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Larry Hagman, Star of ‘Dallas’ & ‘I Dream of Jeannie,’ Dead at 81: Here Are Some of his Best TV Moments

Nov. 24, 2012 11:25am Becket Adams

Larry Hagman (Getty)

J.R. Ewing was a business cheat, faithless husband and bottomless well of corruption. Yet with his sparkling grin, Larry Hagman masterfully created the charmingly loathsome oil baron — and coaxed forth a Texas-size gusher of ratings — on television’s long-running and hugely successful nighttime soap, “Dallas.”

Although he first gained fame as nice guy Major Tony Nelson on the fluffy 1965-70 NBC comedy “I Dream of Jeannie,” Hagman earned his greatest stardom with J.R. The CBS serial drama about the Ewing family and those in their orbit aired from April 1978 to May 1991, and broke viewing records with its “Who shot J.R.?” 1980 cliffhanger that left unclear if Hagman’s character was dead.

The actor, who returned as J.R. in a new edition of “Dallas” this year, had a long history of health problems and died late Friday due to complications from his battle with cancer, his family said.

“Larry was back in his beloved hometown of Dallas, re-enacting the iconic role he loved the most. Larry’s family and closest friends had joined him in Dallas for the Thanksgiving holiday,” the family said in a statement that was provided to The Associated Press by Warner Bros., producer of the show.

The 81-year-old actor was surrounded by friends and family before he passed peacefully, “just as he’d wished for,” the statement said.

Linda Gray, his on-screen wife and later ex-wife in the original series and the sequel, was among those with Hagman in his final moments in a Dallas hospital, said her publicist, Jeffrey Lane.

“He brought joy to everyone he knew. He was creative, generous, funny, loving and talented, and I will miss him enormously. He was an original and lived life to the fullest,” the actress said.

Years before “Dallas,” Hagman had gained TV fame on “I Dream of Jeannie,” in which he played an astronaut whose life is disrupted when he finds a comely genie, portrayed by Barbara Eden, and takes her home to live with him.

And now that we have that stupid theme song stuck in our head, we thought we’d share it with you. Misery loves company:

Eden recalled late Friday shooting the series’ pilot “in the frigid cold” on a Malibu beach.

“From that day, for five more years, Larry was the center of so many fun, wild and sometimes crazy times. And in retrospect, memorable moments that will remain in my heart forever,” Eden said.

Hagman also starred in two short-lived sitcoms, “The Good Life” (NBC, 1971-72) and “Here We Go Again” (ABC, 1973). His film work included well-regarded performances in “The Group,” “Harry and Tonto” and “Primary Colors.”

But it was Hagman’s masterful portrayal of J.R. that brought him the most fame.

Hagman played Ewing as a bottomless well of corruption with a charming grin: a business cheat and a faithless husband who tried to get his alcoholic wife, Sue Ellen (Gray), institutionalized.

“I know what I want on J.R.’s tombstone,” Hagman said in 1988. “It should say: `Here lies upright citizen J.R. Ewing. This is the only deal he ever lost.’”

Here are some of Hagman’s most chilling moments from “Dallas”:

On Friday night, Victoria Principal, who co-starred in the original series, recalled Hagman as “bigger than life, on-screen and off. He is unforgettable, and irreplaceable, to millions of fans around the world, and in the hearts of each of us, who was lucky enough to know and love him.”

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings said Saturday morning in a statement that Hagman’s role as J.R. helped the city gain “worldwide recognition.”

“Larry is a North Texas jewel that was larger than life and he will be missed by many in Dallas and around the world,” Rawlings said.

The Fort Worth, Texas, native was the son of singer-actress Mary Martin, who starred in such classics as “South Pacific” and “Peter Pan.” Martin was still in her teens when he was born in 1931 during her marriage to attorney Ben Hagman.

As a youngster, Hagman gained a reputation for mischief-making as he was bumped from one private school to another. He made a stab at New York theater in the early 1950s, then served in the Air Force from 1952-56 in England.

While there, he met and married young Swedish designer Maj Axelsson. The couple had two children, Preston and Heidi, and were longtime residents of the Malibu beach colony that is home to many celebrities.

Larry Hagman, American actor and star of soap opera ‘Dallas’, in October 1983. (Photo by Harris/Express/Getty Images)

Hagman returned to acting and found work in the theater and in such TV series as “The U.S. Steel Hour,” “The Defenders” and “Sea Hunt.” His first continuing role was as lawyer Ed Gibson on the daytime serial “The Edge of Night” (1961-63).

