SPÉCIAL TÉLÉSÉRIES CULTES ANNÉES '60 ET '70: Premier épisode de la série Bewitched 1964 (Ma sorcière bien-aimée) avec Elizabeth Montgomery. V.o. anglaise.

Ma sorcière bien-aimée (Bewitched) est une série télévisée américaine, en 254 épisodes de 25 minutes, dont 74 en noir et blanc (puis colorisés), créée par Sol Saks et diffusée aux États-Unis du au , sur la chaîne ABC.

En France, les saisons 1 à 5 ont été diffusées à partir du sur la première chaîne de l'ORTF. Rediffusion en 1986 à partir de la saison 3 sur Antenne 2, qui programme les épisodes inédits des saisons 6 à 8. Rediffusion en 1991 sur M6. Rediffusée à partir de 2006 sur Paris Première et à partir du sur M6 puis sur Téva et depuis le sur Gulli France. En Belgique et Lorraine, sur Télé Luxembourg puis sur RTL-TVi. En Suisse, la série a été diffusée sur la chaîne publique TSR1 et au Québec dans les années 1960-70 sur Télé-Métropole (TVA), sur Canal Famille dans les années 1990 et sur Prise 2 depuis 2009.

À partir des années 1980, les 74 premiers épisodes en noir et blanc qui constituent les deux premières saisons ne seront plus diffusés. Il faudra attendre leur colorisation pour les revoir à l'antenne.

Synopsis

Agnes Moorehead dans le rôle d'Endora

Samantha, membre d'une éminente société de sorcellerie, a vécu pendant plusieurs siècles loin des humains. Un jour, cette ravissante sorcière tombe amoureuse et épouse Jean-Pierre Stephens (Darrin Stephens dans la version originale), un mortel qui travaille dans l'agence de publicité McMann et Tate.

La vie de Jean-Pierre est bouleversée lorsque sa femme lui avoue le soir de leur nuit de noces qu'elle est une sorcière. Samantha n'a qu'à bouger son nez pour lancer un sortilège. De plus, sa mère, Endora, et son père, Maurice, et tous les autres membres de sa famille pratiquent la sorcellerie.

À la demande de son mari, qui veut une épouse normale et refuse la magie chez lui, Samantha promet de ne plus utiliser ses pouvoirs et de vivre comme une humaine. Mais voilà qu'Endora, la mère de Samantha, refuse de voir sa fille traitée comme la bonne à tout faire de ce simple mortel.

Aussi, elle s'acharne à vouloir montrer à Samantha l'erreur qu'elle a faite en épousant cet être « inférieur » et se lance dans diverses manigances pour ensorceler Jean-Pierre. Il est ainsi tour à tour changé en singe, en perroquet, en enfant, en vieillard ou en loup-garou quand il ne se retrouve pas tout bonnement désintégré…

Malgré sa promesse, Samantha est donc parfois obligée de recourir à la magie pour sortir Jean-Pierre d'un mauvais pas, ou pour arranger la situation lorsque, à la suite des agissements d'Endora ou d'autres sorciers, la situation entre Jean-Pierre et ses clients tourne à la catastrophe.

Sur un ton léger, la série développe les aventures du couple que forment Samantha et Jean-Pierre (Darrin), régulièrement en butte aux sortilèges de sa belle-famille. Le ressort scénaristique de nombreux épisodes reposant sur la manière dont Samantha, grâce à ses propres pouvoirs magiques, qu'elle invoque en remuant le bout de son nez, parvient à rétablir la situation.

Endora n'est pas la seule coupable des déboires de Jean-Pierre. En effet, Maurice, le père de Samantha, est lui aussi opposé à ce mariage. La tante Clara, bien que très gentille, assez âgée et maladroite, est le seul membre de la famille de Samantha à avoir accepté le mariage de sa nièce avec un mortel, car Samantha a toujours été sa nièce préférée et elle a toujours soutenu ses choix depuis des siècles. Tante Clara, quelque peu sénile, ne maîtrise plus correctement ses pouvoirs et, en voulant rendre service, cause de nombreuses catastrophes ou fait apparaître des personnages historiques (Benjamin Franklin, la reine Victoria…). L’oncle Arthur est un plaisantin qui s'amuse à faire des blagues en utilisant ses pouvoirs. La cousine Serena, sosie de Samantha, est elle aussi espiègle et désinvolte et cause bien des soucis à ce pauvre Jean-Pierre. Enfin, Esmeralda, la bonne des Stephens, que Sam appelle dès qu'elle en a besoin, s'entête elle aussi à rendre service, mais ses pouvoirs ne sont pas très puissants et elle cause des catastrophes aussi souvent que la tante Clara. Par exemple, dès qu'Esmeralda éternue, des objets embêtants apparaissent.

Alfred Tate (Larry Tate dans la version originale, diminutif de Lawrence, comme indiqué sur la porte de son bureau) est le patron de Jean-Pierre. Jovial mais envahissant, il s'invite plus d'une fois à l'improviste avec ses gros clients chez Jean-Pierre et Samantha. Prenant systématiquement le parti des clients face à Jean-Pierre, il n'hésite pas à s'approprier les idées de ce dernier, voire plusieurs fois à le mettre à la porte. Il a une profonde sympathie pour Endora.

Enfin, les Kravitz, voisins des Stephens, complètent les personnages récurrents de la série. Si monsieur Kravitz est un homme tranquille et blasé de la vie de couple avec Charlotte (Gladys dans la VO), sa femme, par contre, est une vraie commère et une espionne invétérée qui s'obstine à vouloir prouver que Samantha Stephens est une sorcière. Mais la pauvre femme passe pour une folle aux yeux de son mari qui trouve le couple Stephens des plus adorables et des plus ordinaires.

