As the series went on it began to cause shooting delays and script rewrites, before he eventually collapsed on set and was rushed to hospital. Born September 4, 1928, in Fort Wayne, Indiana to a salesman father and seamstress mother, it was a parochial school nun who first spotted his talent for acting and encouraged York to seek coaching. The facade of the Stephens house was also the same facade . The two Andrews girls are named Tabitha and Abigail. Did Kylie Minogue's famous gold hot pants really cost 50 pence? After Darrin in a fit of frustration says that they should tell everyone about Sam being a witch, she makes him dream about that very situation and the reactions of their friends and the US Government. While in the hospital recovering, he was visited by director William Asher asked if he wanted to quit, and York answered, "If it's all right with you, Billy," according to his own account in his final interview before his death in 1992. York was cast as Darrin Stephens in the 1960s sitcom Bewitched as Samantha's (Elizabeth Montgomery) mortal husband. For Endora as a child on Halloween, see Young Endora. York was cast in the series, which lasted one season, as Tom Colwell, who operates a secular youth center. [1][2] He grew up in Chicago, where a Catholic nun first recognized his vocal promise. On the hit 1960s sitcom Bewitched, Dick York played Darrin Stephens, the long-suffering mortal married to witch-turned-housewife, Samantha. Is 87 really the 'Devil's Number' in cricket? There was no type of surgery that would repair his injuries at that time; instead, the best the specialists could do was supply him with a steady supply of increasingly strong pain medications. Your email address will not be published. Thanks for reading! In a case like that, Elizabeth Montgomery had to stand in place, arms upraised, while the director called cut and members of the crew then rushed around to remove the laundry, newspapers, and other clutter from the set. All Rights Reserved. Enthusiastic Bewitched writer Herbie J Pilato has covered the show and its stars from multiple angles in multiple books. Additionally, Sargent overall felt, To tell you the truth, I think there was a stronger sense of warmth between Samantha and Darrin when I did the show. Dick York, the original Stephens, endured immense pain following an injury while filming They Came to Cordura (1959). Answer: Adam. Elizabeth Montgomery with Dick York's replacement, Dick Sargeant. He did guest spots on Fantasy Island, Simon & Simon, and a TV movie called High School, USA. That flickering, flickering, flickering made me feel weird. In York's own words, "Gary Cooper and I were propelling a handcar carrying several 'wounded' men down [the] railroad track. Growing up, there were many times I wanted to be Samantha Stevens, aka the magical housewife from Bewitched. That's about all I remember of the incident and I'd managed to bite a very large hole in the side of my tongue before they could pry my teeth apart. The technicians were shining a light in York's eyes during the setup for the shot. However, Sargents former co-star, Tammy Grimes, apparently was the first choice forSamantha StephensonBewitched. I dont know why. When the show returned for its sixth season, Darrin was portrayed by Dick Sargent. "Now, instead of lifting the expected weight, I was suddenly, jarringly, lifting his entire weight off the flatbed180 pounds or so. And on the set the crew would help me. The replacement doctor instead gave him B-12, and while filming a scene with Maurice Evans on a scaffold 15 feet in the air, the hot lights, exhaustion and medications combined to send York into a seizure. The only public comment York made at the time in relation to his departure from the series was to The Sacramento Bee in March of 1969. Rumor has it that York was infatuated with Montgomery; Sargent was not nearly as taken with her. I didn't attend to the problem then. Its a believable story, but Asher insisted that wasnt the case. Meanwhile, that co-workers daughter was Tabithas close friend and was spending the weekend with the Stephens. York was in too much pain, most of the time, to continue in the role. The trouble with staying of acting so long, even in todays era, is that people tend to forget a lot of what the actor has done and will seek out new forms of entertainment. The opening opened normal but the animation quality was poor and the theme music was slower and distorted. While his career was something of a tragedy the upside, one of the few that people choose to remember these days, is that he didnt quit Bewitched and there was no real desire to replace him until there was no other choice. With Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York, Agnes Moorehead, Erin Murphy. Saks wasnt worried that some litigious types might find too many similarities between his TV show and those movies, though; both films were owned by Columbia Pictures, which in turn also owned Screen Gems, the company that produced Bewitched. It seems Dick had a debilitating back condition that stemmed from an injury he suffered while filming a movie in Canada. Tammy Grimes, whod won a Best Actress Tony Award in 1961 for The Unsinkable Molly Brown, was under contract to Screen Gems in 1964 and was the studios first choice for the role of Cassandra (as