He called his 2001 memoir “Hello Darlin’: Tall (and Absolutely True) Tales about My Life.”

“I didn’t put anything in that I thought was going to hurt someone or compromise them in any way,” he told The Associated Press at the time.

Hagman was diagnosed in 1992 with cirrhosis of the liver and acknowledged that he had drank heavily for years. In 1995, a malignant tumor was discovered on his liver and he underwent a transplant.

After his transplant, he became an advocate for organ donation and volunteered at a hospital to help frightened patients.

“I counsel, encourage, meet them when they come in for their operations, and after,” he said in 1996. “I try to offer some solace, like `Don’t be afraid, it will be a little uncomfortable for a brief time, but you’ll be OK.’ ”

He also was an anti-smoking activist who took part in “Great American Smoke-Out” campaigns.

Funeral plans had not been announced as of Saturday morning.

“I can honestly say that we’ve lost not just a great actor, not just a television icon, but an element of pure Americana,” Eden said in her statement Friday night. “Goodbye, Larry. There was no one like you before and there will never be anyone like you again.”

Follow Becket Adams (@BecketAdams) on Twitter

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

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Comments (48)

ChiefGeorge
Posted on November 25, 2012 at 3:40pm
A real human insultmachine!

I liked the Larry from IDOJ days. But Jr is what made Dallas.

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raydg
Posted on November 25, 2012 at 3:02pm
Larry Hagman was an excellent actor. He was able to do comedy and drama. He successfully portrayed both a cutthroat businessman and clean cut office in the USAF. I loved watching him as both JR Ewing and CPT, then later MAJ Anthony “Tony” Nelson. He will be missed. RIP

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TeslanEdison
Posted on November 25, 2012 at 8:11am
I’ll miss you Larry, I’ll try to buy a box set of I dream of Jeannie on blue ray if it ever comes out.
You were so great and made Barbra Eden look good, well better her acting primarily.

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kathleenlee
Posted on November 25, 2012 at 7:52am
J.R.Ewing. A great character…I loved hating him…I even listened on the radio the first time I heard Dallas was in a car..that’s how I got hooked, from then on I never missed the show. Was heartsick when they took it off. Rest In Peace and thanks for the Memories

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Keats
Posted on November 25, 2012 at 2:38am
Okay, Hagman overcame a lot of adversity and personal tragedy, but what did he learn from it? He was a green-solar-environmental totally liberal nutjob who said he wanted people to plant marijuana and wheat over him so they could make a hash cake and eat him. Just sayin’. Is he a slice of Americana? Absolutely. But there is something troubling and sad at finding these people are so horrible in their personal lives, just like Johnny Carson.

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- Scooby_Do
  Posted on November 25, 2012 at 6:50am
  Yeah, I agree the guy was a nut. Read fresh political commentary at: http://smallcraftadvisorychronicles.blogspot.com/
  
  Report this comment
mpoconnor7
Posted on November 25, 2012 at 12:01am
Always a favorite of mine; sorry to see him go. As big a TV star as he was, unfortunately he didn’t do too many film roles. One memorable role was his comedic cameo in the first Superman movie as the military guy who came across a passed out Valerie Perrine and suggested mouth to mouth and a vigorous chest massage, but wouldn’t ask any of his men to do anything he wouldn’t do himself.

Also had an interesting small role in Oliver Stone’s Nixon movie as one of the Texas political high rollers who met with Nixon and tried to convince him that he should run for President again in 1964 because JFK might not be running for re-election, and this meeting was in Dallas only a day or so before the JFK assassination. It is a fact that a lot of people don’t know that Nixon was actually in Dallas on 11/22/63.

Watching the Jeannie reruns, I think Major Nelson must have logged more time in space than any other astronaut; it seemed like every other week he was on a mission somewhere. I also loved when Jeannie would get upset with Major Nelson and blink him to the most ridiculous location, such as the north pole, and he would start screaming and she would blink him back.

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Baja
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 10:58pm
By all accounts, he was a turd. One less Hollywood pinhead.

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- Do The Right Thing
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 11:29pm
  I was once told that the best actors are the ones you love to hate.
  
