Like a fairy godmother's magic dust, a good sitcom covers reality with fantasy and illusion and provides the modern-liberated child with security of reruns on the tube.-Gina Meyers
On September 17th, 1964, Bewitched debuted on ABC, also known as the American Broadcasting Company. ABC is one of the three television networks with CBS and NBC producing shows and being considered rivals of ABC. It glittered and gleamed on television for eight seasons. It hit number 2 in the most popular television sitcoms of 1964 according to the Nielson Ratings.
In September of 2024, a group of tried-and-true Bewitched fans will convene in Burbank for a 60th Anniversary Celebration to commemorate this milestone.
If you've never heard of Bewitched then you might need to know the premise behind one of ABC's true gems. Bewitched is an American television sitcom originally created by Sol Saks. It is about a beautiful, nose-twitching witch named Samantha Stephens, played by Elizabeth Montgomery, who is married to a strait-laced mortal named Darrin Stephens, played by Dick York and later Dick Sargent. Samantha being married to an ordinary man, is continually faced with dilemmas in which she must use her magical powers to solve the plethora of problems that her family faces.
There are many reasons why I believe Bewitched has stood up over time. For one, Bewitched is first and foremost a love story. Who doesn’t love a love story? Secondly, Bewitched had such an amazing cast and crew and group of writers, directors, and producers. That alone gave Bewitched a popular place in the world’s hearts and television viewers minds. Thirdly, Bewitched, reminiscent of all great television sitcoms, shows us our place in life. It gives us a glimpse of the family we would like to be a part of, the job we wish to land, the person we would like to become, the friends we would like to have, and the dreams we wish to fulfill. Lastly, Bewitched teaches a valuable lesson, that there is “magic” in us and it is waiting to be freed. A talent cannot be suppressed; a gift cannot be ignored in order to please someone else. In Samantha’s case, her talent was witchcraft, and she tried to please her mortal husband Darrin by abstaining from her craft.
A gift is irrepressible and eventually it will emerge. Look at all the chaos that occurred when Sam tried to suppress her talent.
Bewitched showed fans that we all have special hidden talents/ “magic” that need to be explored.
My latest book, With the Twitch of the Nose, its Magic, is meant to be informational, fun, and a treasure to add to your Bewitched collection. You, the reader, are invited to the “magic” show. It pays homage to one of America’s most enduring magical situational sitcoms.
We want love to be magical. We want to live simply and happily. No one wants their life to be humdrum, married to an individual that sometimes acts like a dum-dum, living in a home in the middle of doldrums, with average children. We all desire to be special and unique. Not only do we want to meet Mr. or Miss Right, we want it to be a mystical experience. In a life that has countless trying moments, we deserve something magical to cherish. Just go back for a moment in time—look down memory lane. What are your fondest memories? Do they seem unreal, like a dream? That is exactly why Bewitched was so appealing. It made us secretly wish that there were real witches like Samantha that turned mundane life into magic!
