Has Bewitched aged better than I Dream of Jeannie

[TMC]

I don't know how Bewitched's popularity measured against I Dream of Jeannie's during their original runs. I would assume that Bewitched was more popular since it had a longer run (about eight seasons on ABC compared to five on NBC for IDOJ). Regardless, both shows when you get right down to it pretty much the same concept, even some of the same sets. So what did Bewitched have that Jeannie didn't?

I know that Barbara Eden has always defended IDOJ over claims that the show was sexist. I wonder if the real problem was that at the end of the day, the character of Jeannie lacked the depth of Samantha. What I mean is that we knew more about Sam's family, history, inner monologue, motivations. With Jeannie, her entire reason for being was to serve. People simply could identify more easily with Sam and Darrin on Bewitched (junior executive with a stay-at-home wife) than with Jeannie and Tony (a literal genie in a bottle and an astronaut) on IDOJ.

Meanwhile, Samantha was torn between a stifling upper middle class existence and oodles of otherworldly possibilities. To put it in another way, Samantha was a woman struggling with her true nature and being the perfect housewife. She played down her talents to appease her husband, but always managed to assert her individuality. So you have one show that's about subservience and another show that was about independence.

I think another problem with IDOJ is that when compared to Bewitched, it lacked warmth, especially in the first few seasons. You have Jeannie, completely in love with and devoted to a stern jerk, who just bosses her around. With Bewitched, even though Darrin was angry whenever Sam used witchcraft, you still saw that he loved her whereas with Jeannie, you kind of got the sense that Tony Nelson would rather get rid of her.

[tcr1701]

Jeannie could probably have gone on another year or two had they not married them. It ruined the concept of the show and the episodes after the marriage are by and large not funny. You can see poor Larry Hagman struggling sometimes to mine some comedy from the scripts, but there's nothing there. The marriage killed the show.

I think Bewitched should have ended after season 5. There was nothing new or particularly interesting in the Dick Sargent years. They had already hit all their major story-lines several times. I am not sure why ABC continued the show past season 6 when it had dropped so significantly in ratings.

Both shows had about 5 years worth of stories to tell and it was time to go for both after that point.

[TheLittleFaerie]

I always thought Bewitched appealed more to adults and IDOJ more to children. Just the story lines of Bewitched were more "mature" I think.


I remember as a kid I loved IDOJ, I saw it as colorful, neat and just intriguing, but always found Bewitched to be a bit boring....now I love both shows.

[Rookielove]

Originally Posted by TMC

I don't know how Bewitched's popularity measured against I Dream of Jeannie's during their original runs. I would assume that Bewitched was more popular since it had a longer run (about eight seasons on ABC compared to five on NBC for IDOJ). Regardless, both shows when you get right down to it pretty much the same concept, even some of the same sets.

I disagree. The shows are completely different.

Originally Posted by TMC

I wonder if the real problem was that at the end of the day, the character of Jeannie lacked the depth of Samantha. What I mean is that we knew more about Sam's family, history, inner monologue, motivations. With Jeannie, her entire reason for being was to serve. People simply could identify more easily with Sam and Darrin on Bewitched (junior executive with a stay-at-home wife) than with Jeannie and Tony (a literal genie in a bottle and an astronaut) on IDOJ.

I disagree that Samantha had more depth than Jeannie. Jeannie had relativesas well. They didn't have to appear on the show all the time. We knew Jeannie's history and her motivations as well. She loved Tony and wanted to be with him just like Samantha loved Darrin and wanted to be with him, except Samantha tried to change herself to fit in Darrin's world, Jeannie did not change herself to fit in Major Nelson's world. And I found Jeannie and Tony just as relatable as Darrin and Samantha. However, how relatable can a magical witch and genie be, though?

Originally Posted by TMC

Meanwhile, Samantha was torn between a stifling upper middle class existence and oodles of otherworldly possibilities. To put it in another way, Samantha was a woman struggling with her true nature and being the perfect housewife. She played down her talents to appease her husband, but always managed to assert her individuality. So you have one show that's about subservience and another show that was about independence.

Jeannie was very independent and did what she wanted from day one. And there was a struggle for Jeannie. She was a fish out of water, yet she never had to play down her talent to appease Major Nelson. She didn't even have to pretend to at all. There was nothing at all "subservience" about Jeannie. She was unapologetically rebellious, spunky, free spirited, and super independent. In fact, it was usually Major Nelson who had to answer to Jeannie.

Originally Posted by TMC

I think another problem with IDOJ is that when compared to Bewitched, it lacked warmth, especially in the first few seasons. You have Jeannie, completely in love with and devoted to a stern jerk, who just bosses her around. With Bewitched, even though Darrin was angry whenever Sam used witchcraft, you still saw that he loved her whereas with Jeannie, you kind of got the sense that Tony Nelson would rather get rid of her.

Originally Posted by TMC

I think another problem with IDOJ is that when compared to Bewitched, it lacked warmth, especially in the first few seasons. You have Jeannie, completely in love with and devoted to a stern jerk, who just bosses her around. With Bewitched, even though Darrin was angry whenever Sam used witchcraft, you still saw that he loved her whereas with Jeannie, you kind of got the sense that Tony Nelson would rather get rid of her.

