Oh my stars, do you believe in magic? Bewitched made it so, and as we watched spellbound Samantha with the twitch of her nose, a little magic found us, on the other side of the television screen. So how did they even decide on the nose twitch? And those practical effects, how were they done?ย
Today, let’s break the cardinal rule of wizardry and reveal the magicianโs tricks.
A Tale of Two Movies
Bewitched rose to fame during a pretty revolutionary time in television, focusing on female leads and throwing in the supernatural. But even something as fantastically trendy as Bewitched got inspiration elsewhere.
Show creator Sol Saks took inspiration from I Married a Witch and the film Bell, Book, and Candle. Saks didnโt have to worry about copyright issues, like its competitor I Dream of Jeannie did since Columbia Pictures owned those films and Screen Gems, which made Bewitched.
RELATED: โBewitchedโ Cast Then And Now 2021
Two of our leading ladies have some surprisingly biblical roots. The First Book of Samuel has a story of Saul going to the Witch of Endor so he can commune with the late Samuel. Samuel and Endor became Samantha and Endora. Originally, they were named Cassandra and Matilda respectively. I like the change.
Something Wicked This Way Comes
Letโs talk about that iconic intro. Goliath animation studio Hanna-Barbera created the opening, adding it to a packed resume that includes The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo, and The Jetsons. Some Flintstones episodes even feature magical cameos by the Bewitched cast.
As for the music, Bewitched did originally have a theme song with lyrics. Jack Keller composed the music before working with The Monkees. Howard Greenfield wrote lyrics that never saw use in the show. But a bunch of artists recorded their own versions, like Steve Lawrence and Peggy Lee.
Producers toyed with the idea of using the song โBewitched, Bothered and Bewilderedโ from the Rodgers & Hart musical Pal Joey. But it wouldโve been quite expensive.
Cutting Costume Corners
Bewitched kept a pretty small costuming budget, so much so that extras and even supporting actors were told what to bring to wear from their own wardrobe.
Even Samantha and Endora were wearing outfits straight from the closets of Elizabeth and Agnes at times. Pretty much everything you see Sam wear is an outfit Elizabeth owns.
Throw in the fact that Samantha also had a wicked counterpart, Serena, to clothe and wowzers thatโs a lot of pressure. The show credited Serena to the pseudonym Pandora Spocks, a playoff of Pandoraโs box, and this fake actress even got her own fan mail.
And that also meant that the 8.5 carats of old-mine diamond brooch that Endora always wore were actually Agnes Mooreheadโs. Elizabeth Montgomery famously loved the brooch, and when Agnes died, she willed it to her TV daughter.
A Twitch In Time
With a simple nose twitch, you knew Samantha was weaving some magic, usually at Darrinโs expense. It became as iconic as Jeannieโs bow in I Dream of Jeannie and lee Majorโs slow-motion run in Six Million Dollar Man. But itโs so specific -so what made them choose a nose twitch instead of waving her hands or a wand?
At first, the script simply declared Samantha cast spells with some vague arm gesture. Show director William Asher wanted something out of the ordinary, and it actually took two months to find. Coming about when Asher told Elizabeth Montgomery, do that thing you do when youโre nervous! She couldnโt think what that was, got nervous, and there it wasโ a simple, wonderful, nose twitch.
They added a xylophone to really highlight the little movement, which is achieved by moving your upper lip and letting the nose follow.
Making The Magic Happen
In todayโs world of CGI and post-production magic, itโs wild to hear the lengths shows had to go to for some practical magic. Animatronics, doubles, camera cuts, they used it all.ย
Look carefully and youโll spot a near-invisible wire lifting up a household item. Or in other cases, they used fast-motion or backward-motion film, to make it look like things happen faster or slower than the actors could pull off.
On those days when Samantha cleans up a room with magic, Elizabeth Montgomery would raise her arms up, the director called โCut,โ and sheโd stay like that while stagehands moved everything around. Then the director called โactionโ and sheโd finally move again. Just mind the pyrotechnics. Bernard Fox, who played Dr. Bombay, shared that heโd been injured by them sometimes.
