember that it was conceived by men, written by men, produced by men and the men were the stars of the show. And so you can say all those chauvinist words or whatever, but the reality was it's a male driven show.”
Playing the same character repeating the same scenes eventually bored Linda, so she asked the producers to shake up Sue Ellen's character.
“I was bored to death...it was still basically two things. She was drinking and having an affair,” Linda said to www.dallasfanzine.com. “I thought, if an actor gets bored, the audience can pick up on it.”
No. 11
Classic TV Beauties 1970s Countdown
LINDA GRAY as Sue Ellen Ewing in "Dallas"
"I didn't ask for any more money and it was at the end of year eight. It was a contract negotiation year for years nine and ten that I asked to do one. So they fired me," she said. “When Larry found out, he went crazy...Larry had a little chat with them and I came back” and directed an episode.
Linda appeared in 308 of 327 episodes of “Dallas.” After the series ended Linda honed her skills by directing “Melrose Place,” a show she also made four appearances on playing Hillary Michaels, the mother of Amanda Woodward (Heather Locklear). “Melrose” spun off a new series starring Linda, “Models Inc.” which lasted just one season.
A native of Santa Monica, Linda modeled before she began acting. It's her legs that are shown in the famous movie poster of “The Graduate” (1967).
In the past decade Linda has appeared on stage in England in “Terms of Endearment” and as Mrs. Robinson in “The Graduate.”
In 2012 Linda reprised her role as Sue Ellen in the new TNT “Dallas” series.
Linda was temporarily fired after the eighth season because, she believed, of her desire to direct. According to www.dallasfanzine.com, she approached the producers about directing an episode and was told that if they allowed her to direct, the other women on the show would also want to direct.
Linda said that she asked the other major female actors (Barbara Bel Geddes, Victoria Principal, Charlene Tilton) if they were interested in directing and they all said no.
When she approached the producers again about directing, they still refused her request.
