Robert James 'Bobby' Ewing (Patrick Duffy) was born in 1949 on Southfork Ranch in Dallas Texas. The third and last son of oil baron John Ross 'Jock' Ewing Sr. (Jim Davis) and his second wife, Eleanor Southworth 'Miss Ellie' Ewing (Barbara Bel Geddes), Bobby became a successful (though reluctant) oil baron, like his father and and older brother J.R., but Bobby lacked J.R.'s ruthlessness and insisted on playing fair which resulted in his limited success. Bobby would also take part in the raising of cattle on Southfork. He was also a state senator in Austin for a while.Possessing a hot temper when crossed in any way, Bobby's other most defining character trait was his altruistic desire to do the right thing. This almost always put him in the cross-hairs with J.R., who was far more ruthless. Yet Bobby did on many occasions use ruthless tactics of his own in order to attempt to beat J.R.. Bobby was one of few people to openly take a stand against J.R. on numerous occasions yet the two never forgot they were brothers. In addition to the differences between their treatment of others, as well as their conflicting views on morality, another reason for J.R. and Bobby's rivalry was Jock's preference for Bobby (Miss Ellie favored middle son Gary, who was all but ignored by Jock, who believed Gary to be weak). Growing up, and even into adulthood, Jock made no secret of the fact that Bobby was his favorite son. This caused a major rivalry with J.R., who was jealous of the unearned favoritism Bobby got from Jock.In April 1978, before returning to Dallas from a business trip to New Orleans, Bobby had gotten married, and brought his new wife home to meet his family at Southfork. However, they were shocked to discover that Bobby's new bride, Pamela 'Pam' Barnes, was the daughter of Jock's former wildcatting/business partner (and Miss Ellie's former beau) Willard 'Digger' Barnes, and sister of then District Attorney-turned-oilman Cliff Barnes, both of whom were arch-enemies of the Ewing family. Prior to marrying Bobby, Pam had also dated Southfork Ranch foreman Ray Krebbs for a short time. Though in time Miss Ellie, and eventually Jock, came around to accept Pam as Bobby's wife. J.R., on the other hand, was not so accepting, and constantly schemed to break up his little brother's marriage to, as he referred to Pam behind her back as, 'that Barnes woman'. But not only did J.R.'s plans backfire each time but on some occasions, depending how far he went in his schemes, J.R. physically endured Bobby's wrath.Shortly after their marriage Pam became pregnant and Bobby was ecstatic at the news. But at the annual Ewing Family Barbeque at Southfork, Pam had fallen out of the hay loft in the barn trying to get away from a drunken J.R., who had a split lip from Bobby punching him out earlier. As a result of the fall, Pam miscarried the baby and, because of a genetic disease in her family, was later told by the doctor that, if she ever were to become pregnant in the future, Pam would not be able to carry the child to full term.But despite their dysfunctional tendencies, the Ewing family always managed to put aside their diffences (temporarily, of course), and come together whenever a crisis arose to the family such as Jock being put on trial for the three decades old murder of a former Southfork ranch forman named Hutchison 'Hutch' McKinney whose remains were found on Southfork in 1980.Jock was later aquitted when Pam and Cliff's father, Digger Barnes, made a deathbed confession to his sister Margaret, Pam, Bobby, Miss Ellie and Cliff, that Digger was the real killer and killed McKinney at the Barnes home after Digger found him there with Pam and Cliff's mother, Rebecca, who told Digger that she was leaving him for McKinney and that she was pregnant with McKinney's child. Digger had stolen Jock's revolver and shot McKinney dead. Digger placed McKinney's body in his car and buried it on an open piece of land not knowing at the time that it was actually part of Southfork, and then took Rebecca and young Cliff and moved to Corpus Christi.When Pam asked Digger about the whereabouts of the baby that her mother and McKinney conceived, Digger shockingly revealed to Pam that SHE was the baby! Devastated by the revelation, Pam suffered a breakdown. (This incident was followed shortly after by J.R.'s infamous shooting).In 1982 the Ewings suffered a devastating loss: While on his way back from South America after spending a year there leading a drilling operation for the United States Government, Jock was flying home when the helicopter he was on collided with a small plane and crashed in a lake in the South American jungle, and that the search party looking for Jock already believes that he is dead. Bobby, J.R. and Ray, who had just been revealed the year before to be Jock's illegitimate son (Jock first met Ray's mother, Margaret, during World War II where she was a nurse and they slept together which resulted in Ray's conception), flew down to South America to help in the search.Finally finding the location of the lake where Jock's chopper went down, Bobby and Ray dove down to see if they could find any clue of what had become of Jock. Though there was no physical sign of Jock in the area, Bobby, later diving alone, managed to find only Jock's solid gold Lion-head medallion chain that he wore around his neck. Upon seeing the chain, Bobby immediately came to the realization that, though his father's body would never be recovered, Jock was indeed dead. J.R. & Ray, however, both refused to accept the reality and didn't want to give up the search but, like Bobby, they eventually accepted it and moved on with their lives. Jock Ewing was officially declared legally dead in 1982. (Jim Davis, who played Jock, died in March 1981, and Jock's death was only necessitated by Davis's own death).That same year Jock's Last Will and Testament was read. In his will Jock set up a contest between J.R. & Bobby over who would control Ewing Oil and which ever son acrewed the most profits would be declared the winner in a year and President of the company. But the bitter battle