Out of the Bottle: The 'I Dream of Jeannie' Thread
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But you knew it was signaling the end. Just as when Maxwell Smart and Agent99 getting together on GET SMART meant the end.
These '60s sitcoms were all about formula, often laying out the premise in the opening theme song and then repeating the premise with every episode. Even John "Gomez" Astin, while extolling the superiority of THE ADDAMS FAMILY over THE MUNSTERS, conceded that every installment of THE ADDAMS FAMILY blurred into the other.
I watched IDOJ, as a child and later in reruns. But it had that gross-out effect so many of those late-'60s series did. For one thing, Tony Nelson seemed a little too mean-spirited in his control of Jeannie -- Larry refining his JR Ewing skills for a future day... Yes, Darren was obnoxiously oppressive over his BEWITCHED wife, but he mostly seemed desperate and pathetic.
And BEWITCHED sometimes felt "genuinely" supernatural, while IDOJ seemed merely slapstick. (Which Larry was good at).
Sometimes the physical set makes a difference. I can't think of one living room set from a '60s sitcom which was as inviting as the Stephens' house on BEWITCHED. And if you gong to spend a lot of time there, make it comfortable for the guests.
Southfork's living room was a heck of a lot more appealing than, say, any room of the Carrington mansion (except for the library).
Nothing B&W from the 64/65 season should ever be colorized. And yet anything from the 65/66 season (BEWITCHED S2 and IDOJ S1) can be. So it's weird.
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I’m not sure what else could’ve been done with them at that point other than marrying them. I think it definitely signaled the end was near though. Perhaps the show had run its course at this point regardless and it would’ve ended soon no matter what they tried.
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I think the cast of BEWITCHED ran circles around the actors of IDOJ. Barbara Eden was an immensely likable performer, but she couldn't match Liz Montgomery. Darren may have been a jerk but, at least played by Dick York, he could be very funny. It may be an unpopular opinion on a forum dominated by DALLAS fans, but Larry Hagman was kind of terrible on IDOJ. Bill Daily was the only excellent comedic performer on IDOJ.
It's odd to me that IDOJ, which was so derivative of BEWITCHED, didn't try to copy that show's strongest aspect: its recurring cast of characters. BEWITCHED worked because of its great cast of supporting characters: Endora, Arthur, Clara, Dr. Bombay, Serena. Other than the bizarrely named Jeannie II, IDOJ didn't bother. Jackie Coogan and Bob Denver both guested as genies, but I'm pretty sure they were both one-time appearances.
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Probably, yes.
TV marriages are often blamed for the demise of the show when, in fact, they're usually a last-ditch attempt to revive a show that's already flagging.
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You're not wrong, but I'm not sure you're right either. Those 70s/80s cartoons were weird. If Laverne & Shirley could join the army and have a talking pig as their commanding officer, it's not off the table for Jeannie to look, sound, and act differently while still being assumed to be the same character.
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I agree with this. I guess those last ditch attempts just don’t work for the most part. They generally seem to happen at the end with most shows so what you’re saying has merit.
Jeannie was supposed to be the comic center of IDOJ, with Tony as the straight man. It was the reverse on Bewitched for the first five seasons: Sam was the straight man and Darrin was the comic center. Once Darrin was recast, he became more the straight man and they tried to make Sam funnier. That didn’t work for me. Elizabeth Montgomery was a fine actor but she wasn’t naturally funny. I found her portrayal of Serena to be labored and unfunny (Jeannie II was much funnier). Barbara Eden was a better comic actor than Liz. And Hayden Rorke was a very good comic actor, as was Bill Daily. I think Hagman was stuck in a thankless role.
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Apart from the Jeannie herself, they all had different names as well. I don't think it was intended that they be younger versions of the same characters.
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I Dream of Jeannie star Barbara Eden, 92, is all smiles for rare outing with friends https://www.hellomagazine.com/celeb...arbara-eden-92-is-all-smiles-for-rare-outing/
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Be forewarned --- Bill Maher always interviews himself:
He's awful! Why is he saying "phukc" and "masturbate" to a 94-year-old woman he refuses to let talk??
