In the July 1981 edition of 'Us' magazine, the question "The Gay Mafia: Does it run Hollywood?" was asked. But it was not until 1995, the so-called "Gay Mafia" came under public scrutiny. In 2002, Michael Ovitz spoke to 'Vanity Fair' magazine, "This business would've worked except for these 5 or 6 guys." It was understood Steven Gaines came up with the phrase "Gay Mafia" in 1973. David Geffen was understandably nonplussed, "A Gay Mafia? This is so crazy. This is insane. I think he needs a psychiatrist. It’s so paranoid, and so crazy, and so irresponsible, and makes him look like such a nut. It's beyond crazy. On a scale of 1 to 10 crazy, it's 11 . . . He's made a fool of himself, and he’s made a huge failure of his life. To say you've been brought down by the Gay Mafia and its allies is as crazy as anything I've ever heard in my life."
John Forsythe told Kathy Larkin of King Features Syndicate Inc. in 1985, "I'm a heterosexual but I can understand homosexuals. In my business, I've worked with them for 40 years (since 1945). It's not my lifestyle, but I can understand it is an alternative lifestyle for other people." Of his character on 'Dynasty', John said, "I envisioned him as rough and domineering in the marketplace . . . He's the closest thing to a mob lord I can figure out . . . I've known a lot of businessmen like him. They're like the Mafia. In the marketplace they can be ruthless, domineering, tough and hard. But at home, like the Mafia, they're devoted to their wives, children and friends. There's a totally different morality involved."
It was noted the 'Us' July 1981 edition corrected Victoria Principal age, to be at 31, which the April 1981 edition of 'Us' put at 36. 'Us' magazine was launched in 1977 with Sam Anthony Angeloff being the editor-in-chief. 'Us' had an average circulation of more than a million copies at the start of 1980. Sam was previously the editor of 'Life' magazine (which was launched in November 1936) and the editor of 'People' magazine in 1974. By 1988, Iain Calder, the editor and publisher of 'The Enquirer' (launched in 1971) lamented, "There's no one star or world personality who's huge today (in 1988). No one compares to Jackie Kennedy in her heyday. The deaths of Elvis Presley (in 1977), Princess Grace (in 1982) and Natalie Wood (in 1981) carried us for a long time. There was a period when Farrah Fawcett was on every cover. Rock Hudson and Liberace dying of AIDS provided us with exclusives. Joan Collins was big but is fading. Vanna White turned out to be a flash in the pan."
In the year 'Us' magazine made its debut (in 1977), Victoria Principal was sent the script of the proposed TV series, 'Dallas'. Victoria recounted in 1980, "After I read the script I sat in the dark and knew it was a moment that would change my life. I called Leonard Katzman, the producer, the next day but the people at Lorimar Productions told me to see the casting directors. I insisted on talking to Katzman even though they hadn't started casting yet. Four days later they said I could have 5 minutes with Katzman and the writer. I spent 2 ½ hours with them. Later, they told me when I walked in that I was Pam Ewing.
"I knew if I tested I’d lose the part. It meant so much to me I’d have been tense and nervous. Instead, I agreed to do 13 pages of the script live for a dozen top executives. I prepared meticulously for the reading, including my wardrobe – white silk blouse, blue jeans and camel cord blazer which was so right they used the same outfit for the pilot. I was driven to play Pam because she was someone who wanted more out of life, to succeed and improve herself. She's a decent woman of good character who doesn't compromise her values. I empathized with her in every way – to be recognized and acknowledged and loved as a human being within the confines of my career which had never happened before in 5 movies (the 5th being 'Vigilante Force' in 1976) and a dozen TV films (including 'The Night They Took Miss Beautiful' made in 1977)."
Philip Capice remembered in 1985, "Originally J.R. was pretty much the traditional villain and Pam and Bobby the hero and heroine. In fact, Pam was in many ways the central character, a sweet poor girl from the other side of the tracks who meets and marries this wealthy playboy and becomes the innocent in the den of vipers. Bobby was supposed to be kind of a ne'er-do-well in the beginning. But the character can go as far as the actor wants to take it."
Leonard Katzman recalled in 1988, "We came on in the spring (of 1978) with 5 shows. As far as we knew that’s all we were going to do. Then CBS picked us up for 7 more shows. Then enough shows to complete the first full season. We had a cliffhanger that year, but nobody remembers it." By 1982, 'Dallas' could be seen in 85 countries.
Victoria voiced, "There was a time particularly after the 'Who Shot J.R.?' phenomenon when the enthusiasm generated a kind of hysteria that was frightening, where you couldn't go out in public without people really pressing in on you. But that doesn't happen anymore (by 1985). People no longer become hysterical to the point of it being frightening. I think they have learned that we need to be treated with a certain amount of dignity, just like anyone else."
In the beginning 'Dallas' was also known as the "Untitled Linda Evans Project". "I sat next to Victoria Principal in a restaurant last week," Linda enthused in 1981. "She’s a member of the 'Dallas' cast and we compared notes. I guess there are some similarities in the big cast and enormous wealth." Of the costumes on 'Dynasty', Linda insisted, "The wardrobe, however, doesn't reflect my own preference in clothes. I dress very simply. I like jeans and shirts and comfortable shoes." It was reported Victoria received some 11,000 mails from fans a week. When Victoria's contract expired and she elected not to renew for anymore seasons after 1987, Victoria's final appearance as Pam was 'Dallas'' highest-rated episode for the 1986-87 season. Approximately 22% of the 87.4 million TV homes at the time were tuning in to watch Victoria performed her last scene.
