David Jacobs, ‘Dallas’ and ‘Knots Landing’ Creator, Dead at 84

TV writer David Jacobs, who created the hit ’80s primetime soap opera Dallas and its spinoff Knots Landing, has died. Jacobs, who battled Alzheimer’s disease for several years, died Sunday of complications from a series of infections at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California, his son Aaron told The Hollywood Reporter. He was 84.

Born in Baltimore on Aug. 12, 1939, Jacobs enrolled at the Maryland Institute College of Art to pursue his passion for painting before eventually refocusing on writing. He earned a master’s degree in art history at Hunter College in New York and landed a steady gig writing biographies for The Book of Knowledge. He went on to make architecture his specialty, writing for Esquire, Holiday, and The New York Times Magazine, and also worked as a story editor for American Heritage, before venturing into fiction when the economy took a downturn. He would eventually go on to leave an indelible mark on the TV landscape.

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Jacobs was a writer on the ABC drama Family when he wrote an outline for a new series about a wealthy Texas family. That outline went on to become the hit CBS soap opera Dallas, which aired for 14 seasons from 1978 to 1991. The series was the No. 1 show in the Nielsen ratings after its fourth, fifth and seventh seasons. He also created the Dallas spinoff series Knots Landing, which aired for 14 seasons from December 1979 through May 1993.

For CBS, Jacobs also co-created Paradise, a Western that ran for three seasons, and also created Four Corners, which lasted five episodes in 1998. Jacobs executive produced ABC’s Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and Homefront, for which he scored two Emmy nominations in 1991 and 1992.

News of his passing sparked an outpouring of tributes. In a statement to Entertainment Tonight, actress Joan Van Ark said, “There are no words to describe how forever grateful I have always been for the opportunity to be his Valene Ewing on both Dallas and Knots Landing. This leaves a huge hole in my heart and soul . . . both personally and creatively.” Donna Mills remembered Jacobs as “such a special person,” adding that she is “proud to have worked with him, but equally proud to have known him.”

Jacobs is survived by his wife Diana, and their two children, Aaron and Molly, as well as Albyn Hall, his daughter from a previous marriage to Lynne Oliansky, and grandchildren Riley and Georgia.