Barbara Eden has plenty of stories from her decades in Hollywood, but one memory from 1961 still stands out. While filming All Hands on Deck, the future I Dream of Jeannie star found herself in an unusual position: she had to give Pat Boone his first on-screen kiss with a woman other than his wife.
According to Entertainment Weekly, for Eden, it was simply part of the job. Boone, however, had built his career while avoiding romantic movie kisses out of respect for his wife, Shirley, whom he married as a teenager. That made the scene memorable enough on its own—and then Eden noticed who was watching from nearby.
Barbara Eden Remembers an Awkward First Kiss
“April Love” was my 2nd movie, and what was to be my first movie kiss was 50 years in coming. At the time, I had not discussed with my wife her reaction to my kissing actresses in movies. I balked at the director’s proposal, which was not in the script. When I asked for time to… pic.twitter.com/IuRG50F40e
— ThePatBoone (@Pat_Boone) April 1, 2026
Eden recalled that she and Boone filmed the scene on the deck of a real ship while the crew worked from a small boat below. As they prepared for the kiss, she glanced to the side and saw Boone’s wife and daughters watching the whole thing unfold.
The setup made an already unusual movie moment even more awkward, but Eden remembered Boone warmly. She described him as exceptionally kind and said the kiss itself was no major concern for her because she approached it as an actor doing her job. The pair worked well enough together that they reunited onscreen two years later for the 1963 thriller The Yellow Canary.
Pat Boone Had Long Avoided Kissing His Leading Ladies
Boone’s reluctance to kiss costars had already affected another film. While making April Love in 1957, he declined a proposed kiss with Shirley Jones because he had not yet discussed onscreen romance with his wife. By the time he sought permission, the production had moved past the opportunity. More than 50 years later, Boone and Jones finally completed that long-delayed movie kiss at a Hollywood screening of April Love, with their spouses present and supportive. The moment offered a playful ending to one of the more unusual traditions in Boone’s film career.
Eden’s story also adds another charming footnote to a career most viewers associate with her magical bottle and pink harem costume on I Dream of Jeannie. Before Jeannie made her a television icon, Barbara Eden had already built years of film experience alongside stars like Elvis Presley and Boone. In this case, one ordinary scene for her became a Hollywood first for her leading man—with his entire family there to witness it.