Linda Gray Recalls The Firestorm That Occured After A Haircut On The Original 'Dallas - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Brian Damage · 06-01-2012, 11:24 PM

Nearly two decades before Keri Russell turned an innocent haircut into one of television’s most infamous cautionary tales, Linda Gray was rocked by her own coiffure catrastrophe on Dallas.

The actress, who reprises her signature role as Sue Ellen Ewing on TNT’s Dallas update later this month, vividly remembers the firestorm that erupted when she showed up for work at the start of Season 6 in 1982 with her famous flowing locks chopped off.

“I thought the producers were going to lynch me,” she recalls to TVLine. “I didn’t know back then that I had to ask permission! I was like, ‘Oh dear, I guess I should have asked somebody.’ They were not happy with me.”

But as Gray explains, her tresses were trimmed out of necessity not vanity. “We [spent so much time] outside at that damn Southfork breakfast table and the wind would whip up during my close-ups and my hair would fly into my lipgloss and get stuck,” she says. “And the [director] would go, ‘Cut!’ So I was always brushing it out of my face. It was always a nightmare. It was unbearable. So I went to Jose Eber and I said, ‘Cut it off!’ And he did.”

Gray’s ‘do is back to its original length in the Dallas reboot (premiering June 13), one of the only characteristics new Sue Ellen shares with the old. J.R.’s long-suffering alcoholic wife is now a big-shot politician who gets drunk on power instead of booze. Of course, she’s just one sip away from a relapse, right?

“She’s been there, done that,” Gray insists of Sue Ellen’s unhealthy relationship with the bottle. “A lot of women in the ’80s didn’t communicate as well as they do now; they didn’t embrace their power. If they were in a dysfunctional marriage like Sue Ellen was, they stayed. Times have changed though. It’s now acceptable to tackle your demons, wrestle them to the ground, and change your life. So I don’t feel that she would be drinking again. She probably went to AA and got her stuff together.”

http://tvline.com/2012/06/01/dallas-...w/#more-334135

steevo · 06-03-2012, 01:15 PM

Now I love Linda and Sue Ellen, but I can sort of see it from the producer's perspective. In the season five cliffhanger, Sue Ellen had long hair, and in the season six premiere (Supposed to be taking place a few "minutes" later), she suddenly has short hair. How would she find time to get a haircut.

Also, I liked the long hair much better.

06-01-2012, 11:24 PM	#1
Brian Damage I'm Rich Bitch Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 03, 2002 Location: What Ain't No Country I Ever Heard Of...They Speak English in What? Posts: 63,107	Linda Gray Recalls The Firestorm That Occured After A Haircut On The Original 'Dallas Nearly two decades before Keri Russell turned an innocent haircut into one of television’s most infamous cautionary tales, Linda Gray was rocked by her own coiffure catrastrophe on Dallas. The actress, who reprises her signature role as Sue Ellen Ewing on TNT’s Dallas update later this month, vividly remembers the firestorm that erupted when she showed up for work at the start of Season 6 in 1982 with her famous flowing locks chopped off. “I thought the producers were going to lynch me,” she recalls to TVLine. “I didn’t know back then that I had to ask permission! I was like, ‘Oh dear, I guess I should have asked somebody.’ They were not happy with me.” But as Gray explains, her tresses were trimmed out of necessity not vanity. “We [spent so much time] outside at that damn Southfork breakfast table and the wind would whip up during my close-ups and my hair would fly into my lipgloss and get stuck,” she says. “And the [director] would go, ‘Cut!’ So I was always brushing it out of my face. It was always a nightmare. It was unbearable. So I went to Jose Eber and I said, ‘Cut it off!’ And he did.” Gray’s ‘do is back to its original length in the Dallas reboot (premiering June 13), one of the only characteristics new Sue Ellen shares with the old. J.R.’s long-suffering alcoholic wife is now a big-shot politician who gets drunk on power instead of booze. Of course, she’s just one sip away from a relapse, right? “She’s been there, done that,” Gray insists of Sue Ellen’s unhealthy relationship with the bottle. “A lot of women in the ’80s didn’t communicate as well as they do now; they didn’t embrace their power. If they were in a dysfunctional marriage like Sue Ellen was, they stayed. Times have changed though. It’s now acceptable to tackle your demons, wrestle them to the ground, and change your life. So I don’t feel that she would be drinking again. She probably went to AA and got her stuff together.” http://tvline.com/2012/06/01/dallas-...w/#more-334135
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06-03-2012, 01:15 PM	#2
steevo It is Green Senior Member Join Date: Dec 28, 2008 Location: Connecticut Posts: 1,474	Now I love Linda and Sue Ellen, but I can sort of see it from the producer's perspective. In the season five cliffhanger, Sue Ellen had long hair, and in the season six premiere (Supposed to be taking place a few "minutes" later), she suddenly has short hair. How would she find time to get a haircut. Also, I liked the long hair much better.
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