Morgan Woodward Dies Aged 93. (2025)

RIP Morgan Woodward, another underrated actor from the movie and TV business. Lucky us who could enjoy his craft through our favorite series mainly "Dallas". Anyway, I never thought that the Katzmen were fair with him because they made Punk look a bit like the dumbest guy in the bunch of friends. I can imagine Jock teasing him in the early days...

I enjoyed very much the scenes you have mentioned above, especially when he told Miss Ellie about the scholarship and when he became the middle man in the fight for Ewing Oil. Though I just hated the way Katzman used him in the awful Parmalee storyline by making him almost believe Wes was actually Jock.

To be honest, I think that Mavis was a more layered character, maybe because she could interact with her friend Miss Ellie, and Punk only appeared when poor Jim Davis already was sick. They just had the Takapa business scenes to play together and the next time we saw him he was dealing with Ray in the Lubbock business and then reporting the Ewings about Jock´s accident.

But he didn´t seem to have a life aside from that: no children? no Punk Anderson Oil? no scene at their ranch? If we did know more things about that nympho Marilee Stone (including her love for young boy toys)! Or even more things about Sam Culver! As I said before, Mavis was a much nicer, believable character and the actress had great chemistry with BBG. Her last scene confessing to her about Punk´s affair with his secretary was very well-written and acted.

Another thing I didn´t like about Punk the character was how he suddenly became a friend or acquaintance of Clayton´s and Rebecca´s too. Everybody seemed to know those two except the Ewings. But Mr. Woodward played his scenes very well, and it was a shame they preferred to hire George Kennedy (who was a great actor but had to play the most stupid things to accommodate the contrived plots of the three last seasons).

Punk might have become a more profound character who was key to develop Miss Ellie further in the post-Jock seasons instead of just pairing her up with Clayton. And yes, the western flavor was what marked the difference between "Dallas" and the other soaps ("Yellow Rose" apart), and they obviously bet on Howard Keel´s appeal for his Hollywood past.

Rove said:

I think that's what set Dallas apart from other soaps. The likes of Morgan and Jim Davis with their western movie heritage and the formidable Barbara Bel Geddes and her stage background. Actors like those are what gave Dallas an edge.

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For the revival, the casting was all about eye candy. Some of the writing didn’t help, but neither did the casting.

Sarah said:

Saw this on Saturday but there seemed to be mixed reports. Someone on Twitter suggested it was a hoax, so I'm so sorry to read it is true

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That's what I thought when I went to look for official news stories on the death-- many of the sites still said he was alive, even Wikipedia (eventually Wikipedia was updated to reflect the death).

Chris2 said:

the revival, the casting was all about eye candy.

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See Also

Poltergeists on SouthforkThe re-casting of ChristopherThe Morgan Fairchild ThreadMorgan Woodward Dies Aged 93.

I'm in two minds about this. If we look back at Lorimar Dallas I'd say Patrick, Victoria and Charlene were eye candy. Charlene's lack of acting chops was the one weakness I found with the original Dallas cast. Flash forward to TNT Dallas and yes you could argue Josh, Jesse, Jordana and Julie were hired simply for eye candy but they could act. I agree there were weaknesses in the script however the actors could still deliver with a poor script.

I had concerns about Josh and Jesse in particular but given some great dialogue and direction these guys could act. The much discussed kitchen scene between Josh (John Ross) and Linda (Sue Ellen) is a case in point. By season three of TNT Dallas I thought the actors were beginning to settle in their roles and Josh was displaying multiple shades of John Ross.

And let's not allow Lorimar Dallas to get off scott free here. As Dallas began to climb in the ratings and it became sexier who could forget how much eye candy was on display. Sometimes my eyes would water at the flesh on display around the Southfork swimming pool.

Sarah said:

Saw this on Saturday but there seemed to be mixed reports. Someone on Twitter suggested it was a hoax, so I'm so sorry to read it is true He was such a lovely man and I adored him as Punk. Was just watching his scenes around the Wes Parmalee story last week. Rest in peace Mr Woodward.

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Do you think we would lie to you Sarah?! Poor Morgan was battling cancer for seven years and put up a brave fight.

garry said:

Do you think we would lie to you Sarah?! Poor Morgan was battling cancer for seven years and put up a brave fight.

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I didn't say anyone lied. I'm just repeating what I saw on Twitter, with a few suggesting it was a hoax as it wasn't reported officially for quite a while....

I didn't know he had cancer. 7 years is a long time to battle the disease. The Swedish press reported about his death yesterday. They referred to him as a Dallas actor or Dallas star.

