WHO SHOT J.R.?

In the cliffhanger scene of the second season of the television show Dallas, the character J. R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) was shot by an unknown individual leading to the question that plagued fans the summer of 1980 - “Who shot J.R.?”

The episode was broadcast on March 21, 1980 and capped off a season where J.R. has angered nearly everyone in the state of Texas. Someone comes into his office late at night and shoots him twice. Viewers had to wait all summer (and most of the autumn due to an actors' strike), to learn whether J.R. would survive, and which of his many enemies was responsible.

Already a hit, the cliffhanger drove the show to pop-culture success: t-shirts were printed saying "Who Shot J.R.?" or "I Shot J.R."; betting parlors took bets on who pulled the trigger; a session of the Turkish parliament was suspended so legislators could watch the next episode.

On November 21, 1980, the third season premier revealed Kristin Shepard (Mary Crosby) as the shooter. Kristin was J.R.'s scheming sister-in-law and mistress, who shot him in a fit of anger. J.R. didn't press charges as Kristin claimed she was pregnant with his child as a result of their affair. The episode became the highest rated television show in US history at the time. It was estimated that 83 million people watched.

The success of this 1980 stunt helped popularize the practice of ending a television season with a cliffhanger.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_shot_J.R.%3F

The original cast of Dallas in 1978. Larry Hagman is top right in the cowboy hat. Mary Crosby would join the show in 1979.

Larry Hagman as J.R. Ewing, an amoral oil baron in the show Dallas

The iconic moment when J.R. is shot

Additional links about this topic:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas_(TV_series)

http://newamerican4109.blogspot.com/2010/01/who-shot-jr.html

http://wapedia.mobi/en/J.R._Ewing

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cliffhanger

http://www.tv.com/dallas/show/543/summary.html