Bewitched

Progenitors

Two of the film antecedents for this series were the 1942 film I Married a Witch (from Thorne Smith's unfinished novel The Passionate Witch), and the John Van Druten play that was eventually adapted as Bell, Book and Candle (1958).

The series premise

The focus of the show (which was based on a satirical short story in Harper's Weekly Magazine, written by a young Norman Mailer and titled The Witch of Westport, according to the A&E Network Biography of Elizabeth Montgomery) is on the mixed marriage of a nose-twitching witch, Samantha Stephens (Montgomery), and her mortal husband, Darrin (originally played by Dick York and later by Dick Sargent). The series, a romantic comedy, shows how true love can endure the most vexing of situations, even between a witch and a human. Samantha's mother Endora (Agnes Moorehead) loathes mortals, and disapproves of Darrin, as do most of Samantha's family. Endora refuses to remember Darrin's name, invariably calling him "Derwood," "Darwin," and even "Dum-Dum," all much to his annoyance. Many episodes revolve around Endora, or another of Darrin's in-laws, using magic to undermine the union. Although Endora casts countless spells on Darrin, she never threatens to outright destroy him, as she could easily do. Endora's ploy seems to be to provoke Darrin into leaving Samantha, but the mortal's love for his wife overcomes every obstacle. During a sequence when High Priestess Hepzibah (see below) expresses surprise that Darrin has withstood years of Endora's harassment, Endora can only shrug and admit, "He loves my daughter."

Several episodes begin with an enraged Darrin becoming the victim of a spell. By the epilogue, however, Darrin and Samantha would embrace and confound the devious elements that failed to separate them. One varation of the running gag of Darrin trying to have Sam give up her magic is when Darrin himself becomes a warlock-due to a spell put on an ancestor of his. Some storylines take a backdoor approach to such topics as racism, as seen in the first season episode, "The Witches Are Out." Samantha objects to Darrin's demeaning ad portrayal of witches as ugly and deformed. Such stereotypical imagery, she believes, ignites biases which have often caused Endora and her to flee the country until November. One episode, "Sisters At Heart," was written and submitted by a tenth-grade class. It involved Tabitha altering her and her black friend's skin tones with coordinating polka-dots, so that people would treat them alike. (A similar white-with-black vs. black-with-white concept had been seen earlier in Star Trek:"Let That Be Your Last Battlefield," in which Frank Gorshin had appeared versus Lou Antonio.)

Bewitched is unique for the mid-1960s in that it portrays an estranged married couple—Samantha's parents, Endora (Agnes Moorehead) and Maurice (Maurice Evans). Maurice was portrayed as an urbane thespian not unlike Elizabeth Montgomery's real father, Robert Montgomery. Maurice occasionally pops in with a young, attractive female escort. The couple's separation is implied and subtextual. In the episode, "Samantha's Good News," Endora threatened to file for an "ectoplasmic interlocutory" (code for divorce), only to wrangle Maurice's affection. In another episode Endora threatens to live with Maurice, thus acknowledging a separation.

Darrin works for advertising agency McMann and Tate, and his profit-obsessed boss Larry Tate (David White) is an almost constant presence on the show, even though Tate's partner, Mr. McMann, appears only twice during the series. Tate's opinions would turn on a dime to appease a client and land a deal. Despite witnessing plenty of oddities, Larry and his wife Louise (Irene Vernon, and later Kasey Rogers) never discover that Samantha is a witch.

Agnes Moorehead as Endora.

The sole member of Samantha's family for whom Darrin shows any affection is the lovably bumbling Aunt Clara (played by Marion Lorne). Lorne won a posthumous Emmy in 1968 for the role of the aged witch, whose powers had begun to wane, and whose spells often end in disaster. She appeared in 27 episodes; when Lorne died during the fourth season, the absence of Aunt Clara was left unexplained. Because Lorne was so popular and loved by the cast, another actress taking the role was not considered. A similar character, the anxiety-ridden witch-nanny Esmeralda, played by Alice Ghostley, would later make appearances starting during the 1969–1970 season. (Both Ghostley and comic actor Paul Lynde had guest roles as mortal characters before being cast as magical semi-regulars.)