'Family Circle' pioneered the so-called "supermarket magazines" in 1932. By 1979, nearly all publishers with mass-circulation magazines staked out at the supermarket checkouts. According to the Magazine Publishers Association (MPA) "supermarket magazines" generated over $1.4 billion a year in magazine sales. Normally the publishers paid the supermarket for the magazine racks and hired workers to keep those racks filled. There was also a fee paid to the supermarket for display in their racks. It was made known "supermarket magazines" were very competitive with any "slow-mover booted out" to make room at the counters for the more popular brands. Newsstand dealers usually received 20% of the cover price (sometimes 30% if the newsstands displayed the magazine's full cover). Similarly, the supermarkets also required publishers to pay for the wire racks that held those magazines. It was pointed out "the ideal position for a magazine is in the middle of the rack, where shoppers pushing carts tend to gaze. If a magazine is placed either very high or very low, its sales may lag."
In the year 'Us' magazine made its debut (in 1977), Victoria Principal was sent the script of the proposed TV series, 'Dallas'. Victoria recounted in 1980, "After I read the script I sat in the dark and knew it was a moment that would change my life. I called Leonard Katzman, the producer, the next day but the people at Lorimar Productions told me to see the casting directors. I insisted on talking to Katzman even though they hadn't started casting yet. Four days later they said I could have 5 minutes with Katzman and the writer. I spent 2 ½ hours with them. Later, they told me when I walked in that I was Pam Ewing.
"I knew if I tested I’d lose the part. It meant so much to me I’d have been tense and nervous. Instead, I agreed to do 13 pages of the script live for a dozen top executives. I prepared meticulously for the reading, including my wardrobe – white silk blouse, blue jeans and camel cord blazer which was so right they used the same outfit for the pilot. I was driven to play Pam because she was someone who wanted more out of life, to succeed and improve herself. She's a decent woman of good character who doesn't compromise her values. I empathized with her in every way – to be recognized and acknowledged and loved as a human being within the confines of my career which had never happened before in 5 movies (the 5th being 'Vigilante Force' in 1976) and a dozen TV films (including 'The Night They Took Miss Beautiful' made in 1977)."
Philip Capice remembered in 1985, "Originally J.R. was pretty much the traditional villain and Pam and Bobby the hero and heroine. In fact, Pam was in many ways the central character, a sweet poor girl from the other side of the tracks who meets and marries this wealthy playboy and becomes the innocent in the den of vipers. Bobby was supposed to be kind of a ne'er-do-well in the beginning. But the character can go as far as the actor wants to take it."
Leonard Katzman recalled in 1988, "We came on in the spring (of 1978) with 5 shows. As far as we knew that’s all we were going to do. Then CBS picked us up for 7 more shows. Then enough shows to complete the first full season. We had a cliffhanger that year, but nobody remembers it." By 1982, 'Dallas' could be seen in 85 countries.
Victoria voiced, "There was a time particularly after the 'Who Shot J.R.?' phenomenon when the enthusiasm generated a kind of hysteria that was frightening, where you couldn't go out in public without people really pressing in on you. But that doesn't happen anymore (by 1985). People no longer become hysterical to the point of it being frightening. I think they have learned that we need to be treated with a certain amount of dignity, just like anyone else."
In the beginning 'Dallas' was also known as the "Untitled Linda Evans Project". "I sat next to Victoria Principal in a restaurant last week," Linda enthused in 1981. "She’s a member of the 'Dallas' cast and we compared notes. I guess there are some similarities in the big cast and enormous wealth." Of the costumes on 'Dynasty', Linda insisted, "The wardrobe, however, doesn't reflect my own preference in clothes. I dress very simply. I like jeans and shirts and comfortable shoes." It was reported Victoria received some 11,000 mails from fans a week. When Victoria's contract expired and she elected not to renew for anymore seasons after 1987, Victoria's final appearance as Pam was 'Dallas'' highest-rated episode for the 1986-87 season. Approximately 22% of the 87.4 million TV homes at the time were tuning in to watch Victoria performed her last scene.
'Family Circle' pioneered the so-called "supermarket magazines" in 1932. By 1979, nearly all publishers with mass-circulation magazines staked out at the supermarket checkouts. According to the Magazine Publishers Association (MPA) "supermarket magazines" generated over $1.4 billion a year in magazine sales. Normally the publishers paid the supermarket for the magazine racks and hired workers to keep those racks filled. There was also a fee paid to the supermarket for display in their racks. It was made known "supermarket magazines" were very competitive with any "slow-mover booted out" to make room at the counters for the more popular brands. Newsstand dealers usually received 20% of the cover price (sometimes 30% if the newsstands displayed the magazine's full cover). Similarly, the supermarkets also required publishers to pay for the wire racks that held those magazines. It was pointed out "the ideal position for a magazine is in the middle of the rack, where shoppers pushing carts tend to gaze. If a magazine is placed either very high or very low, its sales may lag."
