"Falcon Crest" (1981) TV series 1981-1990

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Creator:

Earl Hamner Jr.

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9

Release Date:

4 December 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Set in the vineyards of California, this prime-time soap opera featured the conflict between two families: the Channings...

Plot Keywords:

Vineyard | Soap | Falcon | Wealth | Mother Daughter Relationship

Awards:

Won Golden Globe. Another 7 wins & 46 nominations

Cast

Jane Wyman	...	Angela Channing (228 episodes, 1981-1990)
Lorenzo Lamas	...	Lance Cumson (228 episodes, 1981-1990)
Chao Li Chi	...	Chao-Li Chi / ... (215 episodes, 1981-1990)
David Selby	...	Richard Channing (209 episodes, 1982-1990)
Susan Sullivan	...	Maggie Gioberti / ... (207 episodes, 1981-1989)
Margaret Ladd	...	Emma Channing / ... (193 episodes, 1981-1989)
Ana Alicia	...	Melissa Agretti Cumson / ... (178 episodes, 1982-1989)
Robert Foxworth	...	Chase Gioberti (155 episodes, 1981-1987)
William R. Moses	...	Cole Gioberti (140 episodes, 1981-1987)
Abby Dalton	...	Julia Cumson / ... (98 episodes, 1981-1986)

Runtime:

60 min (227 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:L | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Napa Valley, California, USA

Company:

Amanda & MF

Trivia:

Sela Ward turned down the part of Terry Hartford in favor of a role on "Emerald Point N.A.S." (1983).

Quotes:

Richard Channing Denault: I don't want him setting foot in this house unless he's buried in the basement!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Golden Girls: In a Bed of Rose's (#1.15)" (1986)

Another popular 80s soap on the Rich & Famous!!

With the success of Dallas, Dynasty & Knots Landing, Falcon Crest was yet another popular 80s prime-time soap opera focused on 2 separate families running the wine business --- The Channings & The Giobertis, and each one having their relative or their friend or their worst enemy join the company in doing deals in Tuscany Valley, a fictional town in San Francisco. This series was lead by Ronald Reagan's ex-wife & Oscar-winning leading lady of the 1940's, having to star in over 55 movies (Jane Wyman) whose pivotal character, Angela Gioberti Channing Erickson Stavros Agretti, had always been conniving to her family, friends and almost everybody, and was a powerful matriarch devoted to those who learned from her. Her cousin, Chase Gioberti (Robert Foxworth, ex-wife of Elizabeth Montgomery & 6 Feet Under) an ex-Vietnam pilot who grew up across the street from where Angela lived in San Francisco across the winery, and was married to Maggie Hartford Gioberti Channing (Susan Sullivan, Another World & Dharma & Greg), before the 2 moved to New York, where they had 2 kids, Vickie Gioberti (Jamie Rose/Dana Sparks) & Cole Gioberti (William R. Moses, Perry Mason Mystery), and back to San Francisco to start a business due to Angela's persuasion. She also had 2 daughters, crazy Emma Channing (Margaret Ladd) who after she broke the news down of her uncle Jason Gioberti's (Harry Townes) death, had gotten word from her cousins to seek professional help, and Julia Channing-Cumson (Abby Dalton, Hennessey & The Joey Bishop Show), who abandoned her husband Tony (John Saxon) 23 years ago. Revolving other stories, Angela Channing's irresponsible grandson & Julia Cumson's son, Lance Cumson (Lorenzo Lamas, Grease, Renegade, Are You Hot? & a 90s action movie hero) wanted money & power from his grandmother, but was too lazy to work for it. And his grandmother Angela had even pressured him into marrying the evil Melissa Agretti-Cumson (Ana-Alicia, Ryan's Hope), and then, both she & Angela would compete in double-crossings, schemings, and a whole lot more. The series was an instant success in its first season, that the story lines would become more melodramatic and abandoned like DALLAS that they added Angela Channing's illegitimate son, Richard Channing (David Selby, Dark Shadows), who inherited 50% of his father's newspaper, The Globe, who fathered Cole's baby after Melissa was pregnant and had divorced Lance before marrying Cole, and even competed with the Richard-Angela feud, also, in the Spring of 1988, he even married Chase's wife, Maggie Gioberti, when he learned that Chase had died, anyway. The soap became popular for the 1st 6 seasons, and then slowed things down when in 1987, the show lost Foxworth, Moses & Dalton ((who both left the year before)), more difficulties to come when the writers/producers were fired from the hit TV series, and they added new writers/producers to create new story lines, also the series began to have low ratings, as well. Also by the Fall of 1988, veteran actress Jane Wyman had been very ill for a very longtime, but wanted to keep working on which she completed the entire 1988-89 season of Falcon Crest, having to miss only 1 episode. In the Fall of 1989, after the sudden death of Richard's wife, Maggie, Emma's new violent, treacherous & attractive boyfriend, Charley St. James (Mark Lindsay Chapman, Swamp Thing) came to the show, suffocating Angela with a pillow, sending her into a coma in a hospital bed ((when in real-life, Jane Wyman was on doctor's orders to be absent from the show that entire season)). Then, after a grueling visit to the hospital, the rest of Angela's family went to court to hear Angela Channing's will based upon who would take over Falcon Crest in Angela's place, and Angela gave that will to Emma ((not to grandson Lance suspecting she would)). After recovering from her coma ((Jane came back to the show to film the last 3 episodes)), Angela returned home and ((in real-life)) wrote the soliloquy as to whom left Tuscany Valley over the years. The show was the best 6 of 9 seasons, and I just hope that someday FC will own them on DVD, among many other old soaps.