Samantha's far-out and egocentric lookalike cousin Serena is another important character, first appearing in season two. The character was also played by Elizabeth Montgomery, who would be credited as "Pandora Spocks", between 1968 and 1972, when she appeared as Serena. Ever mischievous, Serena often chases after Darrin and Larry Tate (calling the white-haired Tate "Cotton-Top"), just for fun. Serena is the antithesis of Samantha, sporting a heart-shaped birth mark on her cheek, raven black hair, and mod mini-skirts. More progressive than the typical witch or warlock, who generally abhor mortals, Samantha's counter-culture cousin occasionally dates some (including a character played by Jack Cassidy).

During the show's run, both Aunt Clara (to Louise Tate) and Serena (to Phyllis Stephens) state they are from Maurice's side of the family, though Serena sometimes plots with "Auntie" Endora. Despite her wild behavior, Serena ultimately supports Samantha and Darrin, even though she finds them both a bit "square."

Endora's prank-loving brother Arthur (Paul Lynde) makes several memorable appearances. In one episode, Arthur befriends Darrin and teaches him a phony ritual that will set Endora straight. Darrin performs the silly ritual to the outright bewilderment of his wife and mother-in-law. After Arthur erupts in rip-roaring laughter, it becomes clear that Darrin was set up. The trio get even with Arthur when Darrin's own practical joke seemingly obliterates Endora. Despite the hoax, Arthur genuinely likes Darrin. Unlike Endora, Arthur seems to find mortals quite amusing and enjoys befuddling them with displays of magic. In another episode, Serena and Uncle Arthur go toe-to-toe with the Witch's Council to support the Stephens' union, only to have their own powers suspended.

Veteran actress Mabel Albertson, the sister of Jack Albertson, plays Darrin's straightlaced mother, Phyllis. The character often complains of "a sick headache" when she witnesses a magic spell in motion. Adding to the fun are the Stephens's witch daughter Tabitha, spelled Tabatha in production credits for most episodes, (Erin Murphy) and her baby brother Adam, as well as various witches, warlocks, and mere mortals, along with an occasional elf, leprechaun, nymph, and other supernatural being. The program made full use of the period's modest but effective special effects wizardry.

Across the street lives a retired couple, Abner Kravitz (stage and movie actor George Tobias) and his nosy wife, Gladys, the latter of whom was always trying to prove that Samantha was a witch, only to have her husband steadfastly refuse to believe her allegations. Gladys Kravitz was played first by Alice Pearce who won a posthumous 1966 Emmy for the role; following Pearce's death in 1966 from ovarian cancer, the character was played by Sandra Gould. On the studio backlot, the Kravitzes' house was actually near the Stephens' house exterior. Both homes' exterior doors opened to an unfinished eighteen-by-fifteen foot entry, as the interiors were shot elsewhere. The exterior of the Kravitz's house later became the home of The Partridge Family. In 2003, Kasey Rogers, Alice Ghostley and Bernard Fox visited the Stephens lot together to rekindle old memories.

Episode Déjà vu

During the spring of 1969, several episodes had to be rewritten as the series was technically between the two Darrins. According to William Asher on E! Entertainment Television, York had collapsed on the set due to back pain/ medication, and was hospitalized. ABC had urged recasting, and York was fired for financial/insurance reasons. Darrin's absence was said to be due to business trips, sleeping late, or the like. One such episode, "Samantha's Power Failure", had Serena and Uncle Arthur powerless at the hands of the Witches' Council, and subsequently working in a confectionery factory. This episode mimics the famous chocolate assembly-line episode of I Love Lucy in several ways; something not surprising, as William Asher had directed numerous I Love Lucy episodes (including the renowned "Job Switching" episode that inspired Bewitched's version). With slight variations, Serena and Arthur's "dipper" jokes and physical antics are taken from Lucy (Lucille Ball) and Ethel's (Vivian Vance) playbook.

