Michele Lee was a devout fan of 'Knots Landing'. She had appeared in all 344 episodes. Speaking to Deborah Wilker in 1997, Michele Lee maintained, "There was never anything like it on television. We're in a different world today. I'm not sure we'll ever see the same ratings shares we saw years ago. It's not all TV's fault. The viewer has really changed. If you don't hit every kid over the head with some kind of flash, they don't watch."
David E. Kelley of 'Boston Legal' told the press in August 2005, "I think we had 48 minutes to the hour on 'L.A. Law' (1986-1994). Now (in 2005) we're down to 41 minutes. It's a terrible trend. If there's anything that makes me envious of cable television and wanting to run to that world, it's the intrusion of commercial breaks. We're now (in 2005) down to eight-minute acts before a Dodge Ram commercial comes pounding in. It's easy to come in after a break and have someone stab someone with a knife to get the viewer's attention back. But when you're coming in with a scene that's based more on character, it's just getting harder and harder. I haven't moved to cable yet."
Critic Tom Jicha noted, "Actors always bring a part of themselves to a character." Speaking to 'Chicago Tribune' in 1991, Michele Lee mentioned, "I like to think of Karen as an 'Everywoman' who is living the American Dream. I feel a real sense of responsibility toward the character and often make suggestions to our writers about what I think should be happening in Karen's life.
"When I was going through a painful divorce from James Farentino, my husband of 15 years, Karen was coping with the loss of her husband, Sid Fairgate, who died in an automobile accident. The world was a very different place in 1981 (the year of her divorce) than when I'd married in 1966. I was able to use many of my own experiences of learning how to be single after years of being part of a couple. It helped me to portray what Karen was going through in an honest and sympathetic way."
By May 1989, 'Knots Landing' was syndicated in 53 countries. Although 'Dallas' and 'Dynasty' got most of the media attention at the time, Kevin Dobson believed, "We've always just been there. We've never had any peaks or valleys. Those wild peaks can hurt a show because after all that excitement, there is always the inevitable letdown and decline."
Joseph Gian reminded, "There is great attention paid to style and detail on 'Knots Landing' that you won't find on other shows." Constance McCashin remembered, "We always had a great look. The quality of the writing, the editing, the lighting, everything was just so much better than what you typically see on TV." Bernard Lechowick added, "Our characters are not written black and white - all of our characters are gray."
'Knots Landing' chronicled the lives of middle-class families living on a California cul-de-sac and intertwining through normal, everyday circumstances. Deborah Wilker reported, "The series never wavered from its unpretentious roots, no matter the TV trend of the moment. There was always a comfortable less-is-more consistency - and remarkable continuity for a show that ran so long.
"Even in Year 14, there were story lines rooted in the first season. And there were props and backdrops you could always count on, such as Mack's 'Kiss The Cook' apron, Karen's circa '78 kitchen, and Val's sunny living room. From its first broadcast in December 1979, 'Knots' was a people's show, and like all the best soaps, was driven strictly by viewer devotion. Never the beneficiary of cushy time slots, big promotional campaigns or critical blessings, 'Knots Landing' quietly chugged along for 14 seasons, often to the amazement of network brass and TV critics who couldn't grasp its appeal."
Michele Lee observed, "There was just a certain innocence about the show that represented a kind of hope. It was real." David Jacobs insisted, "I always thought 'Knots' had the potential to last longer than 'Dallas' and even more so than 'Dynasty'. Those two shows were very much connected with the era of the '80s - the Reagan era. 'Knots' is the kind of show that is downscaled."
Speaking to the 'Los Angeles Times' in May 1990, Lawrence Kasha made the point, "We keep the show as middle-class as possible. They are not rarefied people or spoiled rich people. They share all of the problems that everyone can identify with - marriage, relationships, raising kids. Our rule is whatever happens in life could happen on 'Knots.' I think people in the '90s are different now - I think the people are quicker, fast and hipper. We have a trickier balance to worry about - how long will a story sustain itself?"