Ce couple modèle à l'américaine a également deux enfants : une fille, Tabatha, qui a, elle aussi, bien du mal à s'empêcher d'utiliser ses pouvoirs magiques, et un fils, Adam, qui naît lors de la sixième saison.

Distribution

Personnages principaux

  • Samantha : jeune sorcière et femme au foyer ayant épousé Jean-Pierre, un mortel. Elle doit le défendre contre les autres sorciers refusant de la voir mariée à un mortel (en particulier, sa mère Endora).
  • Jean-Pierre : employé dans la compagnie publicitaire McMann & Tate, il subit sans cesse les offenses de sa belle-mère, qui lui joue des tours dans son travail et sa vie de couple. À partir de la saison 6 c'est l'acteur Dick Sargent qui reprendra le rôle de Jean-Pierre jusqu'à l'arrêt de la série.
  • Endora : mère de Samantha, sorcière particulièrement performante, car plus expérimentée. Elle est hautaine, fière d'elle et déteste les mortels en général.
  • Maurice : le père de Samantha. Il n'apparaît que très rarement pendant la série, et paraît plus souple qu'Endora bien qu'il ait voulu supprimer Jean-Pierre lors de sa première visite.
  • Tante Clara : c'est la plus âgée des sorcières de la série, ses pouvoirs s'affaiblissent avec le temps. C'est la seule sorcière à accepter Jean-Pierre et le respecter mais sa maladresse due à sa vieillesse joue parfois des mauvais tours à Jean-Pierre et Samantha. Elle passe son temps à collectionner les poignées de portes, elle en est obsédée à tel point qu'elle vole les poignées de porte des maisons qu'elle visite. Elle sera présente jusqu'à la saison 4 (l'actrice décédera pendant le tournage de la saison 4). Dans les saisons suivantes Esmeralda prendra la place de tante Clara, dans un style différent.
  • Tabatha Stephens : c'est la première enfant de Samantha et Jean-Pierre, née au cours de la saison 2 (épisode 19), on apprendra ensuite qu'elle est une sorcière.
  • Serena : cousine et sosie de Samantha, elle n'aime pas non plus Jean-Pierre, elle apparaît assez rarement et est interprétée également par Elizabeth Montgomery.
  • Oncle Arthur : oncle de Samantha, il aime la plaisanterie et ne sait rien prendre au sérieux.
  • Alfred Tate : patron de Jean-Pierre et adjoint de McMann. C'est le meilleur ami de Jean-Pierre.
  • Louise Tate : épouse d'Alfred, elle est la meilleure amie de Samantha.
  • Charlotte Kravitz : voisine de Samantha, elle est curieuse et pipelette, observant par la fenêtre les faits anormaux qui se passent chez les Stephens, ce qui l'affole souvent et l'intrigue davantage. Le rôle fut joué par Alice Pearce, qui décéda d'un cancer pendant la saison 2 et fut remplacée lors des derniers épisodes de la saison par Mary Grace Canfield, laquelle jouera le rôle de la sœur d'Albert gardant la maison des Kravitz, partis voir la mère de Charlotte. À partir de la saison 3 c'est l'actrice Sandra Gould qui reprendra le rôle de Charlotte Kravitz jusqu'à l'arrêt de la série.
  • Albert Kravitz : mari de Charlotte, il se désintéresse de sa femme et ne l'écoute jamais quand elle lui raconte ce qu'elle a vu chez les Stephens. Il ne la croit pas.
  • Producteur exécutif : Harry Ackerman
  • Principaux réalisateurs : William Asher, Richard Michaels, R. Robert Rosenbaum, Richard Kinon, E.W. Swackhamer

Récompenses

  • Emmy Awards 1966 : Meilleure actrice dans un second rôle pour Alice Pearce (Honneur décerné à titre posthume: Alice Pearce meurt d'un cancer pendant le tournage de la deuxième saison.)
  • Emmy Awards 1966 : Meilleure direction d'acteurs pour William Asher
  • Emmy Awards 1968 : Meilleure actrice dans un second rôle pour Marion Lorne (Honneur décerné à titre posthume: Marion Lorne décède pendant le tournage de la quatrième saison.)

Épisodes

Vers une suite pour les 50 ans

La chaîne NBC a déclaré la mise en place d'une suite à la célèbre série Ma sorcière bien-aimée qui mettra en avant la petite-fille de Jean-Pierre et Samantha Stephens qui aurait pour nom Daphné et serait jouée par l'actrice Malin Akerman, mais ce n'est qu'une supposition.

Doublage francophone

Lors du doublage de la série, deux versions furent réalisées. La première version sans rires enregistrés était destinée aux pays francophones européens. La seconde version, avec les rires, mais gardant les mêmes voix françaises, était destinée au Québec.

Les extérieurs

Les extérieurs de la série furent tournés dans l'un des studios en plein air de la Warner appelé Le Ranch, qui appartenait précédemment à la Columbia. Ce studio se situe dans le centre de Burbank en Californie et reproduit une rue américaine avec différents types de maisons. Celle des Stephens, sorte de coquille vide, ne comporte que la façade avec son toit incliné et derrière une sorte de grange de 3 mètres de profondeur, terminée par un simple mur droit en brique qui monte jusqu'au demi-toit. Elle fut accolée à un garage préexistant du temps de la Columbia. La maison des Kravitz ne se trouve pas en face, de l'autre côté de la rue, mais quelques maisons plus bas, du même côté. En face de la maison des Stephens, il y a juste un parc et une piscine en plein air qui va servir de lieu de tournage pour nombre de séries. Quelques façades sont célèbres : citons par exemple celle qui fut utilisée pour la demeure des Ewing dans Dallas. Les extérieurs de la série Friends furent également tournés dans ce studio qui comporte dans un parc recréé la fameuse fontaine apparaissant dans le générique. Enfin, sur une hauteur, le fameux motel Bates...

