 This is a continuation of the cliffhanger episode from Season Two, where Knots Landing Motor Company owner Sid Fairgate is involved in a car accident after his criminally-tampered-with brakes fail. In Season Three s opening episode, we see Sid struggling to cope in the hospital after being told he will remain a quadriplegic for the rest of his life. While continuing to undergo therapy, Sid learns of an experimental procedure that could possibly allow him to walk again. There is a down side...because the surgery is extremely delicate and risky, he could also die during the surgery. Against Karen s (Michele Lee) wishes, Sid agrees to have the operation. This episode picks up from a beside confrontation with Karen, where Sid tells his wife that he will sign the consent form with his teeth himself if she chooses not to do so. Reluctantly, Karen signs the form. The outcome proves fatal for Sid, as he goes into cardiac arrest on the operating table during the surgery. Attempts to defibrillate his heart fail, and the last camera shot of Sid Fairgate is as he s lying face-up on the operating table. From there, there is no audible dialogue for the rest of the show as the camera cuts to the surgeon who informs Karen behind closed doors that her husband is dead. Karen, showing no emotion, takes her three children from the hospital, loads them into her station wagon, and drives off as the show s closing credits appear. This was Don Murray s final appearance as Sid Fairgate.