The Complete Book of Dallas: Behind the Scenes at the World's Favorite Television Program
Kalter (The Complete Book of M*A*S*H handles a somewhat vapid subject with polished ease and mild wit as she divides the Dallas themes among the seven deadly sins. Readers looking for scoops on the stars will be disappointed, but they may enjoy the informative discussion on the creative process at Lorimar Productions where the show is produced: an interesting mini-course in television writing as well as a delightful introduction by Dallas creator David Jacobs. Unfortunately, a decade's worth of episode synopses escapes tedium only by virtue of the climactic color stills included here. Behind-the-scenes revelations often prove to be insipid ("None of the actresses wears any kind of hair appliance"), with only some exceptions, as when former producer Leonard Katzman confesses, "We didn't really know who shot him J. R. when we created the whole thing. We said, 'To hell with it, let's shoot him and figure out who did it later."Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.