  Report this comment
- Stormy1948
  Posted on November 25, 2012 at 7:15pm
  God, who peed in your fruitloops today? The man is dead, who the heck cares if he was a turd or a choirboy. Let the dead bury their dead without you being a turd too.
  
  Report this comment
antiprogressive
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 7:02pm
hate to hear that.

soooooooooooo, any chance Jeanie’s little bottle is available?

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- CHROME_PLATED_HEART
  Posted on November 25, 2012 at 12:32am
  It’s filled with time and good memories too. R.I.P. Larry Hagman. I finally have Barbra Eden to myself.
  
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IndyGuy
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 6:42pm
We got a special treat with the remake of Dallas and a last chance to see Hagman play J.R. again..I could tell he wasn’t well,but he did a great job…He’ll be missed…

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DebateMe
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 5:16pm
I loved Larry Hagman in, ‘I Dream of Jeannie.’ I was 7 years old when I first became old enough to watch something not a cartoon. In fact, I really loved those early years growing up in the 70s. Despite the Viet Nam war (which I was mostly unaware of as I was too young), American TV was very much interested in depicting a very dignified side to American life and the average American ‘joe.’ Today, shows like, ‘The Brady Bunch’ are scoffed out because of its portrayal of an impossible-goody-two-shoes family. But at least back then, that wasn’t the concern. The concern was to show a model that could be looked up to. Today, we have Jersy Shore and The Kardashians for young minds to ‘aspire’ to. I’ll take the 60s and 70s ‘unrealistic’ sitcoms any day. We will miss Mr. Hagman, thank you for the ‘groovy’ comedy you delivered!

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- Anonymous T. Irrelevant
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 8:20pm
  I watch a lot of ME-TV. They just show all old shows. I am watching Lost in Space right now. Batman was just on. Star Trek is next. I watch The Rifleman, Dick Van ****, Mart Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart, and Twightlight Zone every night. I usually switch back and forth between AMC or ME-TV, or Netflix. I grew up in the late ’60′s-’70′s. i was only 3 1/2, but I remember Kennedy’s funeral.
  
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- Advection
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 10:42pm
  TV shows from the 60s and 70s were the best. I gave up on network TV in the 80s and have no idea what the shows are now.
  
  Report this comment
- scruffycat
  Posted on November 25, 2012 at 12:17am
  So long Larry. I used to watch you on TV as a kid growing up in LA in the late 50′s and 60′s. I remember you first as an occasional guest character on Lloyd Bridges’ “Sea Hunt”. You and a very young Lenoard Nimoy, Spock, were on Sea Hunt occasionally in those days. That show used to come on later at night back then and at first my parents thought it was too racy for us kids so I had to watch from my room with the door cracked open at night… That show and also Highway Patrol, another ZIV production, until recently had been running over and over for about the last 4 or 5 years on a cable TV channel so now I have seen all of those episodes again about 25 times. They were mostly filmed right around socal where I lived so at age 57 now its fun to look back through those old black and whites and remember what what things looked like back then. Then a lot later came “I Dream of Jeanie” which was classic gold. And it was in COLOR too, yay!
  
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- Chuck Stein
  Posted on November 25, 2012 at 1:35am
  LOL, “Dick Van ****” why not “**** van ****”? Gotta love the robo-censor.
  
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fromo1946
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 4:48pm
J.R. Will always be an icon…he was the go to guy, in being the cad. He’s probably up there making a deal with God, if he could do it, he would. Thanks Larry,

Frank

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Pat Alexander
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 3:09pm
A great actor, loving husband, gentleman and humanitarian is dead.

And a few sniping trolls are alive.

Another day in paradise…. :O)

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nana1212
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 3:03pm
Thank you, Larry, for all the joy you gave us with all your films. R.I.P. You will be missed.

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stiffingtheworkingclass
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 2:07pm
Loved him as Major Nelson in I Dream of Jeanie. RIP

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Jase
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 1:56pm
Honestly, WHO CARES?? He lived a long life filled with wealth and privelege. He was also a flaming left-winger and a member of the Peace and Freedom Party, a socialist organization:

http://www.peaceandfreedom.org/home/#

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- MAULEMALL
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 2:46pm
  Thank You… He was a self centered self serving NOBODY….
  
  The sun will happily come up tommarow.
  
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- ritonmom
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 3:45pm
  I am as conservative as they come, but I loved I dream of Jeanie and Major Nelson was a great character. JR was fabulous too. In our country, we have freedom, and Larry Hagman was free to believe whatever he wanted…just like you and I. Godspeed Larry Hagman.
  
