While General Hospital with Luke and Laura was ruling the daytime television in the 1980s, nighttime was filled with such continuing dramas as Dallas, Dynasty, Knots Landing, and Falcon Crest. While the casts of the first three have all gotten together for movies and specials, the cast of Falcon Crest has not. A special reunion was recently held in Beverly Hills.
Falcon Crest lasted nearly a decade, debuting in 1981 and leaving primetime in 1990. The series follows the feuding families in the California wine industry — the Giobertis and the Channings — and is set in a fictitious version of Napa Valley. The series stars Jane Wyman as the matriarch of the Channing family and was created by Earl Hamner, the same mind behind The Waltons.
The recent cast reunion was hosted by TV Guide senior editor William Keck at the Paley Center for Media. It was held to honor the upcoming thirtieth anniversary of the show, as well as promote the release of season two on DVD. Those in attendance at the reunion in Los Angeles had a chance to screen an episode and remember their time on the show more fondly.
Hamner, as well as surviving members of the cast — Robert Foxworth, Lorenzo Lamas, David Selby, Ana Alicia, Jamie Rose, Abby Dalton, Margaret Ladd, and Susan Sullivan – got together to reminisce about the nine seasons of the soap as well as Wyman, who died in 2007. Simon MacCorkindale, who played Greg Reardon, wasn’t in attendance and passed away two days after the reunion from bowel cancer.
Lamas expressed regret that he didn’t take more time to visit Wyman in her later years which she spent in Palm Springs. “I had a feelings that she was quite lonely at times. But I do remember she was such a wonderful mentor. She was a class act.”
What do you think? What are your favorite memories of Falcon Crest? Did you like it more than the other nighttime soaps?
It’s true the later seasons of Falcon Crest became quite farcical, ruining what had been a wonderful melodramatic romp until then. Falcon Crest differed in several respects from it’s “supersoap” cousins. First, the matriarch, Angela Channing, always remained a mother, wife and daughter; the motivation behind her actions was consistent to the last. Consider the “let’s spend one last night as a family” scene with Julia and Emma, through to tribute to her ancestors in her “always the land” finale speech. Secondly, Falcon Crest always maintained a wry sense of humour, especially Jane Wyman, David Selby, Lorenzo Lamas and Ana… Read more »
(part 2)…and the killing of Lana Turner; the disappearance of Chase; the subsequent reappearance of a mystery man (“are you going to tell Maggie you’re alive?”); the revelation of Angela’s kidnapped son (told by interspersing footage from Miss Wyman’s past work, quite visionary at the time), the fires in the spring house and, of course, the mansion itself. I leave aside the iconic earthquake and plane crash episodes because, personally, I thought them silly and OTT. Then there was the cast: I still tell people to watch the Wyman – Turner scenes for the pure venom (not acting admittedly) but… Read more »
I would like to see the release of the remaining seasons,other shows have come since then and all there seasons have been released
Falcon Crest IS the best. It beats the “reality shows” on the air today. Falcon Crest is comming back…NOT ONLY in its’ ORIGINAL form and method, but in the music of today. Take Katy Perry for example…It ALL goes back to the 1980’s, and I KNOW that LOT’S OF PEOPLE HATE IT, But they have no idea how GREAT it was to live back then….
You’re nuts! Falcon Crest was even better than Dallas.
despite falcon crest lasted almost a decade, the series jumped the shark rleatively soon after three, let’s say four seasons. then the plotlines became very obscure and repetitive. i like my childhood/youth-memories as the next guy, but the human brain makes more of stuff in the past than they actually were. let the series rest in peace – and don’t show any more pictures of old B and C actors 😉 .. there is a reason why stuff is ending.
Miss Falcon Crest a lot, it was the best of the nighttime soaps and I hope they release all the seasons on DVD. Jane Wyman was awesome and they had the greatest cliffhangers of all. Watching seasons 1 and 2 on DVD has reminded me how much I miss it.
Wow that list of shows brought back some memories! I used to love watching Knots, Falcon Crest & Dallas with my Mum.
I thought the Giobertis were so hard done by & that Angela Channing was such a witch! I always thought Cole was a bit of a cutie!