the lead character was named at the time). . Moorehead was a very religious Fundamentalist, and she admired Yorks New Age-type spirituality. On the day of filming the Daddy Does His Thing episode, he skipped lunch to see his doctor, who was out. Lets have some Endora . I had a temperature of 105, full of strong antibiotics, for almost 10 days. Despite the vast amount of time that passed between the magazine's appearance on the show, it always had the same . When Larry and Louise Tate were blessed with a son on Bewitched, the child was named Jonathan at Whites request. An illness during filming of the fifth season finally benched York for good. Endora disapproves of her daughter's decision to marry a mortal. His back problems and then his dependency kind of took that choice and made it a necessity. Anyway, there was one thing I never knew about the show - why they suddenly replaced Dick York, the actor who originally played Samantha's husband, Darrin. Lorne turned bumbling into an art form with her portrayal of loveable Aunt Clara. The chronic pain from the injury made standing for long periods of time difficult and also caused the actor to become dependent on painkillers to get through the day. Form 1964 to 1969 York portrayed the mortal husband to Elizabeth Montgomerys witch Samantha and her magical, misfit family members, including acerbic, mortal-hating mother-in-law Endora, played by Agnes Moorehead. BUS STOP, from left: Kim Stanley, Dick York, 1955-1956 / Everett Collection. - Wizard of Oz Coaster Set, Witch and Cauldron - Salt & Pepper Shakers, Wicked Witch of the East Legs and House - Salt & Pepper Shakers, Wicked Witch & Crystal Ball - Salt & Pepper Shakers, Playdough Surgery is Easier Than the Real Thing, Seniors Recreate Rihannas Super Bowl Dance Break, Invention Lets People Kiss Each Other Using Their Phones, The Challenge of Escaping from Colditz Castle. The child is finally named Adam. Vaguely resembling Dick York, Dick Sargent played Darrin with a more defiant attitude toward his witchy in-laws. Montgomery wore progressively looser clothing to disguise her expanding waistline. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. Agnes Moorehead was often pictured wearing a starburst brooch that was set with 8.5 carats of old-mine diamonds. York appeared in dozens of episodes of now-classic television series, including Justice, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, The Untouchables, Rawhide, The Americans, Wagon Train, Father Knows Best, and CBS's The Twilight Zone and Route 66. York was a three-pack-a-day smoker for much of his life and often smoked cigarettes on the set of Bewitched; he spent his final years battling emphysema. How Would a Fallout Television Series Work? Director William Asher Writers Ed Jurist Sol Saks Stars Elizabeth Montgomery Dick Sargent Agnes Moorehead See production, box office & company info "And that was the start of it all the pain, the painkillers, the addiction, the lost career. Science T-Shirts | Sci-Fi T-Shirts | Fantasy T-Shirts Elizabeth Montgomery, on the other hand, was the exception to that rule: the actress got to play two different characters. Creator Sol Saks Stars Elizabeth Montgomery Dick York Dick Sargent See production, box office & company info Watch on Freevee S1-3 Watch Free on Freevee More watch options Add to Watchlist 104 User reviews 26 Critic reviews He said he had to turn it down because he was already under contract. The Real Reason There Were Two Darrins On Bewitched YouTube By Karen Corday / Jan. 15, 2021 4:50 pm EST It's a question that continues to puzzle people 50 years after it happened: why did the TV show Bewitched suddenly and seemingly inexplicably replace the actor who played Darrin in the middle of its run? York and Gary Cooper were propelling a handcar along the rail tracks while filming a movie scene. Sargent played a calmer Darrin who certainly reactioned to Samantha and her familys supernatural hijinks. Enjoying The Special Effects of 'Bewitched' (Columbia Pictures Television) He believes that things were set up that the audience not only liked Gladys Kravitz for her humor but the character itself as well. He ended up developing a reliance on painkillers, which ended up affecting his physical abilities. "I had a band playing in my head, bagpipes night and day," York recalled. Bewitched: There Was a Real-Life Affair on the Set of the Show. York said yes. I used to make a tape recording of rain so I could listen to the rain lying in bed at night to drown out those damned bagpipes."