He's awful! Why is he saying "phukc" and "masturbate" to a 94-year-old woman he refuses to let talk??
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^^
She doesn't get to mention Larry until 01: 06:30
She doesn't get to mention Larry until 01: 06:30
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He really is insufferable. To Barbara's credit, she took it all in stride.
Barbara easily looks 30 years younger than she actually is. She's incredibly well preserved and sharp.
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The most polite word I could use for Bill Maher is "immature"... I've been aware of him since his first appearance on TONIGHT with Johnny Carson (where Bill Maher did well, as did Roseanne's first appearance in 1985 -- you knew immediately that the two of them were going to be stars of some level).
And I often saw POLITICALLY INCORRECT before it became too politically incorrect to stay on the air.
And I see REAL TIME every week and often catch CLUB RANDOM --- but it's a chore, lemme tell ya... The guests are props who are never allowed to say anything or finish a sentence, and those props are only there to prompt Maher into thinking of something else to say.
A few months ago (or more), when Henry Winkler appeared on CLUB RANDOM, Winkler had the temerity to attempt to actually finish a sentence. Which caused Maher to issue the directive: "don't interrupt me...!" like a bully-child. Crickets. The Fonz complied, realizing the host had zero self-awareness, and so Bill's standard interviewing of himself continued on unabated as per usual.
I sometime scream at my screen. But that wouldn't be healthy. Would it?
And he's constantly dispensing his "that's bullshit! that's bullshit! that's bullshit!" summations -- 25% of which turn out be, indeed, bullshit. But that just cloaks the fact that the other 75% of the time, Bill is adding to the bullshit through ignorance, superficiality, and cannibals.
And he remains fixated on the moon landing topic as being a litmus test for whether a celebrity is "crazy" or not. (And don't get me started on that).
Yet no one will ever be able to get him on the right track. He's just too arrogant, flip, impulsive, "successful" and, obviously, he'd have to let them get a word in edgewise -- and that's just never going to happen.
Oh, those Leo Rising women -- they all live to be 200 years old.
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I'm afraid to ask where that bottle's been.
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Or where it came from - it looks nothing like the original.
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Bill really just wants to carry a bottle.
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I've never heard of this TV-movie before, but it turned you on YT. It's got a heck of a cast, stacked with familiar faces from 60s/70s TV: Barbara Eden, Jo Anne Worley, Julie Newmar, Harry Morgan, Herb Edelman, John McGiver, Farrah Fawcett and Penny Marshall. Penny, with a single line of dialogue, is the only funny thing here.
Barbara Eden, while beautiful and immensely likable, wasn't much of an actress; she played a feminist doctor the same as a genie or a single mother socking it to the PTA. I'm sure everyone involved thought they were making some kind of social statement but, in typical Hollywood fashion, it's all trivialized and patronizing.
Barbara Eden, while beautiful and immensely likable, wasn't much of an actress; she played a feminist doctor the same as a genie or a single mother socking it to the PTA. I'm sure everyone involved thought they were making some kind of social statement but, in typical Hollywood fashion, it's all trivialized and patronizing.
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I'd heard of it, but then I'm very, very old. I don't think I ever saw it... It sounds like an estimable 1971 cast, and, no, I'm not surprised Penny Marshall was the only funny one.
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In my Barbara Eden phase, I absolutely devoured this movie lol. It’s a funny premise, and a product of it's time. I enjoyed the cast’s performances. Barbara looks like a Barbie doll, the blonde hair is so bright and beautiful. I’d recommend it for a light watch.
If you’re looking for another one featuring both Barbara and Larry, made just after I Dream of Jeannie, look for A Howling in the Woods. It’s a completely different tone and relatively dark, but the setting is beautiful, and it’s lovely seeing Larry and Barbara together again.