Okay, I’m on a roll. Over the past two weeks I’ve shared the story of the curse of Family Affair about the strange circumstances and tragedies surrounding the popular 1960s TV show, particularly those involving West Lafayette born actress Anissa Jones, who played Buffy on the show. I thought, what better way to kick off the Halloween season than to explore another classic TV show from the same era also judged to be “cursed”? Here is the story of the curse of Bewitched.
Before I assume that everyone remembers the show, here’s the back story. Bewitched was a sitcom that ran for eight seasons on ABC from 1964 to 1972. It starred actress Elizabeth Montgomery as the witch Samantha, Dick York (1964–1969) and Dick Sargent (1969–1972) as the mortal husband Darrin Stephens and Agnes Moorehead as the disapproving witch of a mother-in-law, Endora. The show is about an ordinary mortal man who marries a witch who then tries to acclimate to the life of a typical suburban housewife. The show finished as the number two show in America during its debut season, and became the longest-running supernatural-themed sitcom of the 1960s–1970s. The show was in the Nielsen top 10 for its first three seasons, top 25 for the next three seasons and fell out of the top 30 during it last two seasons. The show remains popular in syndication and is a top seller on DVD. In 2002, Bewitched was ranked #50 on “TV Guide’s 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.”
The plot: Samantha pledges to forsake her powers and become a typical suburban housewife but her magical family disapproves of the mixed marriage and frequently interferes in the couple’s lives. Episodes often begin with Darrin becoming the victim of a spell cast by his wife’s mystical family or a miscast spell by Samantha. The effects of these spells wreak havoc with mortals, particularly Darrin’s boss, clients, parents, and neighbors. By show’s end, Darrin and Samantha overcome the devious elements that failed to separate them with episodes most often ending with a kiss and a hug.
Although the plots were often well thought out and history based, what made the show a screaming success was the enchantingly beautiful Elizabeth Montgomery. Elizabeth was the daughter of Hollywood heartthrob leading man Robert Montgomery, who played the on-screen love interests of Greta Garbo, Carole Lombard and Norma Shearer during his career and who was nominated for an Academy Award in 1948. She was on her way to becoming a movie star in her own right. After narrowly missing out on the co-starring role alongside Marlon Brando in On the Waterfront in 1954, she turned her attention to television.
The main setting for most scenes is the Stephens’ house at 1164 Morning Glory Circle (in either Westport, Connecticut or Patterson, New York depending on who you believe). Many scenes also take place at the Madison Avenue advertising agency McMann and Tate where Darrin works. Samantha’s mother, Endora (Agnes Moorehead), is Darrin’s chief antagonist. Endora loathes mortals and disapproves of Darrin, as do most of Samantha’s relatives. Endora refuses to speak Darrin’s name, alternatively calling him “Durwood,” “What’s-his-name,” “Darwin,” “Dum-Dum,” and so on, much to his annoyance. She refers to him as “Darrin” only eight times during the entire series, an average of once per year. Endora’s ploys to provoke a breakup always fail as Samantha and Darrin’s love overcomes every obstacle.
Darrin works as an executive at the McMann and Tate advertising agency under his profit-obsessed boss Larry Tate (David White). Tate’s opinions turn on a dime to appease any client in an attempt to land a deal. Across the street from Darrin and Samantha lives a retired couple, the nosy and tactless Gladys Kravitz (played by Alice Pearce and Sandra Gould) and her husband Abner (George Tobias). Gladys’ snooping often results in her witnessing witchcraft or its strange side effects. She frequently tries to prove Samantha is a witch, only to fail and be branded delusional by Abner. Samantha’s father, Maurice Evans, is an over-the-top thespian who often embellishes his entrances and exits with strained Shakespearean verse.
Darrin’s parents, the straight-laced Phyllis (Mabel Albertson) and laid-back Frank Stephens (Robert F. Simon and Roy Roberts), visit occasionally but never learn of Samantha’s supernatural powers. Phyllis makes inopportune surprise visits, and often complains of “a sick headache” after accidentally witnessing a spell in motion. Samantha’s Uncle Arthur (Paul Lynde), Endora’s prank-loving brother, makes several appearances. Undoubtedly, the most beloved supporting cast member was Samantha’s Aunt Clara (Marion Lorne). The bumbling, elderly, absent-minded-but-lovable Aunt Clara’s spells usually backfire, and her entrances and exits become her trademark: plopping down a chimney or colliding with a wall. She has a collection of over a thousand doorknobs (inspired by Lorne’s real-life collection).