Rove said:

I'm in two minds about this. If we look back at Lorimar Dallas I'd say Patrick, Victoria and Charlene were eye candy. Charlene's lack of acting chops was the one weakness I found with the original Dallas cast. Flash forward to TNT Dallas and yes you could argue Josh, Jesse, Jordana and Julie were hired simply for eye candy but they could act. I agree there were weaknesses in the script however the actors could still deliver with a poor script.

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This is not really the place for it but I strongly disagree with you when you say that Charlene can't act. I dare you to check out the episode Royal Marriage. I find it hard not to be moved by her performance in that episode.

I found Jesse Metcalfe and Josh Henderson awful. Charmless and charisma-free. I could never say that about Larry and Patrick.

Charlene and Victoria didn’t always give the best performances on the show, but they were appealing and likeable.

Jordana Brewster was the most appealing out of the lead quartet on TNT Dallas.

Morgan Woodward was very good as Punk Anderson, carrying an authority as Jock's mate. I was surprised to find out a few years back that he was still alive.

Character wise, Jock was born around 1909, Digger around 1912, Miss Ellie in 1915, Punk around the same as Miss Ellie, J.R. either 1936 or 1939 depending on the source (I prefer 1936), Gary 1943, Ray 1945, Bobby 1949, Lucy 1961. And for the other Barnes', Rebecca around 1929, Cliff in 1949 and Pam in 1953, with Rebecca walking away from Digger and the kids in 1954.

Mustard said:

Character wise, Jock was born around 1909, Digger around 1912, Miss Ellie in 1915, Punk around the same as Miss Ellie, J.R. either 1936 or 1939 depending on the source (I prefer 1936), Gary 1943, Ray 1945, Bobby 1949, Lucy 1961. And for the other Barnes', Rebecca around 1929, Cliff in 1949 and Pam in 1953, with Rebecca walking away from Digger and the kids in 1954.

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What do you base these years on?
I am in agreement with you about Gary, Ray, Bobby, Lucy and well I have 1939 put down for JR. However I thought Pam was born in 1950 and I find it very hard to believe that Cliff and Bobby are supposed to be the same age.

Karin Schill said:

What do you base these years on?
I am in agreement with you about Gary, Ray, Bobby, Lucy and well I have 1939 put down for JR. However I thought Pam was born in 1950 and I find it very hard to believe that Cliff and Bobby are supposed to be the same age.

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Dallas: The Early Years for J.R.'s birth in 1936, when Miss Ellie would have been 21. 1936, rather than 1939, would also give a young child J.R. some years with Jock before his father left to fight in WW2, leaving a strong mark on a 6-year old J.R. and leaving him pining for his daddy's return as soon as possible. It doesn't really work with a 3-year-old J.R. in the same way. Gary in 1943 because he was conceived just before Jock went off to Britain to fight in WW2, and this played into the fact that Miss Ellie didn't have Jock with her when she carried Gary, when Gary was born, and even up to when Gary was around 2 years old, which also plays into Miss Ellie and Gary being very close while Jock and Gary had a certain unease and even distance. A 2-year-old Gary up to that point in his life would have had a lovely cosy and even spoilt life, and then along comes harsh Jock and the tough school. Ray's date of birth is actually mentioned in the episode when we find out that Jock is his father, in October 1945, fitting in with Ray being conceived when Jock was with Margaret in WW2.

Bobby's birth in 1949 is mentioned in Dallas. We know Pam's date of birth being 1953 from the fact that Eisenhower had won his first US Presidential election a few weeks before Digger killed Hutch (Eisenhower was elected first in November 1952, placing Hutch's death in December 1952, and Pam's birth sometime in the first half of 1953). We know that Rebecca was 17 when she met Digger, and that she left Digger, Cliff and Pam when Pam could walk but not talk, which we get from that scene when Rebecca recalled Pam walking over to Digger but that Cliff then revealed that it was Aunt Maggie that couldn't shut Pam up. Cliff mentioned that he was 5 when his mother left, placing his birth in 1949, same age as Bobby, and it fits that Cliff looks older and acts older because of the stresses of his life, the much poorer upbringing and his desire to avenge his father, going through law school and political campaigns and investigations with a single-minded determination etc., whereas Bobby was spoiled rotten by his family from birth onwards.

Lucy's birth in 1961 is easy to deduce. Gary was 17 nearly 18 when she was born, and Val around 16. It's also mentioned in Jock's Will (aired late 1982) that Lucy had just passed her 21st birthday.

Miss Ellie being born in 1915 fits in with Dallas The Early Years and is used in the TNT version with Miss Ellie passing away in 2001, which is earlier than Barbara Bel Geddes' death in 2005.