In I Love Lucy, Lucy's and Ethel's candy wrapping efforts start okay but quickly get out of hand, leading both Lucy and Ethel to eat and/or hide all the left over chocolates. In Bewitched, the banana dipping goes well early on until the belt begins to speed up, leading Serena and Arthur to panic and hide, toss, and devour the bananas to avoid being dismissed from their jobs.

The Gidget/Bewitched Connection

The 1959 Columbia Pictures' Gidget filmed on location at a real home in Santa Monica (at 267 18th Street) as seen in the film. The blueprint design of this home was later reversed and replicated as a house facade attached to an existing garage on the backlot of Columbia's Ranch. The reversed Gidget house was primarily used on the Columbia/Screen Gems hit television show Bewitched which premiered in 1964. The patio and livingroom sets seen in Columbia's Gidget Goes to Rome (1963) were soon adapted for the permanent Bewitched set for 1964. In the TV series from 1965-66, Gidget (played by Sally Field) is often shown with a "Samantha" doll in her bedroom (a merchandise cross promotion for the other Columbia tv show), and in 1986's The New Gidget (produced by Columbia executive and producer Harry Ackerman) the facade used in shots for her home is the reversed Gidget house (better known by TV audiences from those subsequent decades of reruns as Samantha's home on Bewitched).

Cast

Main characters

Elizabeth Montgomery as Samantha Stephens

Dick York as Darrin Stephens (1964–1969)

Dick Sargent as Darrin Stephens (1969–1972)

Agnes Moorehead as Endora, Samantha's mother

David White as Larry Tate, Darrin's boss at McMann and Tate

Alice Pearce as Gladys Kravitz (1964–1966)

Sandra Gould as Gladys Kravitz (1966–1971)

George Tobias as Abner Kravitz (1964–1971)

Erin Murphy as Tabitha Stephens, Darrin and Samantha's daughter, "born" on January 13, 1966 (1966–1972)

Diane Murphy as Tabitha Stephens (1966–1968)

Greg and David Lawrence as Adam Stephens, son of Darrin and Samantha, "born" on October 16, 1969 (1970–1972)

Marion Lorne as Aunt Clara, Samantha's aunt (1964–1968)

Irene Vernon as Louise Tate, Larry's wife (1964–1966)

Kasey Rogers as Louise Tate (1966–1972)

Tamar and Julie Young (1966) as infant Tabitha

Recurring characters

Maurice Evans as Maurice, Samantha's father and Endora's estranged husband. Fancies himself a great Shakespearean actor and claims that William Shakespeare was himself a warlock. Initially, he disliked Darrin even more than Endora did, going so far as to apparently disintegrate Darrin so thoroughly that it was a genuine ordeal to "re-integrate" him back into existence. Eventually, his amusement at how thoroughly Darrin irritated Endora won him over a bit.

Alice Ghostley as Esmeralda, Samantha and Darrin's witch maid (1969–1972)

Bernard Fox as Dr. Bombay, the warlock family doctor (1967–1972)

Paul Lynde as Uncle Arthur, Samantha's uncle and Endora's brother (1965–1971). The two took opposite sides during the American Civil War, implying that they are at least two centuries old; the elitist Endora sided with the South, while Arthur sided with the North because Ulysses S. Grant "had better booze."

Elizabeth Montgomery, credited as "Pandora Spocks" (a takeoff on Pandora's Box) as her identical but exceptionally outgoing cousin Serena (1966–1972); the character was eventually changed from a blonde to a brunette. She sometimes acted as Endora's emissary, though she once told Phyllis Stephens, when asked, that she was from Maurice's side of the family.

Mabel Albertson as Phyllis Stephens, Darrin's mother (1964–1971)

Robert F. Simon as Frank Stephens, Darrin's father (1964–1967 and 1971)

Roy Roberts as Frank Stephens (1967–1971)

Marion Lorne as Aunt Clara, Samantha's aunt with rusty powers (1964-1968). She once responded to Louise Tate's question as to which side of Samantha's family she came. Clara said, "her father's". Nonetheless, Maurice never called her sister (perhaps an in-law???) She is the only member of Samantha's family with whom Darrin is genuinely fond.