Autour de la série

  • Étrangement, 2 épisodes de la saison 1 ont été rediffusés pendant la saison 2 : l'épisode 15 de la saison 1 (« La Joie de Noël » = « A Vision of Sugar Plums ») rediffusé dans l'épisode 15 de la saison 2 (« J'ai vu le Père Noël » = « A Vision of Sugar Plums ») et l'épisode 14 de la saison 1 (« Les Beaux-Parents » = « Samantha Meets the Folks ») rediffusé dans l'épisode 20 de la saison 2 (« La Rencontre » = « Samantha Meets the Folks »).
  • Dans les deux premières saisons, tournées en noir et blanc, l'entrée de la maison des Stephens est ornée d'un imposant chandelier à sept branches. Il sera remplacé ensuite par un tableau.
  • Après leur colorisation, dans ces deux premières saisons la proportion de personnages aux yeux bleus (d'un bleu « des mers du Sud ») est étonnamment élevée, ainsi d'ailleurs que les objets de cette couleur (mobilier, téléphones, vaisselle, automobiles, vêtements…).
  • Presque chaque épisode se termine par un baiser entre Jean-Pierre et Samantha.
  • Le générique animé de la série fut créé par Hanna-Barbera Productions.
  • En version française, les prénoms et noms de plusieurs personnages ont été francisés : Darrin Stephens devient Jean-Pierre Stephens, Larry Tate est nommé Alfred Tate, alors que les voisins Abner et Gladys Kravitz deviennent Albert et Charlotte Kravitz. (Bien qu'elle sera nommée Gladys dans deux épisodes). Le nom de Tabitha Stephens est traduit en Tabatha Stephens.
  • Le succès de Ma sorcière bien-aimée a poussé NBC, la chaîne concurrente d'ABC, à lancer sa propre série dont le personnage principal serait doté de pouvoirs surnaturels1. Ainsi est née la série Jinny de mes rêves en 1965. Il existe de nombreuses points communs entre les deux séries (génériques sous forme animée et musique du même style, personnages centraux (Samantha / Jinny) toutes deux blondes et essayant (l'une sorcière, l'autre génie) de s'adapter à un monde de mortels, partenaires bruns et mortels). Les similitudes se retrouvent jusque dans les décors, puisque les deux séries étaient tournées à Hollywood dans les mêmes studios. Ainsi, la cuisine d'Alfred et Louise Tate dans l'épisode La Cousine hippie (saison 4, épisode 21) est exactement celle du major Nelson dans les épisodes de Jinny de mes rêves. De même, l'extérieur de la maison du major Nelson est identique à celle des Kravitz, les voisins de Samatha. En outre, dans les deux séries, les intrigues découlent souvent de la confrontation entre le monde des mortels et les effets d'un sortilège ou d'un tour mal géré, ce qui n'a rien d'étonnant puisque certains scénaristes ont signé des scripts pour les deux séries, notamment James S. Henerson, Ron Friedman, Peggy Chantler Dick, Douglas Dick et John L. Greene, ce dernier ayant également signé plusieurs épisodes de Mon martien favori, dont les intrigues sont recyclées pour Ma sorcière bien-aimée et Jinny de mes rêves. Si, pour lancer des sortilèges, Samantha remue son nez, l'héroïne de Jinny de mes rêves cligne des yeux. Se remarque donc un plagiat manifeste de la part des créateurs de la série Jinny. En dépit de ces similitudes, Ma sorcière bien-aimée, demeurée plus célèbre que sa rivale encore aujourd'hui, obtient au moment de sa première diffusion aux États-Unis une audience supérieure. Ainsi, pendant la saison 1965-1966, Bewitched (Ma sorcière bien-aimée) se classe en septième position avec 25,9 % de l'audience, alors que la série I Dream of Jeannie (Jinny de mes rêves) occupe la vingt-septième avec 21.8 %2.
  • À noter que le « ph » de « Stephens » se prononce « v » comme dans la version originale américaine, donc il s'agit d'une erreur de typographie lorsque le nom est écrit « Stevens »).
  • La série invitait fréquemment des acteurs plus ou moins connus pour le rôle des clients de l'agence de publicité McMann & Tate, acteurs qu'on retrouve également en tant qu'invités dans plusieurs autres séries de l'époque, telles que Jinny de mes rêves, Max la Menace (en tant qu'agent de Kaos ou de Control), Le Prisonnier (dans les rôles du no 2), ou bien quelques années auparavant dans La Quatrième Dimension. À propos de cette dernière série, Dick York joue un premier rôle de Hector B. Poole dans l'épisode Un sou pour vos pensées, épisode 16 de la saison 2, en février 1961, alors qu'Elizabeth Montgomery tient le rôle principal aux côtés de Charles Bronson dans Deux, le premier épisode de la troisième saison en septembre 1961.
  • Un grand nombre d'Américaines, nées entre 1966 et 1967, sont prénommées Tabatha ou Samantha en raison de l'immense succès que rencontre la série.
  • Le thème musical et l'univers de la série sont souvent utilisés, encore récemment, dans les années 2000, au cinéma, à la télévision et dans la publicité. Citons par exemple l'utilisation du thème musical pour la promotion des plumeaux de la marque Swiffer (septembre 2005) ou en sonnerie du téléphone portable de Nathalie Baye dans le film Passe-passe (dans lequel Édouard Baer est d'ailleurs prestidigitateur).
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  • Bewitched is an American television sitcom fantasy series, originally broadcast for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It was created by Sol Saks under executive director Harry Ackerman, and starred Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York (1964–1969), Agnes Moorehead, and David White. Dick Sargent replaced an ill York for the final three seasons (1969–1972). The show is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man, and vows to lead the life of a typical suburban housewife. Bewitched enjoyed great popularity, finishing as the number two show in America during its debut season, and becoming the longest-running supernatural-themed sitcom of the 1960s–1970s. The show continues to be seen throughout the world in syndication and on recorded media.

