Do you remember any of the shows and movies that Dick York and Dick Sargent did BEFORE they did "Bewitched"?Like,for instance,what did you think of the movies they did:Dick York in 1960's "Inherit the Wind"(with Spencer Tracy)and Dick Sargent in 1962's "That Touch of Mink"(with Doris Day,Gig Young,Audrey Meadows ,Richard Deacon,Cary Grant and John Astin) and 1967's "Live A Little,Love A Little"(with Elvis Presley),and 1959's "Operation:Petticoat"(with Cary Grant-He was known as Richard Sargent then)?And the countless television shows Dick York and Dick Sargent did?

I personally would love to see Dick's pre BW series "Going My Way" which co-starred Gene Kelly!!!

Here are their respective TV/movie credits:

Dick York - http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0948685/

Dick Sargent - http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0765102/

Inherit the wind is a superb movie with many versions with Dick York's the best of them i think, he was very believable as the naive midwestern young teacher.

He was also in several Twilight Zone & One Step Beyond episodes that were very good indeed that i have on DVD, in one he goes back in time to see what life would be if he was not struggleng married to his current wife, kind of like an If they never Met in reverse & another where he has an arrogant bank account manager get his comeuppance.

Dick Sargent played funny goofy characters in several movies in the 1960's such as the 3 you mentioned.

Larry Tate :)

Do you remember any of the shows and movies that Dick York and Dick Sargent did BEFORE they did "Bewitched"?Like,for instance,what did you think of the movies they did:Dick York in 1960's "Inherit the Wind"(with Spencer Tracy)and Dick Sargent in 1962's "That Touch of Mink"(with Doris Day,Gig Young,Audrey Meadows ,Richard Deacon,Cary Grant and John Astin) and 1967's "Live A Little,Love A Little"(with Elvis Presley),and 1959's "Operation:Petticoat"(with Cary Grant-He was known as Richard Sargent then)?And the countless television shows Dick York and Dick Sargent did?

And finally,Larry Tate,what did you think of William Asher's OTHER shows he directed BEFORE "Bewitched"-the many "I Love Lucy"episodes he directed,the very good,and very subtle episode of "The Twilight Zone"titled "Mr.Bevis"(1960)written by Rod Serling and starring Orson Bean and "Bewitched"alumnis Henry Jones ,William Schallert and Charles Lane,with the very different opening theme,which Asher directed,and the pilot to "The Patty Duke Show"?And what did you think of the many Beach Party comedies of the 1960's with Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello?

Inherit the wind is a superb movie with many versions with Dick York's the best of them i think, he was very believable as the naive midwestern young teacher.

He was also in several Twilight Zone & One Step Beyond episodes that were very good indeed that i have on DVD, in one he goes back in time to see what life would be if he was not struggleng married to his current wife, kind of like an If they never Met in reverse & another where he has an arrogant bank account manager get his comeuppance.

Dick Sargent played funny goofy characters in several movies in the 1960's such as the 3 you mentioned.

Larry Tate :)
Inherit the Wind is indeed a great picture. A little bit of trivia - Bob Newhart's wife Virginia Quinn, was an extra in that movie. Bob happened to mention that in one of the commentaries he did for The Bob Newhart Show on DVD. Both of Dick York's TZ appearances: "The Purple Testament" and "A Penny For Your Thoughts" are excellent as well. Definitely must-see viewing!!

Inherit the wind is a superb movie with many versions with Dick York's the best of them i think, he was very believable as the naive midwestern young teacher.

He was also in several Twilight Zone & One Step Beyond episodes that were very good indeed that i have on DVD, in one he goes back in time to see what life would be if he was not struggleng married to his current wife, kind of like an If they never Met in reverse & another where he has an arrogant bank account manager get his comeuppance.

Dick Sargent played funny goofy characters in several movies in the 1960's such as the 3 you mentioned.

Larry Tate :)You are wrong on one count,Larry Tate.In "The Twilight Zone"episode "The Purple Testament",(1960-by Rod Serling)which was about WWII,and a private(William Reynolds)who had the power to predict which of his men are going to die.Dick York's colonel character did not believe him,until the private predicted HIS death by just looking at his face-and DY's character DID die.You are thinking about an "Alfred Hitchcock Presesnts"1960 episode called "The Doubtful Doctor".

I'd like to see the movie where Dick York hurt his back.