And when characters changed clothes in the blink of an eye. they actually secured their shoes to the floor exactly where theyโd been standing, run backstage, change, and step back into their shoes. Thatโs how you nail a mark!
York for Sargent
For the first five seasons of Bewitched, Dick York played Samanthaโs lucky and unlucky mortal husband in way over his head. Then came Dick Sargent, who played a pretty different Darrin.ย
Back in 1959, York was in the film They Came To Cordura, and on the second-to-last day of filming, he ended up tearing all the muscles in the right side of his back and damaging his spine. His recuperation options were drugs.ย
The injury and drug reliance chased him through the first half of Bewitched and York became tired and grumpy and in a lot of pain. It affected everything, and he even had a seizure, forcing him to miss whole episodes before the replacement.ย
Ironically, Agnes Moorehead didnโt agree with Endora and loved Dick York. So when Sargent took over, she actually said, โI don’t like change.โ
Itโs hard to say who was better, certainly a personal preference. York played an indignant Darrin because magic was new and frightening. When Sargent took over, he figured Darrin had years to get used to marrying a witch, he shouldnโt be yelling so much, magic was more of the norm. I would love to find out if you had a preference for the two Darrins, let us know in the comments.ย
This Broom Would Not Fly Today
Sometimes sitcoms try a very special episode, announcing an important message or deviating from the humor formula. Bewitched had something like that.
Iโm talking about the famous Christmas episode โSisters at Heart,โ where a hateful exec didnโt want to do business with Darrin because he thought he married a black woman. Meanwhile, Samโs daughter Tabitha was best friends with the womanโs daughter, and the two loved pretending they were sisters. A spell from Samantha went awry and the two ended up with black and white spots on their skin. She used a similar trick to basically put everyone in blackface at the company execโs party, and that helped him see Samโs important message of equality.
This heavier episode was written by two dozen African-American 10th grade students at Jefferson High School. While blackface is never a good idea for a show, the innocent and powerful message reminds us we should listen to kids more.
The Next Generation
Elizabeth Montgomery was actually pregnant 3 times during the showโs run. For her first pregnancy, they shot all the scenes without her, then her part separately after she had given birth. Pregnancies numbers 2 and 3 led to the in-show birth of Tabitha and Adam.
The name Tabitha was Montgomeryโs own idea, from the daughter of actor Edward Andrews. She loved it because it sounded old-fashioned.ย
Hallowed Homes
1164 Morning Glory Circle is practically a pilgrimage spot for the Wiccan, and itโs still standing. Its new location is the Warner Brothers Ranch Studios. There arenโt formal tours, but supposedly staff there can be talked into showing you around. Of course, this property was mostly for exterior shots; the inside, backyard, garage, and porch were mostly a soundstage. In every single episode, this famous abode prominently features the color green, an homage to the color as a witchy symbol.ย
Bewitched also features a cameo from a rival house. In season four, episode twenty-one, “Hippie, Hippie, Hooray,โ we get to see Larry and Louise Tateโs home. The kitchen is actually Tony Nelsonโs from I Dream of Jeannie. When you see outside shots of Samanthaโs home, keep an eye out for the Jeannie house down the street.
The Magic Ended For Montgomery
All good things must come to an end. For most of its runtime, Bewitched ranked high, usually near the top 10, and it still circulates in syndication. The show was greenlit for seasons 9 and 10.
Turns out, Montgomery didnโt even approve of going into season 5. In fact, she was ready to retire before Bewitched even began, but her husband and show producer Bill Asher talked her out of it.
Then, ABC kept making offers you donโt need to be a godfather to know not to refuse. But with each season, it became harder and harder for money to make a difference and little by little Montgomery noticeably didnโt want to be there. Finally, she walked away in search of much grittier roles. It helped she owned 20% of the show and got a ton off residuals.ย
Bewitched enchanted us with glimpses at how life could be with just a little bit of magic. I don’t know about Darrin, but Iโd be pretty thrilled in his place! Or so I think. Whatโs a fantastic episode of Bewitched that you recall? Who was your favorite character from Bewitched?ย