What a lovely actor he was, Morgan Woodward.

Rest In Peace Sir.

Mustard said:

Bobby's birth in 1949 is mentioned in Dallas.

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I think that Bobby is the only major character of O-R CBS Dallas to have been born in the same year as his portrayer (Patrick Duffy, soon to be threescore-and-ten).

bmasters9 said:

I think that Bobby is the only major character of O-R CBS Dallas to have been born in the same year as his portrayer (Patrick Duffy, soon to be threescore-and-ten).

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I'd add Big Jock Ewing and Jim Davis were both born in 1909.

bmasters9 said:

I think that Bobby is the only major character of O-R CBS Dallas to have been born in the same year as his portrayer (Patrick Duffy, soon to be threescore-and-ten).

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Although the early seasons suggest Bobby was born in 1952, the year Eisenhower was elected. Then the dream put "1949" on his tombstone, but that was Pam's subconscious trying to convince herself he was older than she was.

RIP Morgan Woodward - he was great in his portrayal of Punk Anderson! He was very convincing in the role of Jock's best friend - just the type of guy you'd expect Jock to be friends with.

I wish they'd utilized Punk as sort of a father figure or mentor to Ray after Jock died. Since Jock died just shortly after Ray found out he was Jock's son, having Jock's best friend do that for Ray would have made sense, and also given Morgan Woodward a bigger role in the show.

Rove said:

I think that's what set Dallas apart from other soaps. The likes of Morgan and Jim Davis with their western movie heritage and the formidable Barbara Bel Geddes and her stage background. Actors like those are what gave Dallas an edge.

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That western movie background seemed to give a number of actors in Dallas a certain ruggedness that was lacking in TNT Dallas. Of the two male leads of the younger generation - John Ross and Christopher - it would have helped if at least one of them had shown some of that western ruggedness, but they looked and acted more like male models than tough guys.

Karin Schill said:

I am in agreement with you about Gary, Ray, Bobby, Lucy and well I have 1939 put down for JR. However I thought Pam was born in 1950 and I find it very hard to believe that Cliff and Bobby are supposed to be the same age.

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I agree Karin. I knew all the other ages, but I had never known what Cliff's age was supposed to be. I just thought he was probably around JR's age because he looked it. That's very unusual that Cliff was Bobby's age but looked so much older.

Mustard said:

it fits that Cliff looks older and acts older because of the stresses of his life, the much poorer upbringing and his desire to avenge his father, going through law school and political campaigns and investigations with a single-minded determination etc., whereas Bobby was spoiled rotten by his family from birth onwards.

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I don't agree on that because I've seen guys who aged fast and it usually came from being athletes in a tough sport, from partying a lot, or both. Bobby played and excelled at the highest level of college football so he'd been through far more of a physically demanding life than Cliff had, and Bobby was also known to be a playboy. That combination would lead me to expect that if one looked older than the other, it would be Bobby.

Snarky's Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come said:

Although the early seasons suggest Bobby was born in 1952, the year Eisenhower was elected. Then the dream put "1949" on his tombstone, but that was Pam's subconscious trying to convince herself he was older than she was.

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Kenny Coyote said:

I've seen guys who aged fast and it usually came from being athletes in a tough sport, from partying a lot, or both. Bobby played and excelled at the highest level of college football so he'd been through far more of a physically demanding life than Cliff had, and Bobby was also known to be a playboy. That combination would lead me to expect that if one looked older than the other, it would be Bobby.

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Apparently so, as Bobby's I.D. in that early episode where he was kidnapped, entitled "Kidnapped," seems to read that he was born in Nov. 1966, making him, maybe, 12!

Mustard said:

Morgan Woodward was very good as Punk Anderson, carrying an authority as Jock's mate

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Kenny Coyote said:

He was very convincing in the role of Jock's best friend - just the type of guy you'd expect Jock to be friends with.

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If you know guys like Punk Anderson then you know Morgan Woodward was perfect in the role. In playing the best friend to Jock, Morgan underplayed his scenes perfectly.

One standout if you do a re-watch of the series. When Wes Parmalee comes to town, Miss Ellie goes to Punk for advice. Morgan Woodward does a perfect pivot from being confused by what Miss Ellie is telling him, ("But where did you get Jock's letters and belt buckle? Where did Wes Pamalee get them?") To connecting the dots and realizing Wes is claiming to be Jock. Punk is furious, but keeps his emotions in check as he doesn't want to upset Miss Ellie:

Through gritted teeth, barely able to keep calm, "Well, you just let him tell me that. . . To my face!"

We've never seen Punk this angry, but he still kept his composure.

Very nicely acted scene.