Bewitched is one of the most enduring icons of American television, blending suburban domesticity with the supernatural. Created by Sol Saks and produced by Screen Gems, it ran for eight seasons on ABC from 1964 to 1972. It starred Elizabeth Montgomery as Samantha Stephens, Dick York as Darrin Stephens, and Agnes Moorehead as Endora, Samantha’s mother. Dick Sargent replaced an ailing York for the final three seasons (1969–1972).
The show was inspired by the films I Married a Witch (1942) and Bell, Book and Candle (1958). The premise was simple yet effective: Samantha, a powerful witch, marries Darrin Stephens, an ordinary “mortal” advertising executive. The central conflict revolved around Darrin’s insistence that Samantha live a normal life without magic, a request constantly undermined by her mischievous magical family, most notably her mother, Endora.
While the show was a comedy, it often served as a metaphor for the changing social landscape of the 1960s. Many critics view the show as a subtextual exploration of the “housewife” role, where a woman with immense power (magic) tries to suppress her identity to fit into a patriarchal structure. Montgomery’s signature nose-twitching became a cultural shorthand for magic. Interestingly, she didn’t actually move her nose, she wiggled her upper lip, a trick she discovered she could do during rehearsals.
The show was filmed at the Warner Bros. Ranch. The “Stephens House” was a real facade that appeared in several other shows and movies, including The Partridge Family. The show was popular, finishing as the second-highest-rated show in America during its debut season, staying in the top 10 for its first three seasons, and ranking in 11th place for both seasons four and five. The show continues to be seen throughout the world in syndication and on recorded media.
Bewitched inspired a short-lived spin-off, Tabitha (1977), and a 2005 feature film. The show has never truly left the airwaves, remaining a staple of cable syndication and streaming platforms for over 50 years. In 2002, it was ranked #50 on TV Guide’s 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.
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