Bewitched is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typical suburban housewife. The show was popular, finishing as the second-rated show in America during its debut season, staying in the top ten for its first three seasons, and ranking in eleventh place for both seasons four and five. The show continues to be seen throughout the world in syndication and on recorded media.
Bewitched was created by Sol Saks under executive producer Harry Ackerman and starred Elizabeth Montgomery as Samantha Stephens, Dick York (1964–1969) as Darrin Stephens, and Agnes Moorehead as Endora, Samantha's mother. Dick Sargent replaced an ailing York for the final three seasons, 1969–1972.
Hanna-Barbera produced the opening and closing animation credits. In 2002, Bewitched was ranked No. 50 on "TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time". In 1997, the same magazine ranked the season 2 episode "Divided He Falls" #48 on their list of the "100 Greatest Episodes of All Time".
Plot
A beautiful witch named Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery) meets and marries a mortal named Darrin Stephens (originally Dick York, later Dick Sargent). While Samantha complies with Darrin's wishes to become a normal suburban housewife, 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, the effects of which wreak havoc with mortals such as his boss, clients, parents, and neighbors. By the epilogue, however, Darrin and Samantha most often embrace, having overcome the devious elements that failed to separate them. The witches and their male counterparts, warlocks, are very long-lived; while Samantha appears to be a young woman, many episodes suggest she is actually hundreds of years old. To keep their society secret, witches avoid showing their powers in front of mortals other than Darrin. Nevertheless, the effects of their spells—and Samantha's attempts to hide their supernatural origin from mortals—drive the plot of most episodes. Witches and warlocks usually use physical gestures along with their incantations. To perform magic, Samantha often twitches her nose to create a spell. Special visual effects are accompanied by music to highlight such an action.
Setting
The main setting for most episodes is the Stephenses' home at 1164 Morning Glory Circle, in an upper-middle-class suburban neighborhood, either in Westport, Connecticut or Patterson, New York as indicated by conflicting information presented throughout the series. Many scenes also take place at the fictional Madison Avenue advertising agency McMann and Tate, where Darrin works.
Cast and characters
Elizabeth Montgomery as Samantha Stephens; Dick York (1964–1969) as Darrin Stephens, her husband (Dick Sargent replaced an ailing York for the final three seasons, 1969–1972); Agnes Moorehead as Endora, Samantha's mother; David White as Larry Tate, Darrin's boss; Irene Vernon (1964–1966) & later Kasey Rogers (1966–1972) as Louise Tate, Larry's wife; Alice Pearce (1964–1966) as Gladys Kravitz; George Tobias (1964–1971) as her husband, Abner Kravitz; Erin Murphy (1966–1972) as Tabitha Stephens (she shared this role for 18 episodes with her fraternal twin sister, Diane Murphy). In 1966, Sandra Gould took over the part of Gladys Kravitz (1966–1971) after the death of Alice Pearce.
Annual semi-regulars: Paul Lynde as Samantha's Uncle Arthur (1965–1971) Maurice Evans as Maurice, Samantha's father; Marion Lorne as Samantha's Aunt Clara (1964–1968); Alice Ghostley as Esmeralda, Tabitha's babysitter (1969–1972); Bernard Fox as Dr. Bombay (1967-1972); Mabel Albertson as Darrin's mother, Phyllis Stephens (1964–1971); Robert F. Simon & Roy Roberts alternating the role of Frank Stephens, Darrin's father (1964–1971).
During its run, the series had a number of major cast changes, often because of illness or death of the actors.
Precursors
Creator Sol Saks' inspirations for this series were the film I Married a Witch (1942), developed from Thorne Smith's unfinished novel The Passionate Witch, and the John Van Druten Broadway play Bell, Book and Candle, which was adapted into the 1958 film.