Tue Tragedy
During an episode of “Bewitched” entitled “I Confess” which aired on April 4th, 1968, tragedy struck. The episode was interrupted by ABC news to announce the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. They announced that the civil rights leader was assassinated in Memphis Tennessee earlier that evening. Sadly, America was dealing with high tensions and race riots for years, and this was the boiling point!
It is unknown if the episode of “Bewitched” continued on after the news announcement or if they just saved the episode to re-air at a later day. I do not know if Bewitched resumed where it was interrupted or if this episode was re-aired at another time.
After the Show
At the end of season 5 of filming, Elizabeth Montgomery wanted out. She was feeling like the role was getting stale. The producers offered her so much money that she could not turn it down. She stayed with the show until the series ended in season 8.
Once she was free, Elizabeth looked for roles that would get her away from the good girl image she was typecast in with the role of Samantha she had portrayed for so many years. She took on a very controversial role as a victim of sexual assault in “A Case of Rape.” She also played a murderer, Lizzie Borden in the film The Legend of Lizzie Borden.
They All Cared
It was well known that Elizabeth Montgomery was an activist for all of the political causes that she backed. But, did you know, she was not the only member of the cast to be an activist.
Once Dick Sargent came out as a homosexual, he began to be an advocate for gay rights. He was tired of hiding behind lies and wanted to show people that you could be successful despite being gay. At the time people's attitudes towards gay people were very negative. He wanted to be an example for young people struggling with sexuality. He was hoping to lower the suicide rates that were skyrocketing among the youth.
Swapping Almost All Characters
It seems like the production team of the show “Bewitched” had no problem swapping actors and actresses around. The role of Darrin’s secretary was also played by many different actresses.
Maybe they just did not think that the role of his secretary would be a long-standing one, and then eventually decided it was going to be a recurring role. Either way, multiple actresses played the role including actress Marcia Wallace. Marcia would eventually play the role of Edna on the hit cartoon, “The Simpsons.” She also played another secretary in the 1970s on “The Bob Newhart Show!”
War Of The Witches
When you are on a hit TV show like “Bewitched,” tons of eyes are always on you. “Bewitched” was a really unique show with an interesting plot and characters. About a year after “Bewitched” debuted on ABC, the rival network NBC put out a series that was very similar to “Bewitched” entitled “I Dream of Jeannie.”
It was rumored that Elizabeth Montgomery was not at all happy when this happened. She was the blond witch in town and now had to compete with another blond, who was another non-mortal, this time a genie.