Characters less frequently seen

Aunt Enchantra and Aunt Hagatha, Samantha's aunts and apparently sisters of Endora, with whom they side in any quarrel between her and Maurice, one of the few family members willing to stand up to them. The "holy terrors" of the family, they customarily ride in an antique car called "Macbeth" (sometimes driven by chauffeur Rasputin, other times operating sans driver) which, demonstrating the sisters' utter disdain for mortal conventions, enters the Stephens home through the wall. Enchantra was played by three different actresses, while Hagatha was played by five, including Reta Shaw and Ysabel MacCloskey. In later seasons, when Esmeralda was not present, Hagatha sometimes appeared as a babysitter to Tabitha and Adam.

Aunt Bertha, another aunt of Samantha's, her relationship is unknown.

Great-Great-Grandfather Adam (but "Not that Adam!"), Maurice's great-grandfather.

Cousin Edgar, Endora's nephew and an elf, implying that one of Endora's siblings is married to an elf. He is very protective of Samantha.

Great-Aunt Cornelia, Maurice's aunt. She is a muse who resembled Samantha and the Mona Lisa.

Cousin Henry, Samantha's cousin (and possibly Uncle Arthur's son; when Endora once calls Henry "the clown prince of the cosmos," she adds "Where's King Arthur?"). Whether Arthur's son or not, Henry shares his love of practical jokes.

Cousin Panda, Endora's niece. (Elizabeth Montgomery actually had a cousin named Panda.)

The Witches Council, the ruling body of all witches and warlocks throughout the cosmos. Never actually seen but only heard as booming voices, they, like Endora, disapprove of Samantha's marriage to Darrin.

The Apothecary, a lecherous old pharmacist who prepares magical elixirs for witches and warlocks through "the entire cosmos." He is seen only in his dungeon-like pharmacy when Samantha or another character arrives in search of an antidote for a given situation. Like Dr. Bombay, he fancies himself something of a ladies' man and a wry wit, once claiming that he started out wanting to be a friendly neighborhood pharmacist, but he "couldn't find a friendly neighborhood." Played by Bernie Koppell.

Queen Tituba, who made one appearance to pass the mantle of Queen to Samantha in season 4. Played by Ruth McDevitt.

In the Dick Sargent years, they had a High Priestess named Hepzibah, played by Jane Connell. There was one mention of Samantha being ex-queen. She abdicated at the end of season 4 apparently, but this was never brought up in the series, nor was her successor. Why they used a high priestess this time instead of the queen was never explained.

Uncle Albert, the uncle of Darrin Stephens, only shown briefly in episode number 69, "'A Bum Raps".

Cousin Helen, the cousin of Darrin, appearing in episode 129, "A Prince of a Guy". She and Uncle Albert are Darrin's only relatives shown, other than his parents.

Betty, the secretary at McMann and Tate, played by various actresses.

Mr. McMann, the boss of Larry and Darrin, seen in episode 139, "Man of the Year" and again in episode 191, "What Makes Darrin Run".

Harriet Kravitz, Abner's sister (Mary Grace Canfield), who takes care of the house for Abner and Gladys while they are out of town in season 2. This was after Alice Pearce had died and before the show had recast her role in season 3.

Ms. Peabody, Tabitha's 2nd grade teacher (Maudie Prickett), appeared in two episodes of Season 8, "Tabitha's First Day of School" (248) and "School Days, School Daze" (251).