That would be They Came to Condura (1959), which is available on DVD.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053351/

I personally would love to see Dick's pre BW series "Going My Way" which co-starred Gene Kelly!!!



I have a promo of Going My Way

Did Dick York get along great(I presume he did)with all of the OTHER cast members of "Bewitched"(Agnes Moorehead,Maurice Evans,Diane and Erin Murphy,Alice Pearce,Marion Lorne,George Tobias,Bernard Fox,David White,Sandra Gould and Paul Lynde)during his time as Darrin?This can be answered yes or no,please.

And finally,Larry Tate,when "Bewitched"ended in 1972,and ABC wanted to go on,and Elizabeth Montgomery wanted to call it quits(I've heard she grew tired of the role by this time,is this true?),did ABC meet with any resistance from Elizabeth Montgomery?In other words,how did ABC take it when Elizabeth Montgomery wanted to quit?And how did William Asher take the news ?

You heard Wrong, Liz never grew tired of the role of Samantha or Bewitched, she has stated this over & over again on many many interviews that i have on DVD.

What she tired of was the grind of doing any weekly TV show and as well she wanted to spend more time with her children as well as have a life which does not exist when you do a weekly TV Show.

She also wanted to do other roles in the area of Drama that had more social bite to them, like A Case of Rape, An Act of Violence or Lizzie Borden for example.

ABC wanted Bewitched to go on, they had renewed the show for Season 9 as well as a TV Movie of it, Liz agreed to do it during the season but the following spring had changed her mind and ended the show.

ABC's top executives went to her home with an offer of all but their first born to get her to return for season 9 but she was polite & listened but in the end stuck to her guns and that was it.

Bill Asher wanted to go on but Liz had the final say as her participation of it & all, Bill Asher was disappointed needless to say.

Larry Tate :)

And finally,Larry Tate,when "Bewitched"ended in 1972,and ABC wanted to go on,and Elizabeth Montgomery wanted to call it quits(I've heard she grew tired of the role by this time,is this true?),did ABC meet with any resistance from Elizabeth Montgomery?In other words,how did ABC take it when Elizabeth Montgomery wanted to quit?And how did William Asher take the news ?

And last and finally,Larry Tate,was William Asher,who,it has been said was the co-creator with Sidney Sheldon of "The Patty Duke Show",another ABC show from 1963-1965 ,was he told by ABC or the producers of "The Patty Duke Show"to relinquish(give up) his credit as co-creator?And how did Elizabeth Montgomery feel about him having a co-creator credit season one?

Hey,Larry Tate,one more question:How come,before William Asher took over as producer in the fourth and all the other seasons,there were 3 other producers(the late Danny Arnold,season one,black and white,Jerry Davis season two-black and white and William Froug season three-the first color season)?And was the reason for the change in producers?Was it because William Asher and Elizabeth Montgomery didn't get along with them?Or was it the decision of ABC,or Screen Gems?

First off only Sol Saks was given creatorship of Bewitched.

But Bill Asher was in reality the defacto Producer of Bewitched the first 3 seasons of the show even if Jackie Cooper the head of Screen Gems at the time did not want to give the title to him over a little Bitch slapping session he had with Liz after the Pilot over who controlled the power of creative control on Bewitched.

The three you mentioned who had the producers moniker on Bewitched primarily left for promotions, creating their own production companies or to run shows they created on other networks.

I did hear that although Liz & Bill lured William Froug from a top executive position with ABC, he just did not fit well & seemed out of place, although
Bill Asher spoke very well of him in his interviews for Bewitched Forever with Herbie J Pilato.

Larry Tate :)

Hey,Larry Tate,one more question:How come,before William Asher took over as producer in the fourth and all the other seasons,there were 3 other producers(the late Danny Arnold,season one,black and white,Jerry Davis season two-black and white and William Froug season three-the first color season)?And was the reason for the change in producers?Was it because William Asher and Elizabeth Montgomery didn't get along with them?Or was it the decision of ABC,or Screen Gems?

And,if,as you say,Larry Tate,Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher were the brains behind "Bewitched",why was Harry Ackerman listed as Executive Producer?In other words,what was Ackerman's role on "Bewitched"?

Harry Ackermans role was to provide to Liz & Bill what they needed to do the show, kind of an over seer of the show, he had input but he was not the one who had creative control, Liz & especially Bill did, he helped by putting out any fires that popped up re the show.