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- LeadNotFollow
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 6:28pm
  .
  I no longer liked Larry Hagman after he drank his liver to death, then got on the short list for a liver transplant.
  I’ve always felt that the donor’s liver should have gone to a more deserving person, not an alcoholic.
  
  Currently, nearly one in five liver transplants in the U.S. go to current or former heavy drinkers.
  I think, when you get an organ donor card, you should be able to specify that you don’t want your organs going to certain recipients.
  
  Report this comment
- ChildOfTheKing
  Posted on November 25, 2012 at 11:52am
  @LeadNotFollow:
  THIS IS WHY I REMOVED MY NAME FROM MY DRIVER’S LICENSE ORGAN DONOR LIST!
  
  And NOW, since Obamacare is kicking in, GUESS WHAT? Only those a pre-selected board (that you will never meet, see, or know about) will give your organs to whomever they want IF you have donated them in some way. NEXT UP: the govt FORCING you to give up your organs without your consent. WATCH AND SEE.
  
  I am so glad I am up in years (but in great health). By the time the govt forces you to give up your organs, I won’t be around – I REALLY, REALLY HOPE.
  
  People: just do right by others be kind, tell the truth, and stand up for what you believe. Everything else will pass away into oblivion some day, but your goodness and honesty will be rewarded elsewhere if you are a follower of Jesus Christ.
  
  Report this comment
rsanchez1
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 1:22pm
How sad. Dallas was starting to make a comeback.

RIP Larry

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- drs1969
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 3:33pm
  This is, at least, the second time this year his death has been announced. The first time was shortly before the remake was announced.
  
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Buddynoel
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 1:15pm
Fracking to begin in Heaven soon.

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- henryKnox
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 2:14pm
  Probably not necessary, heaven is a conservative utopia so there isn’t any want or need.
  
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Guerrino_P
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 12:17pm
He was excellent in the films “Fail Safe” and “Harry and Tonto” Thanks Larry.

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RJJinGadsden
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 12:16pm
Always did Like I Dream Of Jennie, and loved him in Mother, Jugs, and Speed. Even though he played something of a dirt bag, he did it well though. Never was a fan of Dallas, but my mom, sisters, and wife did. I understand that those who did come into contact with Hagman said that he was a great guy. Rest In Peace.

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- RJJinGadsden
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 12:29pm
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2NEGywTGF4
  
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- The-Monk
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 12:46pm
  Hi RJJ,
  
  I trust you had a nice Holiday…. : )
  
  Report this comment
- RJJinGadsden
  Posted on November 25, 2012 at 8:46am
  Hi MONK, Oh yeah, mostly nice and quiet. But, the game was killer last night. Just ask any Auburn fan.
  
  Report this comment
DadRocked
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 12:03pm
Last season was season one of the remake of Dallas… Respectfully done on TNT…
After 20yr hiatus, he and the rest of the old cast had picked up with the next generation of Ewings.
http://www.dallastnt.com/series/dallas/video/

Season two premieres 28JAN2013 (http://www.ultimatedallas.com/)
He’ll be in it as well…

RIP Mr. Hagman – I mean Mr. Ewing…

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FreedomWitness
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 12:01pm
I loved the JR character. Hagman also wrote a very interesting autobiography called HELLO DARLIN’ that I picked up for a buck. Overall he just seemed like a pretty good guy. RIP.

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Tri-ox
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 11:52am
A great Texan – - – RIP, old friend.

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EBL
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 11:51am
http://evilbloggerlady.blogspot.com/2012/11/rip-larry-hagman.html

I loved his work with I Dream of Jeanne. Dallas was okay, but he remains Capt/Major Nelson to me. RIP Larry.

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loveliberty83
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 11:34am
thanks larry for really good Tv shows, so much trash today, do not even turn TV on most the time,naked people with swearing – no one can write a good show anymore

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- hatchetjob
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 1:17pm
  You’re right about the trash on TV, ours stays mostly off also.
  
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- drs1969
  Posted on November 24, 2012 at 3:37pm
  The ‘Swearing’ has completely turned me away from most shows. I can to McDonald’s for all the F-bombs!
  
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fande3rls
Posted on November 24, 2012 at 11:29am
I loved I dream of jeannie , liked Dallas rip larry

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