Cast
| 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 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) |
57 |
| Abner Kravitz | George Tobias (1964–1971) | 55 |
| Louise Tate | Irene Vernon (1964–1966) Kasey Rogers (1966–1972) |
46 |
| 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 |
The series is noted for having a number of major cast changes, often because of illness or death of the actors. Most notably, the actor playing Darrin was quietly replaced mid-series. The only surviving members of the regular cast are Bernard Fox and the actors who played the Stephens children. The various changes during the series and untimely deaths of several of the regular actors in the decades following its cancellation produced a mythology that the series was cursed. However, a study of the average age of death of the actors, many of whom were already past middle age during the show's production, reveals no unusual pattern.
Dick York was 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 in 1959). Starting with the third season, York's disability caused ongoing shooting delays and script rewrites. After collapsing on the set and being rushed to the hospital in January 1969, York left the show. Dick Sargent, who would go on to play Darrin in the sixth through eighth seasons, was cast for the role that same month.
Marion Lorne appeared in 28 episodes as Aunt Clara and won a posthumous Emmy Award in 1968. Essentially replacing this character was the similarly magic-disabled Esmeralda (Alice Ghostley) in season 6. Lorne and Ghostley had appeared side by side in the hotel scene of Mike Nichols's film The Graduate in 1967.
Also winning a posthumous Emmy award in 1966 for her role, Alice Pearce was the first to play the character of Gladys Kravitz. After Pearce's death from ovarian cancer, Mary Grace Canfield played Harriet Kravitz, Abner's sister, in four episodes during the spring of 1966, and is said to be keeping house while Gladys is out of town. Sandra Gould assumed the role of Gladys Kravitz beginning in season 3.
Louise Tate was played by Irene Vernon during the first two seasons and then replaced by Kasey Rogers, who wore a short black wig to appear similar to Vernon. According to Rogers, Bill Asher noticed her tugging at the wig and asked why she was wearing it. She laughed and said, "Because you told me to." He replied, "Why don't you take it off!" and she played Louise with red hair for the show's final three seasons.
Tabatha Stephens's birth in the season 2 episode "And Then There Were Three" featured infant Cynthia Black in the role. For the remainder of the season, Tabatha was played by twins Heidi and Laura Gentry, followed by twins Tamar and Julie Young. Fraternal twin toddlers Diane Murphy and Erin Murphy were cast for the role at the beginning of season 3. In time, they began to look less alike, so Diane was dropped during season 4. Diane made several guest appearances in other roles, and filled in as Tabatha one last time in season 5's "Samantha Fights City Hall", because Erin had the mumps.
Alice Ghostley (Esmeralda), Paul Lynde (Uncle Arthur), and Bernard Fox (Dr. Bombay) all had guest roles during the first two seasons as mortal characters before being cast as magical regulars in the respective episodes, "Maid to Order", "Driving Is the Only Way to Fly", and "Disappearing Samantha".
Read more about this topic: Bewitched
Famous quotes containing the word cast:
“Such is the remorseless progression of human society, shedding lives and souls as it goes on its way. It is an ocean into which men sink who have been cast out by the law and consigned, with help most cruelly withheld, to moral death. The sea is the pitiless social darkness into which the penal system casts those it has condemned, an unfathomable waste of misery. The human soul, lost in those depths, may become a corpse. Who shall revive it?”
—Victor Hugo (1802–1885)
“O eloquent, just, and mighty Death! whom none could advise, thou hast persuaded; what none hath dared, thou hast done; and whom all the world hath flattered, thou only hath cast out of the world and despised. Thou hast drawn together all the far-stretched greatness, all the pride, cruelty, and ambition of man, and covered it all over with these two narrow words, Hic jacet!”
—Sir Walter Raleigh (1552–1618)
“You may, or may not, have better child care instincts than your husband; but his can certainly be developed. If you don’t respect the natural parenting talents that each of you has, you may inadvertently cast the two of you into the skewed but complementary roles of the Expert and the Dumb Apprentice.”
—Jean Marzollo (20th century)