    In 2002, Bewitched was ranked #50 on "TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time".[1] 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".[2]

    Plot

    Dick York, Elizabeth Montgomery (front) and Agnes Moorehead (back) as Darrin, Samantha and Endora

    A young-looking witch named Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery) meets and marries a mortal named Darrin Stephens (originally Dick York, later Dick Sargent). While Samantha pledges to forsake her powers and become a typical 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. Effective special visual effects are accompanied by music to highlight such an action.

    Setting

    The main setting for most episodes is the Stephens' house 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. The season 3 episode "Soap Box Derby" shows the Mills Garage in Patterson as a neighbor's son's car sponsor, and the Stephens' station wagon is seen with New York plates. Elizabeth Montgomery owned a second home in Patterson.

    Many scenes also take place at the fictional Madison Avenue advertising agency "McMann and Tate", where Darrin works.

    Characters

    Cast of Characters
    Character Actor(s) No. of episodes
    Main Characters
    Samantha Stephens Elizabeth Montgomery 254
    Darrin Stephens Dick York (1964–1969)
    Dick Sargent (1969–1972)    		 156 (York)
    84 (Sargent)
    Endora Agnes Moorehead 147
    Larry Tate David White 166
    Recurring Characters
    Tabatha/Tabitha Stephens Cynthia Black (1966)
    Heidi and Laura Gentry (1966)
    Tamar and Julie Young (1966)
    Diane Murphy (1966–1968)
    Erin Murphy (1966–1972)    		 116
    Gladys Kravitz Alice Pearce (1964–1966)
    Sandra Gould (1966–1971)    		 30 (Pearce)
    27 (Gould)
    Abner Kravitz George Tobias (1964–1971) 55
    Louise Tate Irene Vernon (1964–1966)
    Kasey Rogers (1966–1972)    		 13 (Vernon)
    33 (Rogers)
    Aunt Clara Marion Lorne (1964–1968) 28
    Serena Elizabeth Montgomery (1966–1972)
    (credited as "Pandora Spocks")    		 24
    Adam Stephens unknown (1969–1970)
    Greg and David Lawrence (1970–1972)    		 24
    Phyllis Stephens Mabel Albertson (1964–1971) 19
    Dr. Bombay Bernard Fox (1967–1972) 18
    Esmeralda Alice Ghostley (1969–1972) 15
    Frank Stephens Robert F. Simon (1964–67, 1971)
    Roy Roberts (1967–1970)    		 13
    Maurice Maurice Evans 12
    Uncle Arthur Paul Lynde (1965–1971) 10

    During its run, the series had a number of major cast changes, often because of illness or death of the actors. In particular, the performer playing Darrin was replaced mid-season.

    Precursors

    Dick Sargent, Elizabeth Montgomery, Erin Murphy and David Lawrence during the show's final season

    According to Harpie's Bizarre,[3] (a website based on the frequently-depicted "witch magazine" from the series) creator Sol Saks' inspirations for this series in which many similarities can be seen 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 movie.[4]

    In I Married a Witch, Wallace Wooley (Fredric March) is a descendant of people who executed witches at the Salem witch trials. As revenge, a witch (Veronica Lake) prepares a love potion for him. She ends up consuming her own potion and falling for her enemy. Her father is against this union.[4] In the film of Bell, Book and Candle, modern witch Gillian Holroyd (Kim Novak) uses a love spell on Shep Henderson (James Stewart) to have a simple fling with him but genuinely falls for the man.[4]

    Both films were properties of Columbia Pictures, which also owned Screen Gems, the company that produced Bewitched.[5]

    Production and broadcasting

    Sol Saks, who received credit as the creator of the show, wrote the pilot of Bewitched though he was not involved with the show after the pilot. Creator Saks, executive producer Harry Ackerman, and director William Asher started filming the pilot on November 22, 1963; it coincided with the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Asher felt personally affected by the event as he knew Kennedy; he had produced the 1962 televised birthday party where Marilyn Monroe sang "Happy Birthday, Mr. President". But the show had to go on.[6] The pilot concerned "the occult destabilization of the conformist life of an upwardly mobile advertising man".[6]

    First season producer and head writer Danny Arnold set the initial style and tone of the series, and also helped develop supporting characters such as Larry Tate and the Kravitzes. Arnold, who wrote on McHale's Navy and other shows, thought of Bewitched essentially as a romantic comedy about a mixed marriage; his episodes kept the magic element to a minimum. One or two magical acts drove the plot, but Samantha often solved problems without magic. Many of the first season's episodes were allegorical, using supernatural situations as metaphors for the problems any young couple would face. Arnold stated that the two main themes of the series were the conflict between a powerful woman and a husband who cannot deal with that power, and the anger of a bride's mother at seeing her daughter marry beneath her. Though the show was a hit right from the beginning, finishing its first year as the number 2 show in the United States, ABC wanted more magic and more farcical plots, causing battles between Arnold and the network.