I disagree. The early shows of Jeannie did have warmth. There were lots of sweet scenes between Jeannie and Tony, Tony and Roger, or Roger and Jeannie. And that is not true about Major Nelson bossing Jeannie around. Major Nelson rarely bossed Jeannie around. He cared about Jeannie and was in love with her as well, but he was reluctant because she was a Jeannie. There was an episode where Tony got amnesia that showed what Tony thought of Jeannie if he didn’t know that she was a genie and he was head over heels in love with her. It was so sweet. Major Nelson freed Jeannie and he also freed her from serving him the first day they met. Major Nelson was a reluctant “Master” and rarely asked Jeannie to do anything. She was free to do anything she wanted. He just didn’t want her interfering with his job and his love life. And Tony did not want to get rid of Jeannie. He cared about her, liked her and wanted her in his life.

[Chocolate Moose]

I think enough was enough at that point.

[Rookielove]

Originally Posted by TMC

Regardless, both shows when you get right down to it pretty much the same concept, even some of the same sets. So what did Bewitched have that Jeannie didn't?

I wonder if the real problem was that at the end of the day, the character of Jeannie lacked the depth of Samantha. What I mean is that we knew more about Sam's family, history, inner monologue, motivations. With Jeannie, her entire reason for being was to serve. People simply could identify more easily with Sam and Darrin on Bewitched (junior executive with a stay-at-home wife) than with Jeannie and Tony (a literal genie in a bottle and an astronaut) on IDOJ.

Meanwhile, Samantha was torn between a stifling upper middle class existence and oodles of otherworldly possibilities. To put it in another way, Samantha was a woman struggling with her true nature and being the perfect housewife. She played down her talents to appease her husband, but always managed to assert her individuality. So you have one show that's about subservience and another show that was about independence.

I think another problem with IDOJ is that when compared to Bewitched, it lacked warmth, especially in the first few seasons. You have Jeannie, completely in love with and devoted to a stern jerk, who just bosses her around. With Bewitched, even though Darrin was angry whenever Sam used witchcraft, you still saw that he loved her whereas with Jeannie, you kind of got the sense that Tony Nelson would rather get rid of her.

With all these differences that you just pointed out, then how is it the "same" concept.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by Rookielove

With all these differences that you just pointed out, then how is it the "same" concept.

• They both had and identical, mischievous dark-haired relative.
  They both gave the main female characters, Samantha and Jeannie powers.
  They both had Samantha be loyal to Darrin and Jeannie loyal to Tony.
  They both had overbearing bosses.
  They both had beautiful blonde haired actresses in the roles of Samantha and Jeannie.
  They both had Samantha and Jeannie be significantly older than they appeared.
  They both had Darrin and Tony dislike their mother-in-law or mother-in-law to be and vice versa.
  They both had the actresses who played Samantha and Jeannie play the roles of the mischievous, dark-haired relative as well.
  They both had the real life husbands of Elizabeth Montgomery and Barbara Eden be part of the show is some way.
  They both had Paul Lynde guest star.
  They both used some of the same sets.
  They both debuted in black and white.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by TMC

• They both had and identical, mischievous dark-haired relative.
  They both gave the main female characters, Samantha and Jeannie powers.
  They both had Samantha be loyal to Darrin and Jeannie loyal to Tony.
  They both had overbearing bosses.
  They both had beautiful blonde haired actresses in the roles of Samantha and Jeannie.
  They both had Samantha and Jeannie be significantly older than they appeared.
  They both had Darrin and Tony dislike their mother-in-law or mother-in-law to be and vice versa.
  They both had the actresses who played Samantha and Jeannie play the roles of the mischievous, dark-haired relative as well.
  They both had the real life husbands of Elizabeth Montgomery and Barbara Eden be part of the show is some way.
  They both had Paul Lynde guest star.
  They both used some of the same sets.
  They both debuted in black and white.

Nice list, TMC!

I'd add:
They both used animated intros (rare on most other sitcoms)
They both used the plot device of the characters trying to keep the magic secret from others.
They both had male leads with dark hair.

[Rookielove]

Originally Posted by TMC

• They both had and identical, mischievous dark-haired relative.
  They both gave the main female characters, Samantha and Jeannie powers.
  They both had Samantha be loyal to Darrin and Jeannie loyal to Tony.
  They both had overbearing bosses.
  They both had beautiful blonde haired actresses in the roles of Samantha and Jeannie.
  They both had Samantha and Jeannie be significantly older than they appeared.
  They both had Darrin and Tony dislike their mother-in-law or mother-in-law to be and vice versa.
  They both had the actresses who played Samantha and Jeannie play the roles of the mischievous, dark-haired relative as well.
  They both had the real life husbands of Elizabeth Montgomery and Barbara Eden be part of the show is some way.
  They both had Paul Lynde guest star.
  They both used some of the same sets.
  They both debuted in black and white.

They had a lot of differences, and, in your opinion, some huge ones. So I still don't see how they are the "same" concept.

