What Happened to Dallas' Scheming Sexpot, Charlene Tilton?

For 14 seasons, the primetime soap opera Dallas dominated the ratings. In 1980, 83 million viewers tuned in to see who shot the fictional family patriarch J.R. Ewing. For much of the show's successful run, actress Charlene Tilton played scheming vixen Lucy Ewing.

Charlene was just 17 when she got the chance to read for this life-changing role. "I read the description of the character: my age range, a manipulative little sexpot," she says. "But being raised by her family because she doesn't have her parents, and I said, 'That's my part.'"

In 1982, Charlene married country singer Johnny Lee. They had a daughter, Cherish, but divorced two years later. Then, in 2001, Charlene began dating cinematographer Cheddy Hart. Eight years later, Cheddy died suddenly of a heart attack. He was just 54 years old. "The shock was something I'd never experienced before," she says.

Watch as Charlene shares how Cheddy's untimely death led to her aha! moment.

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