    Its first season, Bewitched was the number one show of the American Broadcasting Company and the best rated sitcom among all three networks. It was second in ratings only to Bonanza.[6] Bewitched aired at 9 p.m Thursday evenings. It was preceded on the air by another sitcom, My Three Sons, and followed by the soap opera Peyton Place. My Three Sons finished 13th in the ratings and Peyton Place ninth. The block formed by the three shows was the strongest ratings grabber in ABC's schedule.[6]

    Arnold left the show after the first season, leaving producing duties to his friend Jerry Davis, who had already produced some of the first season's episodes (though Arnold was still supervising the writing). The second season was produced by Davis and with Bernard Slade as head writer, with misunderstandings and farce becoming a more prevalent element, but still included a number of more low-key episodes in which the magic element was not front and center.

    With the third season and the switch to color, Davis left the show, and was replaced as producer by William Froug. Slade also left after the second season. According to William Froug's autobiography, William Asher (who had directed many episodes) wanted to take over as producer when Jerry Davis left, but the production company was not yet ready to approve the idea. Froug, a former producer of Gilligan's Island and the last season of The Twilight Zone, was brought in as a compromise. By his own admission, Froug was not very familiar with Bewitched and found himself in the uncomfortable position of being the official producer even though Asher was making most of the creative decisions. After a year, Froug left the show, and Asher took over as full-time producer of the series for the rest of its run.

    The first two seasons had aired Thursdays at 9:00, and the time was moved to 8:30 shortly after the third year (1966–1967) had begun. Nevertheless, the ratings for Bewitched remained high and it placed among the top fifteen shows through the 1968-69 season. It was the seventh highest-rated show in both the U.S. 65-66 and 66-67 schedules. Similarly, it was number 11 the following two years.[6] At the time, the show had won three Emmy Awards. William Asher won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series in 1966.

    Alice Pearce posthumously won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her portrayal of Gladys Kravitz, and Marion Lorne won the same award posthumously in 1968 for her portrayal of Aunt Clara.[6][7] Producers were faced with how to deal with the deaths of both these actresses. When Pearce died in the spring of 1966, only a few episodes of season two remained to be filmed. Mary Grace Canfield was hired to play Gladys's sister-in-law, Harriet Kravitz in four episodes. Comedian Alice Ghostley was approached to take over the role of Gladys the next season, but turned it down. Instead, Sandra Gould was hired. Marion Lorne was not replaced, and the character of Aunt Clara was not seen after the fourth season. Rather, beginning in the show's sixth year, Ghostley was finally used to play the character of Esmeralda, a kind but shy and inept witch.

    In another notable casting change, Louise Tate, played by Irene Vernon during the first two seasons, was played by Kasey Rogers thereafter. During the fifth season (1968–1969), Serena (Samantha's identical cousin, also played by Montgomery) was used more frequently. Filming of scenes involving both Samantha and Serena was accomplished by using Melody McCord, Montgomery's stand-in.[8]

    In this same season, in the most notable of the show's many cast changes, Dick York became unable to continue his role as Darrin because of a severe back condition, the result of an accident during the filming of They Came To Cordura (1959). Starting with the third season, York's disability had caused ongoing shooting delays and script rewrites resulting in increasingly frequent episodes without Darrin. After collapsing while filming the episode "Daddy Does His Thing" and being rushed to the hospital in January 1969, York left the show permanently. That same month, Dick Sargent was cast to play Darrin beginning in the sixth season.[9] The remainder of the fifth season was filmed without York and features many episodes where Darrin is away on business. At about the same time, Montgomery and Asher announced that they were expecting another baby and it was decided that Samantha and Darrin would also have another child in the fall of that year. On screen, Samantha tells Darrin over the phone the news of her second pregnancy.

    Beginning with the sixth season's (1969–1970) opening credits, in addition to York being replaced with Sargent, Elizabeth Montgomery was billed above the title, and David White now received billing as well, after Agnes Moorehead's. During this year, the show saw a significant decline in ratings, falling from eleventh to 24th place.

    In mid-1970, the set of the Stephens' home was being rebuilt due to a fire. In June, the cast and crew traveled to Salem, Magnolia, and Gloucester, Massachusetts to film an eight-part story arc in which Samantha, Darrin, and Endora travel to Salem for the centennial Witches Convocation. These location shoots marked the only times the show would film away from its Hollywood studio sets and backlot. Season seven premiered with eight so-called 'Salem Saga' episodes. On June 15, 2005, TV Land unveiled a Samantha statue in Salem to mark the show's 40th anniversary.[10] On hand were three surviving actors from the show, Bernard Fox, Erin Murphy, and Kasey Rogers, as well as producer/director William Asher.[11] These on-location episodes helped the show's sagging ratings,[12] but after the Salem episodes, viewership again dwindled. Scripts from old episodes were recycled frequently. The year's ratings for Bewitched had fallen and the show did not even rank in the list of the top thirty programs.

    ABC moved Bewitched 's airtime from Thursdays at 8:30 p.m. to Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. at the beginning of the eighth season. The schedule change did not help ratings as the show was now pitted against CBS's popular The Carol Burnett Show. Fewer recurring characters were used this season, with the Kravitzes, Darrin's parents, and Uncle Arthur not appearing at all. Filming ended in December 1971, and in January 1972 the show was finally moved to Saturday night at 8:00 P.M., opposite television's number one show, All in the Family, where it fared even worse, with Bewitched finishing in 72nd place for the year.

