A story about a magical witch marrying an ordinary man and trying to live like a regular housewife sounds like something I’d love to watch on TV. Well, the show Bewitched, which aired for eight seasons from 1964 to 1972, is exactly that. If you haven’t seen it, you might want to look it up and give it a try.
In the show, the beautiful Elizabeth Montgomery played the charming Samantha Stephens, who captivated millions with her nose twitch. Elizabeth became a star in the 1960s, but her life ended tragically and too soon.
Montgomery was born in Los Angeles on April 15, 1933, to a Broadway actress and film star. Her father was the well-known actor Robert Montgomery, and she followed in his footsteps.
In a 1954 interview with the Los Angeles Times, she recalled, “Dad tells me I would often climb onto his lap after dinner and say, ‘I’m going to be an actress when I grow up.’ I’m not sure if he encouraged me, but he said he’d humor me and see what happened when I grew up.” She admitted, “I’ll be honest and say that Daddy did help me get a break in TV. I’m really grateful for his help and guidance. He’s my toughest critic, but also a true friend and loving father.”
Montgomery made her TV debut as a teenager on her father’s show, Robert Montgomery Presents, and appeared on several other shows too.
Montgomery appeared in many movies after becoming famous, including Mrs. Sundance (1973), A Case of Rape (1974), The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975), Black Widow Murders (1993), The Corpse Had a Familiar Face (1994), and Deadline for Murder: From the Files of Edna Buchanan (1995). However, her role in Bewitched is still one of her most well-known.
In a 1965 interview, Montgomery said, “I never thought much about doing a TV series because I liked picking scripts with characters I thought I could handle for just one hour. In a series, you live with one character every day, and you just hope it’s one that won’t drive you crazy.”
Elizabeth Montgomery was married four times. Her first marriage was to Frederick Gallatin Cammann, but it didn’t last. She then married award-winning actor Gig Young, but they divorced in 1963. She met her third husband, William Asher, while filming Johnny Cool, and they had three children together. Her fourth husband was Robert Foxworth, and they stayed together until her death.
Herbie J Pilato, who wrote two books about Elizabeth Montgomery, said, “Before Jane Seymour, Lindsay Wagner, and Valerie Bertinelli, Elizabeth was the first queen of TV movies. She went from being the queen of witches to being the queen of TV movies, and it was no longer a struggle to move on from Bewitched.”
Montgomery passed away in 1995 from colon cancer, which she thought she had beaten. By the time it was discovered again, it had already spread to her liver. She died peacefully in her sleep with her husband and daughters by her side. She was cremated at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.
Elizabeth Montgomery was a remarkable actress and is still deeply missed.
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