A number of historical and fictional characters also made appearances, among them:Santa Claus

Jack and the Beanstalk

Benjamin Franklin

Franklin Pierce

George and Martha Washington

Sigmund Freud

Julius Caesar

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

Leonardo da Vinci

Mother Goose Hansel and Gretel

The Tooth Fairy

Napoleon

Loch Ness Monster

King Henry VIII

Cleopatra

Leprechaun

Paul Revere

Prince Charming

Sleeping Beauty

Willie Mays

Boyce & Hart

Changes

The show was a ratings success during its first five seasons, but it lost some viewers when Dick York, who had originated the role of Darrin Stephens, lost his ability to continue in the role due to a severe back condition, and a growing dependence on pain medications, and left the cast in 1969. While Ray Fulmer of Hazel, was mentioned as a possible replacement (as per an episode of The Virginia Graham Show, Fulmer's name was suggested to Agnes Moorehead by her friend and former co-star Shirley Booth), the role of Darrin went to Dick Sargent. Sargent's version of Darrin was a more acidic, smarmy character, in contrast to York's hyper, high octane portrayal. The drop in ratings was ironic in light of the fact that Sargent had been the original choice to play Darrin, but had been under contract elsewhere in 1964.

On E! Entertainment Television, Erin Murphy (Tabitha) stated that Elizabeth Montgomery "probably preferred Dick Sargent's Darrin." York's disability caused ongoing shooting delays and script rewrites, which would have been a financial liability to the newly formed Ashmont Production Company (owned by Montgomery and then husband, William Asher). Kasey Rogers, Bernard Fox, and Sandra Gould said that Dick York's "mugging" or animated facial expressions were what really made the character. William Asher claimed that Dick York's screen kisses were more "passionate." The series also had two Gladys Kravitzes, two Louise Tates and two Frank Stephenses. However, the switch between the two Darrins has become the epitome of TV's major cast changes, far more so than such other recastings as the two John-Boy Waltons or the two Lionel Jeffersons, and others.

In 1966, the show saw Samantha give birth to daughter Tabitha, played by fraternal twins Diane and Erin Murphy. Tabitha took after her mother with her magical abilities, adding to Darrin's worries. By 1968, the Murphy twins began looking less alike, so Diane was dropped. The Tates' son Jonathan, who was 1 1/2 years older than Tabitha, was seldom seen or referenced after 1966, but made a final appearance in season 7. The character had been named Jonathan after David White's real-life son (whose death made headlines in 1988, when Pan Am Flight 103 was brought down over Lockerbie, Scotland). In 1969, Bewitched introduced Adam Stephens, played by Greg and David Lawrence. The writers sought new familial challenges, but some pessimists saw the birth as an economical means to retool past Tabitha plots. Adam initially didn't display any powers, but started to do so in the last few episodes of the series.

The death of actress Marion Lorne (Aunt Clara) in 1968 prompted the creation of a replacement character, actress Alice Ghostley as Esmeralda. Coincidentally, Lorne and Ghostley appeared together in Mike Nichols's film version of The Graduate, which had been released in 1967.

End of the series

Montgomery wanted to end the series at the conclusion of the fifth season because both she and her husband, the show's producer William Asher, were getting tired of it and wanted to move on to other projects, but ABC did not want to drop one of its top-grossers. Since the series was one of the network's few hits, they offered Montgomery and Asher significant pay raises, plus part ownership of the series (via Ashmont, a production company owned by Asher and Montgomery), for another three seasons. By season eight, the story ideas had started to run dry – with some scripts from earlier seasons re-shot nearly verbatim. During the last season, (1971–1972) Abner and Gladys Kravitz were only referenced, and Uncle Arthur and Darrin's parents also did not appear. The series was moved to Saturday nights in January 1972 and was pitted against the hit show All in the Family, which proved to be a virtual death knell.

Bewitched finished the 1972 season at no. 46 in the ratings. ABC had planned a ninth season, according to the network's contract with Montgomery and Asher.

The Flintstones episode, "Samantha", features Dick York & Elizabeth Montgomery as Darrin and Samantha Stephens

Ratings For Bewitched

Bewitched did very well the first six seasons it aired, but then the ratings began to drop off in the early 1970s.

The ratings for each season, at the end of the season, were:Season Ratings Rank

1) 1964-1965 #2