    Storylines repeated from I Love Lucy

    In the episode "Samantha's Power Failure", Serena's and Uncle Arthur's powers are removed by the Witches' Council. The impotent duo get jobs in a confectionery factory, with both tossing and hiding an onslaught of bananas from a conveyor belt which are to be dipped in chocolate and nuts, then packaged. This episode mimics the famous chocolate assembly-line episode of I Love Lucy ("Job Switching"), which was directed by Bewitched producer/director William Asher. Serena's and Arthur's jokes and physical antics are taken from Lucy's (Lucille Ball) and Ethel's (Vivian Vance) playbook.

    In the episode "Samantha's Supermaid" Samantha interviews a maid, and the scene is almost identical to one in Lucy. Season 8 featured a European vacation, but was filmed in Hollywood using stock footage, like the "European" episodes of Lucy. Similar to Endora's refusal to pronounce Darrin's name correctly, Lucy's mother always referred to son-in-law Ricky with incorrect names, including "Mickey", and in a letter once, "what's-his-name".

    Timely topics

    Some episodes take a backdoor approach to such topics as racism, as seen in the first season episode, "The Witches Are Out", in which Samantha objects to Darrin's demeaning ad portrayal of witches as ugly and deformed. Such stereotypical imagery often causes Endora and other witches to flee the country until November. In the second season installment, "Trick Or Treat", Endora, believing Darrin to be prejudiced against witches, turns him into a werewolf. It is only through Samantha convincing her that Darrin was the one mortal who refused to believe that witches were ugly or evil does Endora relent and take the spell off him. In a similar episode during the sixth season ("To Trick-Or-Treat or not to Trick-Or-Treat"), feeling that by participating in Halloween customs that Darrin disrespects witches in general, Endora turns him into a stereotypical one. "Sisters at Heart" (season 7), whose story was submitted by a tenth-grade English class, involves Tabitha altering the skin tone of herself and a black friend with coordinating polka-dots so people would treat them equally.[13] In the 1969 episode, "Tabitha's Weekend", when offered homemade cookies by Darrin's mother, Endora asks, "They're not by chance from an Alice B. Toklas recipe?" Phyllis replies, "They're my recipe", to which Endora retorts, "Then I'll pass". Toklas's cookbook was infamous for having a dessert recipe which included hashish.[14]

    Sets and locations

    The 1959 Columbia Pictures film Gidget was filmed on location at a real house in Santa Monica (at 267 18th Street). The blueprint design of this house was later reversed and replicated as a house facade attached to an existing garage on the backlot of Columbia's Ranch. This was the house seen on Bewitched. The patio and living room sets seen in Columbia's Gidget Goes to Rome (1963) were soon adapted for the permanent Bewitched set for 1964. The interior of the Stephens' house can be seen, substantially unaltered, in the Jerry Lewis film Hook, Line & Sinker (1969). The set was also used several times in the television series Gidget and I Dream of Jeannie, as well as the made-for-television movie Brian's Song (1971). It was also used, as a setting for an opening tag sequence, for the final episode of the first season of another Screen Gems property, The Monkees and in an episode of The Fantastic Journey.

    The house served as Doctor Bellows' house on I Dream of Jeannie, and was seen in an episode of Home Improvement when Tim Taylor took Tool Time on location to the house of Vinnie's mother to repair a gas leak in the furnace in the basement, but unknown to Tim there was also a leak at the stove in the kitchen. A clap on-Clap off lamp turned on when Tim clapped and it blew up. The Stephens house was also featured in a Fruit of the Loom Christmas commercial.

    On the Columbia studio backlot, the Kravitzes' house was actually down the street from the Stephens' house exterior. Both houses' exterior doors opened to an unfinished eighteen-by-fifteen foot entry, as the interiors were shot on studio sound stages elsewhere. A "front porch" set, replicating the porch of the backlot house was created as well. From 1964 through 1966 the Kravitzes' house was the same as used for The Donna Reed Show and was later used for the house sets from The Partridge Family.

    Production and filming for Bewitched was based in Los Angeles and, although the setting is assumed to be New York, several episodes feature wide-angle exterior views of the Stephens' neighborhood showing a California landscape with mountains in the distance. Another example of questionable continuity regarding the location can be seen in Season 6, Episode 6: Darrin's parents drive home after visiting the new baby, passing several large palm trees lining the street.

    Nielsen ratings

    Season Time slot (ET) Rank Rating[15]
    1964–65 Thursday at 9:00 PM 2 31.0
    1965–66 7 25.9 (Tied with The Beverly Hillbillies)
    1966–67 Thursday at 9:00 PM (Episodes 1-17)
    Thursday at 8:30 PM (Episodes 18-33)    		 23.4 (Tied with Daktari and The Beverly Hillbillies)
    1967–68 Thursday at 9:00 PM (Episode 1)[16]
    Thursday at 8:30 PM (Episodes 2-33)    		 11 23.5
    1968–69 Thursday at 8:30 PM 23.3 (Tied with Mission: Impossible and The Red Skelton Hour)
    1969–70 24 20.6 (Tied with The NBC Saturday Night Movie and The F.B.I.)
    1970–71 N/A
    1971–72 Wednesday at 8:00 PM (Episodes 1-15)
    Saturday at 8:00 PM (Episodes 16-26)

    Cultural context

    Feminist Betty Friedan wrote the essay "Television and the Feminine Mystique" (February, 1964) where she criticized the way women were portrayed in television. She summarized their depiction as stupid, unattractive, and insecure household drudges. Their time was divided between dreaming of love and plotting revenge on their husbands. Samantha was not depicted this way and Endora used Friedan-like words to criticize the boring drudgery of household life.[4] Others have looked at the way that the series 'play[ed] into and subvert[ed] a rich load of cultural stereotypes and allusions' regarding witches, gender roles, advertising and consumerism.[17]