David Jacobs disclosed, "At the beginning of every season, I have a single storyline which I expect to be big and it turns out to be the weakest. The ones that turned out well have generally caught me by surprise. This season (1989-1990), the Val-Danny story seems to be catching peoples' imaginations more than I thought. If we have a good idea the Saturday before we start shooting, we put it in. We take chances. That's when we bomb we bomb big. I think the audience responds to that. I think they would rather see you be lousy knowing you are going to excite them and do something unexpected. That's how we keep going because we are unpredictable.
"I know that when 'Dynasty' was a real big show, a lot of people on our show wanted to go that way with heavy glitz and we really resisted that. The surprise in 'Knots Landing's' demographics is that there are many more men than you think - much more than watched 'Dallas' or 'Dynasty.' We have quite a big college audience and a black middle-class audience - especially young black women. It's dangerous, though, to try to write for demographics."
"When I was going through a painful divorce from James Farentino, my husband of 15 years, Karen was coping with the loss of her husband, Sid Fairgate, who died in an automobile accident. The world was a very different place in 1981 (the year of her divorce) than when I'd married in 1966. I was able to use many of my own experiences of learning how to be single after years of being part of a couple. It helped me to portray what Karen was going through in an honest and sympathetic way."
By May 1989, 'Knots Landing' was syndicated in 53 countries. Although 'Dallas' and 'Dynasty' got most of the media attention at the time, Kevin Dobson believed, "We've always just been there. We've never had any peaks or valleys. Those wild peaks can hurt a show because after all that excitement, there is always the inevitable letdown and decline."
Joseph Gian reminded, "There is great attention paid to style and detail on 'Knots Landing' that you won't find on other shows." Constance McCashin remembered, "We always had a great look. The quality of the writing, the editing, the lighting, everything was just so much better than what you typically see on TV." Bernard Lechowick added, "Our characters are not written black and white - all of our characters are gray."
'Knots Landing' chronicled the lives of middle-class families living on a California cul-de-sac and intertwining through normal, everyday circumstances. Deborah Wilker reported, "The series never wavered from its unpretentious roots, no matter the TV trend of the moment. There was always a comfortable less-is-more consistency - and remarkable continuity for a show that ran so long.
"Even in Year 14, there were story lines rooted in the first season. And there were props and backdrops you could always count on, such as Mack's 'Kiss The Cook' apron, Karen's circa '78 kitchen, and Val's sunny living room. From its first broadcast in December 1979, 'Knots' was a people's show, and like all the best soaps, was driven strictly by viewer devotion. Never the beneficiary of cushy time slots, big promotional campaigns or critical blessings, 'Knots Landing' quietly chugged along for 14 seasons, often to the amazement of network brass and TV critics who couldn't grasp its appeal."
Michele Lee observed, "There was just a certain innocence about the show that represented a kind of hope. It was real." David Jacobs insisted, "I always thought 'Knots' had the potential to last longer than 'Dallas' and even more so than 'Dynasty'. Those two shows were very much connected with the era of the '80s - the Reagan era. 'Knots' is the kind of show that is downscaled."
Speaking to the 'Los Angeles Times' in May 1990, Lawrence Kasha made the point, "We keep the show as middle-class as possible. They are not rarefied people or spoiled rich people. They share all of the problems that everyone can identify with - marriage, relationships, raising kids. Our rule is whatever happens in life could happen on 'Knots.' I think people in the '90s are different now - I think the people are quicker, fast and hipper. We have a trickier balance to worry about - how long will a story sustain itself?"
David Jacobs disclosed, "At the beginning of every season, I have a single storyline which I expect to be big and it turns out to be the weakest. The ones that turned out well have generally caught me by surprise. This season (1989-1990), the Val-Danny story seems to be catching peoples' imaginations more than I thought. If we have a good idea the Saturday before we start shooting, we put it in. We take chances. That's when we bomb we bomb big. I think the audience responds to that. I think they would rather see you be lousy knowing you are going to excite them and do something unexpected. That's how we keep going because we are unpredictable.
"I know that when 'Dynasty' was a real big show, a lot of people on our show wanted to go that way with heavy glitz and we really resisted that. The surprise in 'Knots Landing's' demographics is that there are many more men than you think - much more than watched 'Dallas' or 'Dynasty.' We have quite a big college audience and a black middle-class audience - especially young black women. It's dangerous, though, to try to write for demographics."