[3]. Her undershot jaw prevented her from landing any leading lady roles when she took up acting, but she could be counted on as a good comic foil. Dick Sargent took up the role of Darrin Stephens after York left because Sargent was actually the second choice for the role anyway. The injury led to a chronic and debilitating back condition that York managed with a mix of painkillers, sleeping aids, and cortisone shots. The muscles along the right side of my back tore. Shed had surgery, but the doctors informed her that her case was terminal. So, they redid some scenes with Sargent reading lines already spoken by York as Darrin Stephens. Jack Keller composed the music before working with The . Poor Dick Sargent never did catch on with the show's loyal viewers and Bewitched was soon cancelled. Four months prior to receiving a phone call from her agent telling her that William Asher wanted her for a role on his new TV show, Pearce was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Bad investments had left him broke, and his teeth rotted out (a common problem for drug abusers), so he and his wife were reduced to cleaning houses for a living. Many have speculated through the years that Dick York's departure from the show had to do with either a dispute with the network or show executives or a clash with the cast, but nothing could be further from the truth. Even though Endora barely tolerated Darrin on the show, off-camera Moorehead was closer to York than any other cast member. Now, instead of lifting the expected weight, I was suddenly, jarringly, lifting his entire weight off the flatbed 180 pounds or so. York did release a statement to The Sacramento Bee in March of 1969 about his departure from the series, which read, "Five years as Liz's husband on Bewitched; there are no hard feelings. They just snapped and let loose, York said in an interview published in FilmFax magazine in 1992. However, according to Pilato, the show cut a few corners after the cast change. Enter Dick Sargent. It could also have been because Vi Alford, who handled the ladies' wardrobes, wasn't interested in using color as a storytelling tool. Click here to view up to the first 100 of this post's. Customization and personalization available. It was originally believed Adam was a mortal but was later shown (in the final season) that Adam had magic of his own. For Darrin's "daydream daughter", see Little Endora. She told none of her coworkers of her condition, and other than her being a little tired on the set now and then, no one suspected her of being ill. Pearce passed away in March 1966, and was awarded a posthumous Outstanding Supporting Actress Emmy Award two months later. Because his health was continuing to worsen during the course of filming, producers decided to recast Darrin's role for the remaining three seasons of the show. For the next 18 months, York was largely bed-ridden in a haze of prescription painkillers. Adam was the name of Darrin and Samantha's second child, but only son. It's always jarring when a show recasts a familiar character with a new actor, but it's been done since the early days of television for myriad reasons. Aunt Clara was so endearing that even Darrin (who despised most of Sams relatives) loved her, even when her spells went wonky and turned him into a chimpanzee or a seal. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. This later led to a dependency on painkillers and to York missing a handful of Bewitched episodes in seasons 3 and 4. [2] By 1989, he was using an oxygen tank to help him breathe. He began getting notable screen work in 1953, acting with Adam West in an episode of The Philco Television Hour, and by 55 he got some major films roles, one of them co-starring with Janet Leigh and Jack Lemmon in the musical, My Sister Eileen.He followed Jack Lemmon to Operation Mad Ball in 1957, which was the screen . Darrin refused to acknowledge why this depiction of witches bothered his wife, and it wasn't until Sam hexed her husband to look like a haggard witch himself that he developed an understanding. Sargent was originally offered the role of Darrin in 1964, but declined in favor of a part in the short-lived sitcom Broadside.[7]. One of the most memorable recastings in TV history is also one of the oldest: the two Darrins of Bewitched. For audiences used to seeing York, no onscreen explanation was given, or even alluded to. At this point, the shaky actor collapsed and was rushed to the hospital. His last two credits were on two primetime television series, Simon & Simon and Fantasy Island. First The Oscars and Now The Voice Season 12 Finale Hallelujah! The legions of Bewitched fans who tuned in were surprised at the switch and the ratings plummeted. I mean seriously, who asks their wife not to do the housework with a twitch of her nose? [citation needed], While filming the fifth-season episode "Daddy Does His Thing," York fell ill: "I was too sick to go on. The show ran from 1964 to 1972 and had a hugely successful 8-year run. 6XL T-Shirts | 7XL T-Shirts | 8XL T-Shirts9XL T-Shirts | 10XL T-Shirts "Sargent's new term on the show began on a foot of edgy hostility," explains Pilato . The book is in large part a love letter to his wife, Joan (ne Alt), the seesaw girl of the title, who stuck with him through the hard times. The story is actually quite sad. Magazines, Digital Endora is Samantha Stephens' mother and Maurice's wife. How would you rate this article? The show was a ratings hit and delivered York a steady paycheck, but his chronic back pain resulting from the Cordura accident and reliance on prescription painkillers continued to worsen and began to affect his physical abilities. Is it true no mummies were found in the Great Pyramid of Giza? Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our, Digital Finally! "Yeah," he says, "she's quirky and nosey and every time she's nosey, she gets her comeuppance. The replacement wasnt a bad one, insist show experts. I continued to work through it." I was too young to watch the show on first run, but syndication in the 70's branded its theme song into my brain.