Although Bewitched was an original idea, it is worth noting five
earlier feature films based on a similar premise that may have
influenced its creation: Bell, Book And Candle (1958) and I Married
A Witch (1942) - this latter movie was based on the novel The
Passionate Witch, by Thorne Smith, who also wrote Topper.
Topper is one of my all time favorite classic film series from
the 1930s and 1940s, featuring Cary Grant. TOPPER: Based on a
novel by Thorne Smith, this classic comedy poses Grant and Bennett
as playful ghosts who dominate the life of Young who plays Cosmo
T opper. Academy Award Nominations: Best Supporting Actor--Roland
Young, Best Sound Recording. TOPPER RETURNS: This is the third
of the early comedy film series, after TOPPER (1937) and TOPPER
TAKES A TRIP (1939). This one has the mild-mannered Topper on
the trail of a phantom killer. While visiting a stately castle,
a young woman is knifed to death on the eve of her friend's twenty-first
birthday, upon which day she is to receive the family fortune.
When Topper is asked by the recently deceased's ghost to investigate
the murder, he finds himself accused by a bumbling detective.
A Bewitched movie, announced for a 1998 production start, has
recently been completed. The new Bewitched film is just being
wrapped up with Nicole Kidman and Will Ferril, the film will be
release in 2005.
Bewitched
USA, ABC (Screen Gems), Sitcom,
Starring: Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York, Dick Sargent
In the TV Series, Darrin Stephens worked for the New York advertising
agency McMann and Tate, where his extraordinarily money-grabbing
boss Larry Tate was oblivious to Samantha's background and just
treated her as a normal, albeit somewhat eccentric, wife whose
beauty made her a definite asset to her husband. Convinced that
they presented a handsome front to the firm, Tate often insisted
that the couple meet prospective clients, but Samantha's witchcraft
- or, more often, her mother's - always made things very awkward.
More complications arose through Gladys Kravitz, the Stephens'
nosey neighbor from over the road, who often espied Samantha's
supernatural prowess but was never able to convince her husband
about the goings-on and often ended up even doubting the evidence
of her own eyes.
Other members of Samantha's clan visited occasionally, including
her father Maurice, her effete warlock Uncle Arthur and her wonderfully
absent-minded eccentric Aunt Clara. They were a bizarre but harmless
enough bunch, quite unlike Samantha's wacky identical cousin Serena
(also played by Montgomery although she was credited in the cast
as Pandora Spocks), a 1960s flower child who turned up occasionally
to cause mayhem. The magical contingent were always funnier and
more colorful than their human counterparts which must have made
viewers wonder why Samantha would give up such a fantastic world
for such a mundane one - especially as husband Darrin was somewhat
dull.
Various cast changes occurred during the show's eight-year run,
most of which were seamless, and even the major transition in
the role of Darrin, from Dick York to Dick Sargent (necessary
because York had a damaged spine) passed virtually unnoticed thanks
to the similarity in looks and style between the two actors. Likewise,
when Alice Pearce died in 1966, Sandra Gould stepped effortlessly
into the shoes of Gladys Kravitz.
The show proved immensely popular and continued to deliver slick
if innocuous entertainment during its long run. The glamorous
Elizabeth Montgomery, daughter of veteran Hollywood actor Robert
Montgomery and wife of the show's director/producer William Asher,
was a major factor in the success of Bewitched - her nose-twitching
and mouth-wrinkling spell-casting enchanted viewers around the
world, and her beauty enchanted male viewers of all ages. Tabitha,
a spin-off, charted the adventures of the Stephens' magical daughter.
A Bit of Bewitched TRIVIA