“Knots Landing” Tuesday: Remembering long-lost cul-de-sac residents Kenny and Ginger Ward

Ginger and Kenny Ward kind of remind my of Chuck Cunningham, the Happy Days character (Richie and Joanie’s older brother) who went out to play basketball one day and just never returned.

It was kind of the same thing with Ginger and Kenny who were newlyweds on the cul-de-sac at the start of Knots Landing in 1979 along with Gary and Valene Ewing, Karen and Sid Fairgait and Laura and Richard Avery.

Kenny (James Houghton) was just about as cute as could be as was Ginger (Kim Lankford). But the couple was written off of the show at the end of season four with record producer Kenny being offered a job in Nashville.

The couple had a major conflict when Kenny was obsessed with making a star out of Ciji Dunn (Lisa Hartman) and ignoring Ginger’s dreams of a singing career. But when Ciji went missing one night (and later turned up dead). Ginger finally got the spotlight she had long desired and it was as if Kenny was seeing his wife’s talent for the first time.