    In the episode "Eat at Mario's" (May 27, 1965), Samantha and Endora co-operate in using their witchcraft to defend and promote a quality Italian restaurant. They take delight in an active, aggressive role in the public space, breaking new ground in the depiction of women in television.[4]

    Reception

    Walter Metz attributes the success of the series to its snappy writing, the charm of Elizabeth Montgomery, and the talents of its large supporting cast. The show also made use of respected film techniques for its special effects. The soundtrack was unique, notably where it concerned the synthesized sound of nose twitching.[6]

    The first episodes feature a voice-over narrator "performing comic sociological analyses" of the role of a witch in middle class suburbia. The style was reminiscent of Hollywood films such as Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (1957).[4] In a 1991 audio interview with film historian Ronald Haver, Elizabeth Montgomery revealed that her father, Robert Montgomery was originally approached to narrate these episodes but he refused. Instead, the narration was done by Academy Award-winning actor Jose Ferrer, who did not receive credit.

    Impact

    The series inspired rival show I Dream of Jeannie (1965–1970), a program that, while in first run, was never a major ratings hit.[6]

    In popular culture

    The magical powers of the characters, and the sudden change of actors playing Darrin have been sources of many popular culture references to Bewitched.

  • In an episode of the 1960s sitcom My Favorite Martian, Martin's hands are tied so he is unable to utilize his martian powers with his finger. He instead tries twitching his nose, and when successful states that he had seen that technique on an Earth television program. In the French-dubbed version, he states that he “will send a kiss to Bewitched.”
  • In the episode "Trouble with the Rubbles" of Roseanne, new neighbors move in and Jackie asks Roseanne if she knows anything about them. Roseanne jokingly replies, "Well, okay, the husband, Darrin, he's in advertising, and they have this cute little daughter named Tabitha. But the wife, I don't know, something's wrong with her. I think she's a witch." In the episode "Homecoming", daughter Becky returns home after an extended absence from the series, and has been recast with a new actress (Sarah Chalke). In the epilogue, the Connors are watching Bewitched on television, discussing Darrin being replaced, and Becky muses, "Well, I like the second Darrin much better".[18] In another episode, Roseanne states sarcastically that she tried "twitching [her] nose" to clean up the kitchen, but it didn't work.
  • The principal of the prep school in the supernatural sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place is named Mr. Laritate, an allusion to the Bewitched character Larry Tate.
  • In the Charmed fourth season episode, "Lost and Bound", Phoebe worries about her ability to be a good wife and notes the only married witch she can think of as a model is Samantha Stephens. Subsequently, Cole gives her a ring which causes Phoebe to start behaving like Samantha, wearing her hairdo, spending all her time in the kitchen, while alternating between color and black and white.
  • In The Simpsons episode "Duffless", the advertising agency the feminists are protesting is called "McMahon and Tate Advertising". In a segment of the Halloween episode "Treehouse of Horror VIII", Marge Simpson portrays a witch in old Salem who is living as a mortal with her husband, Homer. When she is discovered and returns to her sister witches, one states, "So, you finally left Derwood." In episode "Mr. Plow", the "McMahon and Tate Advertising Agency" produces a television commercial for "Homer Simpson".
  • In the Family Guy episode, "The Cleveland-Loretta Quagmire", Stewie puts on an episode of Bewitched that shows Darrin throwing holy water on Endora as payback for all the spells she's cast on him.
  • In an episode of "The King of Queens" in which Carrie goes back to school, she arrives home and complains to Doug about being expected to understand the Allegory of the Cave when she can't even comprehend two Darrins on "Bewitched".
  • The episode "I Married an Alien" of Roswell begins with Isabel watching the Bewitched episode "Long Live the Queen" on TV. In several subsequent extended fantasy scenes, she imagines a 1960s sitcom version of her married life, complete with Bewitched style animated opening, visual and sound effects, plot, and laugh track.
  • In the "Hands and Knees" episode of Mad Men, which takes place in a Madison Avenue advertising agency in the 1960s, Roger Sterling is told by someone named "Louise" on the phone that "Larry" has died.
  • In an episode of American Dad, Stan wishes life was more like the '60s after watching an episode of Bewitched. The episode also features the animated intro except Samantha flies her broom into a nearby building, followed by the appearance of an internet address "www.itwaswitches.com", making a joke about conspiracy theorists who believe 9/11 was done by witches.
  • In the episode "Siege Perilous" of Once Upon a Time, Emma says, "You guys sure you don't want me to just wiggle my nose, and get him out of that tree?" in reference to Merlin who was trapped inside an enchanted tree.

Spin-offs, crossovers, and remakes

The Flintstones

The 1965 episode of The Flintstones titled "Samantha" (1965), features Dick York and Elizabeth Montgomery as Darrin and Samantha Stephens, who have just moved into the neighborhood. This crossover was facilitated because both series were broadcast on ABC.[19]

Tabitha and Adam and the Clown Family

An animated cartoon made in 1972 by Hanna-Barbera Productions for The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie, this featured teenage versions of Tabitha and Adam visiting their aunt and her family who travel with a circus.

Tabitha

In 1977, a short-lived spin-off entitled Tabitha aired on ABC. Lisa Hartman plays Tabitha, now an adult working with her brother Adam at television station KXLA. There were several continuity differences with the original series. Adam and Tabitha had both aged far more than the intervening five years between the two series would have allowed. Adam also had become Tabitha's older mortal brother, rather than her younger warlock brother, as he was in Bewitched. Supporting character Aunt Minerva (Karen Morrow) says she has been close to Tabitha since childhood, though she had never been mentioned once in the original series. Tabitha's parents are mentioned but never appear. However Bernard Fox, Sandra Gould, George Tobias and Dick Wilson reprised their roles as Dr. Bombay, Gladys Kravitz, Abner Kravitz, and the "drunk guy", respectively.

