Few nighttime dramas captured the nation like ‘Dallas.’ The soap opera-style drama took over pop culture with one iconic episode. The question on everyone’s mind on November 21, 1980, was ‘Who Shot J.R.?’

A man in a blue shirt reads "Governing Texas" while sitting on a yellow chair, with a grill and woman in the background.

Over 350 million people around the world tuned in to television’s popular primetime drama ‘Dallas’ to find out the answer to who shot the show’s villain, ‘J.R. Ewing.’ ‘J.R.’ was played to perfection by actor Larry Hagman.

When his character was shot in the season finale the previous March, it became T.V.’s most famous cliffhanger. The November 21st episode solved the mystery, identifying Kristin Shepard, J.R.’s wife’s sister-in-law, and his former mistress, as the culprit.

Two women in dresses stand outside, one in a floral dress, the other in brown, talking to a man in a light blue shirt.

The CBS television network produced 12 full seasons of ‘Dallas’ after its initial five-episode pilot in 1978. The show featured the relationships between two Texas oil families, the Ewings and the Barnes.

The most famous episode came after a summer of wondering by the show’s fans. ‘Who Shot J.R.?’ was on t-shirts and other merchandise as the question grew into a fever pitch. The reveal episode became one of T.V.’s most-watched shows.

A man in a light blue shirt holds a white telephone receiver to his ear, looking concerned.

Over 83 million people, equaling 76 percent of all U.S. televisions, tuned in that night to find out who pulled the trigger. A tremendous outpouring of fandom made it the second-highest-rated primetime show in history.

‘Dallas’ wrapped up its 12-season run in 1991, and it remains in syndication around the world. J.R. lived to continue his villainous ways, and he was the only character to appear in all 357 episodes of the hit series.