[Rookielove]

Originally Posted by TMC

• They both had and identical, mischievous dark-haired relative.
  They both gave the main female characters, Samantha and Jeannie powers.
  They both had Samantha be loyal to Darrin and Jeannie loyal to Tony.
  They both had overbearing bosses.
  They both had beautiful blonde haired actresses in the roles of Samantha and Jeannie.
  They both had Samantha and Jeannie be significantly older than they appeared.
  They both had Darrin and Tony dislike their mother-in-law or mother-in-law to be and vice versa.
  They both had the actresses who played Samantha and Jeannie play the roles of the mischievous, dark-haired relative as well.
  They both had the real life husbands of Elizabeth Montgomery and Barbara Eden be part of the show is some way.
  They both had Paul Lynde guest star.
  They both used some of the same sets.
  They both debuted in black and white.

One was a genie. The other is a witch.
Jeannie is naïve. Samantha is not.
Jeannie had a master. Samantha did not.
Jeannie is energetic. Samantha is calmer.
Samantha is a mother. Jeannie is not.
IDOJ dealt with NASA. Bewitched did not.
Samantha's mother was a regular on the show. Jeannie's was not.
Samantha and Darrin were married from the very beginning. Jeannie and Tony were not.
Two mortals knew the truth about Jeannie. The only mortal who knew the truth about Samantha was Darrin.
Jeannie originally had a different theme song. BW kept the same theme song.

Jeannie had a pet/Gin Gin who appeared on the show. Samantha did not.
There were kids on BW as regulars. Jeannie did not have any kids as regulars.
Samantha had a beloved aunt who appeared on the show regularly. Jeannie did not.
Samantha was an only child. Jeannie was not.
IDOJ had a smaller cast. BW cast was larger.
IDOJ had more male regulars in the cast. BW had more women.
Jeannie were here pink harem costume very often. Samantha just were plain clothes.
Major Nelson was single. Darrin was not.
Major Nelson would date women and Jeannie would get jealous. This never happened with Samantha and Darrin.

Jeannie's sister did not like her. All of Samantha's family members liked her.
Samantha often had to deal with a father and mother in law. Jeannie did not.
Darrin had to deal with many of Samantha's relatives. Major Nelson did not.
Darrin disliked magic. Major Nelson didn't mind and sometimes seemed amused/fascinated by it.
There were two actors who played Darrin. There was only one actor who played Major Nelson.
IDOJ had Sammie Davis Jr. guest star. Bewitched did not.
Jeannie is short. Samantha is taller.
On Bewitched, the witches/warlocks outnumber the mortals. On IDOJ, the mortals outnumber the genies.

[kentauros]

The only difference that matters to me is the mythology. I really don't care much about the mythology of witches/warlocks. I do love the mythology of djinn (genies.)

The djinn have a rich (and ancient) history in storytelling. Yes, they had "sorcerers" back then, but you never see that kind of mythology presented in Bewitched. There are plenty of references to the old folk tales in I Dream of Jeannie, at least a thousand and one of them. Where's the equivalent of the "1,001 Tales of the Witches Nights"? ;-)

[tcr1701]

Both Barbara and Elizabeth also had personal jewelry they wore on the show; Barbara her tear drop necklace (a gift from Michael Ansara) and Elizabeth her heart necklace (a gift from Bill Asher).

And both actresses started the series pregnant and had to rush film a handful of the first season episodes.

There are a lot of similarities but according to Sidney Sheldon Screen Gems wanted "another show like Bewitched." He copied that formula because he was asked too by the studio that owned them both. Of course you could argue that Sheldon took that way too far....(and it certainly irked Elizabeth Montgomery).

[Fallon97]

Originally Posted by tcr1701

Both Barbara and Elizabeth also had personal jewelry they wore on the show; Barbara her tear drop necklace (a gift from Michael Ansara) and Elizabeth her heart necklace (a gift from Bill Asher).

And both actresses started the series pregnant and had to rush film a handful of the first season episodes.

There are a lot of similarities but according to Sidney Sheldon Screen Gems wanted "another show like Bewitched." He copied that formula because he was asked too by the studio that owned them both. Of course you could argue that Sheldon took that way too far....(and it certainly irked Elizabeth Montgomery).

But what did Bewitched copy? And didn't Genies already exist before I Dream of Jeannie came on the air?

[ansara1]

Originally Posted by TheLittleFaerie

I always thought Bewitched appealed more to adults and IDOJ more to children. Just the story lines of Bewitched were more "mature" I think.


I remember as a kid I loved IDOJ, I saw it as colorful, neat and just intriguing, but always found Bewitched to be a bit boring....now I love both shows.

I think the first few seasons of Bewitched were more "mature" or sophistocated, but not by the last several seasons of the show.

[kentauros]

Actually, one major thing about Bewitched that hasn't aged well at all is how much they smoked cigarettes and drank alcohol. Neither vice showed up much at all in Jeannie, other than to get Jeannie drunk as a plot device. About all Tony or Roger ever had to drink was coffee, milk, and root beer :-D