Passions

Bernard Fox appeared as Dr. Bombay in two episodes of the supernatural-themed daytime soap opera Passions. This show also featured a character named Tabitha, a middle-aged witch whose parents were Samantha and a mortal, Darrin, and who names her own child "Endora."[20]

Theatrical movie

Bewitched inspired a 2005 film starring Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell. The film, departing from the show's family-oriented tone, is not a remake but a re-imagining of the sitcom, with the action focused on arrogant, failing Hollywood actor Jack Wyatt (Ferrell) who is offered a career comeback playing Darrin in a remake of Bewitched. The role is contingent upon him finding the perfect woman to play Samantha. He chooses an unknown named Isabel Bigelow (Kidman), who is an actual witch. The film was written, directed, and produced by Nora Ephron, and was poorly received by most critics and was a financial disappointment. It earned $22 million less than the production cost domestically. However it earned an additional $68 million internationally. The New York Times called the film "an unmitigated disaster."[21]

Comic book adaptation

Dell Comics adapted the series into a comic book series in 1964. The art work was provided by Henry Scarpelli.[22]

Television remakes

  • Argentina: A remake called Hechizada, produced by Telefé, aired in early 2007. It starred Florencia Peña as Samantha, Gustavo Garzón as her husband, Eduardo, and Georgina Barbarrosa as Endora. This show adapted original scripts to an Argentinian context, with local humor and a contemporary setting. The show was cancelled due to low ratings after a few weeks.
  • Japan: TBS, a flagship station of Japan News Network, produced a remake called Okusama wa majo (奥さまは魔女, meaning "(My) Wife is a Witch"), also known as Bewitched in Tokyo.[23] Eleven episodes were broadcast on JNN stations Fridays at 10 p.m., from January 16 to March 26, 2004, and a special on December 21, 2004. The main character, Arisa Matsui, was portrayed by Ryōko Yonekura. Okusama wa majo is also the Japanese title for the original American series.
  • India: In 2002, Sony Entertainment Television began airing Meri Biwi Wonderful a local adaptation of Bewitched.
  • Russia: In 2009, TV3 broadcast a remake entitled "Моя любимая ведьма" ("My Favorite Witch"), starring Anna Zdor as Nadia (Samantha), Ivan Grishanov, as Ivan (Darrin) and Marina Esepenko as Nadia's mother. The series is very similar to the original, with most episodes based on those from the original series. American comedy writer/producer Norm Gunzenhauser oversaw the writing and directing of the series.
  • United Kingdom: In 2008, the BBC made a pilot episode of a British version, with Sheridan Smith as Samantha, Tom Price as Darrin, and veteran actress Frances de la Tour as Endora.
  • United States: In August 2011 it was reported that CBS ordered a script to be written by Marc Lawrence for a rebooted series of Bewitched.[24]

Updated version

On October 22, 2014, Sony Pictures Television announced that it has sold a pilot of Bewitched to NBC as a possible entry for the 2015—2016 US television season. However, this version will focus on Tabitha's daughter Daphne, a single woman who despite having magical powers as her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, is determined not to use it to find a soul mate. The new version of the proposed series, which is being written by Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein, had been on the radar of several major networks, including ABC, after Sony began shopping the project to interested parties.[25]

Episodes

Episode availability

Syndication history

After completing its original run, ABC Daytime and ABC Saturday Morning continued to show the series until 1973. Bewitched has since been syndicated on many local US broadcast stations, including Columbia TriStar Television as part of the Screen Gems Network syndication package from 1973–82 and then since 1993, which featured by 1999 bonus wraparound content during episode airings.

From 1973 to 1982, the entire series was syndicated by Screen Gems/Columbia Pictures. By the late '70s, many local stations skipped the black and white episodes or only ran those in the summer due to a perception that black-and-white shows usually had less appeal than shows filmed in color. From 1981 to about 1991, only the color episodes were syndicated in barter syndication by DFS Program Exchange. The first two seasons, which were in black and white were not included and Columbia retained the rights to those. Beginning in 1989, Nick at Nite began airing only the black-and-white episodes, which were originally unedited back then. The edited ones continued in barter syndication until 1992. Columbia syndicated the entire series beginning in 1991. The remaining six color seasons were added to Nick at Nite's lineup in March 1998 in a week-long Dueling Darrins Marathon. Seasons 1–2 were later colorized and made available for syndication and eventually DVD sales. Cable television channel WTBS carried seasons 3–8 throughout the 1980s and 1990s from DFS on a barter basis like most local stations that carried the show did.

The Hallmark Channel aired the show from 2001 to 2003; TV Land then aired the show from 2003 to 2006, and it returned in March 2010,[26] but left the schedule in 2012. In October 2008, the show began to air on WGN America, and in October 2012 on Logo, limited to the middle seasons only. Channel 9 Australia airs the series on its digital channel GO! Russia-based channel Domashny aired the show from 2008 to 2010. MeTV aired the show in conjunction with I Dream of Jeannie from December 31, 2012 to September 1, 2013.[27] The show now airs on Antenna TV.

The show has been distributed by Columbia Pictures Television (1974–1982, 1988 (black and white ones only until 1990)-1996), DFS/The Program Exchange (1980–1991, 2010–present), Columbia TriStar Television (1996–2002), and Sony Pictures Television (2002–present).