I can explain the Aussie syndrome.
He is like JR Ewing in Dallas - the man we loved to hate.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/remembering-jr-ewing-a-tribute-393770
J.R. Ewing was the
baddest bad guy of his time and Larry Hagman, who died Thursday at the age of
81, played the entitled sex- and power-hungry son of a Texas oil baron like he was put on this earth to do
nothing else. He was
conniving and hurtful, greedy and selfish, vengeful and bitter, and even in times of
vulnerability, J.R. would manage to turn appreciation into competitive resentment on a dime.
In short, he was the
definition of evil. I would even venture to say, the greatest villain in TV history
-- meaner than Simon Cowell, more vindictive than Tony Soprano and savvier in business than even The
Simpsons’ resident billionaire Montgomery Burns. J.R. Ewing would spew lines that stung without flinching
-- J.R. to niece Lucy Ewing (Charlene Tilton): "Say, why don't you have that junior plastic surgeon you
married design you a new face: one without a mouth" -- and one-liners like they were going out of style
(J.R. to a lawyer: “A conscience is like a boat or a car. If you feel you need one, rent it"). My personal
favorite J.R.-ism: "Never tell the truth when a good lie will do." So true, if only in his world of
chandeliers and 10-gallon cowboy hats.
J.R. used words like “slut,” “tramp” and “whore” with abandon. Family loyalty? No such thing unless it
involved his precious “daddy” Jock Ewing (Jim Davis) -- gone too soon, but then again, always there,
looming over the clan like some kind of wrinkled, cigarette-smoking sky god. J.R. cheated on his wife Sue
Ellen (Linda Gray) with her sister; blackmailed a business partner for sexual favors, screwed over
everyone from his brother Bobby Ewing (Patrick Duffy) to sister-in-law Pamela Barnes (Victoria Principal);
and befriended terrorists while cursing them behind their backs. Some might say -- and many did -- that,
in a way, J.R.’s reckless business tactics and seemingly insatiable appetite for money was exactly the
sort of behavior that led to Wall Street’s real-life implosion in 2008.
If there was any doubt, let’s put it to rest right here:
J.R. was a despicable character with few, if any, redeeming qualities.
Yet people tuned in because they loved him -- billions of them.
That’s no exaggeration. The CBS primetime soap was seen all over the world, dubbed in 67 different
languages and syndicated to 90 countries where it had some of its most loyal audiences.