In the second season, Samantha gives birth to a daughter, Tabitha and later in the series has a son, Adam. Both eventually prove to have supernatural powers. When illness befalls the family, Samantha seeks assistance from the warlock Dr. Bombay (Bernard Fox), a womanizer most often accompanied by a buxom assistant, and who constantly cracks bad jokes. He could be summoned by the phrase, “Dr. Bombay, calling Dr. Bombay. Emergency, come right away.” When Dr. Bombay proves ineffective, help is occasionally sought from the unnamed witches’ apothecary (Bernie Kopell of Love Boat fame), an amorous old warlock.
Bewitched not only led the league in improbable plot devices, the series itself seemed to defy reasonable logic. From 1969 to 1971, Samantha’s cousin Serena was also played by Elizabeth Montgomery, who in the credit roll is identified as “Pandora Spocks” (a spin on the phrase “Pandora’s box”). The producers made little attempt to disguise Serena. Aside from having coal black hair and a beauty mark on her cheek, Serena is identical to Samantha in everything except demeanor. She wears mini-skirts and openly flirts with Darrin’s boss Larry Tate just for sport.
But the strangest pill for fans to swallow was the riddle of the Two Darrins. Right in the middle of the show, Dick York disappeared and was replaced by Dick Sargent. Like his costar Montgomery, York was on his way to movie stardom after his appearance in the 1960 Spencer Tracy film Inherit the Wind along with high profile episodes of The Twilight Zone, Gunsmoke, Wagon Train, I Dream of Jeannie, and Adam-12. York was so popular with his fans and peers that he was nominated for an Emmy for his portrayal of Darrin in 1968. Things seemed to be going great for both York and Bewitched.
But Dick York had a secret he didn’t tell the show’s producers when he accepted the role back in 1964. In 1959 York appeared in a movie called They Came to Cordura. The western starred Gary Cooper, Rita Hayworth, Van Heflen, and Tab Hunter and during filming York severely injured his back. This injury caused constant excruciating pain and led to a daily ritual of painkillers. That ritual became an addiction. Eventually, everyone noticed and it became routine to have scenes and plots rewritten so Darrin could be filmed seated, lying down, or reclining (usually at his office desk, in bed or on the couch at home) as much as possible. But due to the physical slapstick comedy nature of the sitcom, situations often arose that made filming in such a manner an impossibility. In one such episode, York was hanging 15 feet in the air, alongside warlock father-in-law (Maurice Evans) on the show. It had been a bad day already for York; he was taking pills to sleep at night and receiving shots of Novocaine and cortisone in his back to keep working. While atop the elevated platform, York felt dizzy and weak in the knees and ask that the lift be lowered to the ground. Once down, the naturally shaky actor collapsed and was rushed to the hospital.
The show’s producer, Bill Asher (Elizabeth Montgomery’s husband in real life) visited York in the hospital as he was recuperating. There he learned the details of York’s affliction and asked him point blank if he wanted to quit the show. York said yes. Dick Sargent was immediately hired to replace Dick York as “Darrin Number 2.” Bewitched fans tuned in and were aghast at the change. To paraphrase Timothy Leary’s popular slogan of the day, the fans “Tuned in, were turned off and dropped out.” Unlike York before him, Sargent’s Darrin openly challenged his witchy in-laws, much to the disdain of viewers. The show’s dynamic changed and the ratings plummeted. In 1969, Dick York’s final season as Darrin, the show was a ratings hit at #11, but when Sargent took over, ratings dropped and the show sank to #24. Little did they know, the Two Darrin’s switch signaled the end of the series and the beginning of the curse of Bewitched.
Al Hunter is the author of the “Haunted Indianapolis” and co-author of the “Haunted Irvington” and “Indiana National Road” book series. Contact him directly at Huntvault@aol.com or become a friend on Facebook.