He did suggest that Bewitched be filmed on video tape & that Liz after season one should lose her powers but Liz & Bill nicely vetoed those ideas.

Larry Tate :)

And,if,as you say,Larry Tate,Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher were the brains behind "Bewitched",why was Harry Ackerman listed as Executive Producer?In other words,what was Ackerman's role on "Bewitched"?

Well,I'm glad the videotape idea was vetoed("Bewitched"on videotape would still be funny ,but it wouldn't be the same somehow.Remember the 6 episodes of "The Twilight Zone"that were videotaped?They wisely abandoned that idea,and remember when "Newhart"was videotaped?It didn't go over well,either.And they(CBS)wisely abandoned that idea.In conclusion,"Bewitched",if videotaped,wouldn't have worked,either.Well,maybe it would have.Who knows?Do You,Larry Tate,think it would have worked?Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher wisely vetoed that idea.And,that bit about Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery)losing her powers after the first season?I'm glad they vetoed that idea,too.

I agree Bewitched was very much meant to be on Film and not on video tape as the TZ episodes were that you mentioned so that and the idea of Samantha losing her powers would have been a mistake that Liz & Bill prevented.

TZ looked better on film too.

Almost all of the Norman Lear comedy's were done on video tape as was Barney Miller and as a result they don't hold up as well in my view compared to the shows such as Bewitched that were made on Film.

Bewitched would have been good & looked good even if they had used charcoal itching's to display it's Brilliance, but yes film worked great for it & was best.

Larry Tate :)

Well,I'm glad the videotape idea was vetoed("Bewitched"on videotape would still be funny ,but it wouldn't be the same somehow.Remember the 6 episodes of "The Twilight Zone"that were videotaped?They wisely abandoned that idea,and remember when "Newhart"was videotaped?It didn't go over well,either.And they(CBS)wisely abandoned that idea.In conclusion,"Bewitched",if videotaped,wouldn't have worked,either.Well,maybe it would have.Who knows?Do You,Larry Tate,think it would have worked?Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher wisely vetoed that idea.And,that bit about Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery)losing her powers after the first season?I'm glad they vetoed that idea,too.

I don't think Barney Miller or WKRP would've held up nearly as well if they were done on film. Likewise, I can't imagine Bewitched, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Bob Newhart Show, etc. on tape.

Speaking of which, was All in the Family the first sitcom recorded on tape?

And,Larry Tate,I have read that William Asher produced the short-lived ABC 1965-1966 (cancelled at midseason)comedy series
"O.K.Crackerby"starring the late Burl Ives.Is this true?Yes or no,please.And ,Larry Tate,were you impressed by William Asher's directorial work he did AFTER "Bewitched"ended?

Here are Bill Ashers credits:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0038906/

"O.K.Crackerby" nope Bill Asher was not connected to it in any way.

Bill Asher did great work as a director before & during Bewitched, then after he did Alice which was very good so he has a pretty good pattern of success over the years.

Larry Tate :)

And,Larry Tate,I have read that William Asher produced the short-lived ABC 1965-1966 (cancelled at midseason)comedy series
"O.K.Crackerby"starring the late Burl Ives.Is this true?Yes or no,please.And ,Larry Tate,were you impressed by William Asher's directorial work he did AFTER "Bewitched"ended?

You know,Larry Tate,it's kind of funny that he'd direct "I Dream of Jeannie:15 Years Later",after the years of working on "Bewitched".And did he ever see and like the original "I Dream of Jeannie"series during the 1960's?And,,did William Asher,who directed the "Green Acres"reunion,did he ever see and like the original "Green Acres"series during the 1960's?Yes or no,please.

And,Larry Tate,if Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher had creative control of "Bewitched",as you have said,(and I do believe you)how did their idea of "Bewitched" differ than Sol Saks'original concept?

I have seen both Sol Saks's version & Bill Ashers and i think the differences are greatly exaggerated, however it might have been different in the actual shows if Sol Saks had been the Story Editor he was going to be before Bill & Liz took over.

That all said it was perhaps lighter & presented as more natural fare with the witches being just like you & me except they could do special things that we could not rather then something highly alien as some have characterized Sol Saks take on it all.

Larry Tate :)

And,Larry Tate,if Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher had creative control of "Bewitched",as you have said,(and I do believe you)how did their idea of "Bewitched" differ than Sol Saks'original concept?