for control of Ewing Oil took its toll on both Bobby and Pam's marriage and the Ewing family to the point where Miss Ellie went to court to have Jock's will broken and to put an end to the fighting, but the judge ruled that Jock's will be upheld in its current form and for the contest to continue.Bobby would later adopted a boy named Christopher, who was the son of J.R.'s deceased sister-in-law Kristin Shepard and a man named Jeff Faraday, also deceased, and raised him with Pam, who had always wanted a child but was unable to have one of her own. Pam and Cliff's half-sister, Katherine Wentworth, who had an unrequited crush on Bobby, later began to become obsessed with him. Katherine broke up Bobby's marriage to Pam by writing a letter (pretending to be Bobby) addressed to Pam.In the fall of 1983, following his divorce from Pam, Bobby met his childhood flame, Jenna Wade, who had returned to Dallas with her 13-year old daughter Charlie, at a bar where she worked as a waitress. After renewing their courtship they later became engaged. Pam was also involved romantically at the same time with a dashing businessman named Mark Grayson (Mark was later killed in a plane crash over the Gulf when he learned that he was dying of Leukemia).In the spring of 1984, while working late at Ewing Oil, Bobby was shot in the back while sitting in J.R.'s chair and was temporarily blinded as a result. It was originally thought, given that the shooting took place in his office, that J.R. was the intended target. But it was later revealed that Katherine Wentworth, in her deranged mental state, was arrested as the shooter when she was caught trying to kill Bobby again in the hospital, and confesses to J.R. that Bobby, not him, was her target all along due to her obsession with Bobby, who later recovered from his injuries. Katherine later jumped bail and fled Dallas.In the 1984-85 season finale Jenna started to have doubts about her relationship with Bobby, who apparently mistook it as her breaking up with him. Bobby later visited Pam at her home and they reconnected again and he proposed marriage to her. Pam tearfully said yes and they spent the night together. The next morning as Bobby was leaving to tell Jenna that he was marrying Pam, a car, driven by Katherine, was approaching Pam. Bobby bravely pushed Pam aside but he was struck by the car instead. He was rushed to the hospital where he later died from his injuries. However, the entire 1985-86 season that followed, including the accident and Bobby's 'death', was revealed to be nothing more than a lengthy dream of Pam's.Bobby and Pam were reunited and planned to re-marry in the fall of 1986. But Bobby found out on his wedding day from Ray, who had been sworn to secrecy by Jenna prior to the wedding, that Jenna was pregnant with Bobby's child. Not put off by the news Bobby went ahead and married Pam, and Jenna, along with her daughter Charlie, later moved in with Ray after his divorce from his wife Donna, who later moved to Washington DC. Jenna later gave birth to Bobby's son, Lucas Wade.In the 1986-87 season finale, as Pam was happily driving home after a doctor's appointment in which she was told she and Bobby could have a baby of their very own, she was involved in a serious car crash which resulted in her suffering severe burns. Pam later disappeared from the hospital and Bobby never saw her again.After Pam, Bobby became romantically involved with several other women including a woman named Kay Lloyd, Tracy MacKay, the daughter of Carter MacKay, who had bought Ray's property after Ray, who had married Jenna, and Jenna's daughter Charlie, moved to Switzerland. Bobby's more serious post-Pam relationship came with April Stevens, the former gold-digging wife of his cousin Jack Ewing. and the two later married. However, while on their honeymoon in Paris, April is kidnapped by a woman named Sheila Foley, and is later shot, where she dies in Bobby's arms.In the 1991 series finale of the original Dallas, Bobby is first on the scene after hearing a gunshot from J.R.'s room uttering the words Oh my God. The camera never shows what Bobby actually saw and it was thought J.R. committed suicide, although in subsequent films it was explained J.R. shot a mirror.In the TV movies J.R. Returns and War of the Ewings, Bobby had a relationship with Julia Cunningham (J.R. Returns) before taking over Ewing Oil. In the follow-up film War of the Ewings he is no longer with Julia and the reasons are not even explained. He eventually starts a relationship with European oil heiress Jennifer Jantzen, who was a business associate of his brother J.R. and whose father's company Jantzen Oil was saved from bankruptcy by J.R.In Dallas (2012 TNT TV series), Bobby has since remarried again, this time to a woman named Ann Smith-Ryland, who is also an old friend of Sue Ellen's, and is the current owner of Southfork Ranch, according to the terms of Miss Ellie's will. Bobby has since retired from the oil business, believing that alternative energy is the future , a belief he shares with his now grown adopted-son Christopher, and is content to raise cattle on the ranch.Early on Bobby had decided to sell Southfork, due to his contracting a Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) and resulting fears that he will not be around to keep the ranch safe, and that Christopher is not yet ready to take over from him. Once again, this brings him into conflict with his older brother J.R. and his nephew, John Ross, (who has discovered oil on the ranch).But Bobby appears to have been cured of his Gastrointestinal tumor. Bobby is shocked and saddened when he finds out J.R. died in Mexico. When J.R.'s will is read Bobby receives J.R.'s entire boot collection on the condition that he keeps them cleaner than he keeps his own. Also an old letter from Miss Ellie reveals that John Ross also inherits half of Southfork. Bobby doesn't agree with his mother's wishes about giving John Ross half of her father's ranch but goes along with it, at least for now. Bobby also learns that his first wife Pamela died of cancer in 1989. Show less «