And,Larry Tate,was William Asher's directing of episodes of "Gidget"(Another ABC Screen Gems/Columbia Pictures TV show starring Sally Field),part of Asher's contract with Screen Gems?In other words,was he free to direct OTHER TV shows of the mid-1960's(Yes,I know he did the Beach Party movies with Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello,as well as the 1965 movie "Fireball 500")or was he contractually bound to direct for "Bewitched"and ONLY for "Bewitched'?

He did a lot of work for Screen Gems on Pilots other then Bewitched & of course movies.

As to if he was a free agent in regards to other TV work that i have not heard over the Cosmos Continuum.

Larry Tate :)

And,Larry Tate,was William Asher's directing of episodes of "Gidget"(Another ABC Screen Gems/Columbia Pictures TV show starring Sally Field),part of Asher's contract with Screen Gems?In other words,was he free to direct OTHER TV shows of the mid-1960's(Yes,I know he did the Beach Party movies with Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello,as well as the 1965 movie "Fireball 500")or was he contractually bound to direct for "Bewitched"and ONLY for "Bewitched'?

And 2 more questions,Larry Tate::1)Which episodes did Dick York go solo(It seems to me there was a first-season black and white episode featuring just Dick York-nobody else.Was there? -yes or no,please.And in the Dick Sargent episodes,was here an episode that featured just Dick Sargent?Again,yes or no,please.And 2)What is the Cosmos Continuum?

Why would Dick York have to go solo if he was married, more fun duo?????

Now Dick Sargent That i could see solo..........................

the Cosmos Continuum is the magical realm within witch all Witchdom exists, another dimension apart from the earthly one.

Lawrence in his tatedom, Mad ! Mad ! Mad with Power !!

And 2 more questions,Larry Tate::1)Which episodes did Dick York go solo(It seems to me there was a first-season black and white episode featuring just Dick York-nobody else.Was there? -yes or no,please.And in the Dick Sargent episodes,was here an episode that featured just Dick Sargent?Again,yes or no,please.And 2)What is the Cosmos Continuum?

And Larry Tate,did Elizabeth Montgomery feel the same way both Dick York and Dick Sargent did about Darrin's always yelling at her when she used her witchcraft?

And ,Larry Tate,were Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher involved in rewriting the scripts that were submitted?And in the first 3 seasons,the end credits list these people as script consultants-Danny Arnold was season one's script consultant,Bernard Slade as second season's script consultant,and Ruth Brooks Flippen was the season three script consultant.But beginning with season 4,there WAS no script consultant listed.How come?Or were Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher the unlisted script consultants from season 4 on till the end?

Ed Jurist was the story editor from season 4 through 7 until he had a hiatus heart attack at which point Michael Morris became the story editor for the 8th season.

Although they had no credits along those lines, Liz & Bill were very much involved with the scripts with Bill often rewriting them & Liz suggesting Dialogue changes.

This was the case for all 8 seasons of the show.

Functionally speaking Both of them & especially Bill Asher had final script approval and could make any changes they wished too along those lines.

Larry Tate :)

And ,Larry Tate,were Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher involved in rewriting the scripts that were submitted?And in the first 3 seasons,the end credits list these people as script consultants-Danny Arnold was season one's script consultant,Bernard Slade as second season's script consultant,and Ruth Brooks Flippen was the season three script consultant.But beginning with season 4,there WAS no script consultant listed.How come?Or were Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher the unlisted script consultants from season 4 on till the end?

And,Larry Tate,when ABC moved "Bewitched"from Thurdsay to Wednesday and again to Saturday,did Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher object?And did ABC have the final say in this case?

No i am sure they were fine with it when they initially went from 9:00 PM to 8:30 PM as it meant that some younger viewers could access Bewitched where they could not have at their old time slot.

The Wed. & Sat. moves i have not heard of their thoughts on it.

My best guess is Wed. they were ok with but Sat. not as they would be going up against then juggernaut that was All in the Family.

ABC would have had the final say in when & where the show would be slotted in.

Larry Tate :)

And,Larry Tate,when ABC moved "Bewitched"from Thurdsay to Wednesday and again to Saturday,did Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher object?And did ABC have the final say in this case?

No !

And Larry Tate,did Elizabeth Montgomery feel the same way both Dick York and Dick Sargent did about Darrin's always yelling at her when she used her witchcraft?