The Bewitched cast was not as close in real life as they appeared on screen, according to Erin Murphy.
Not that Close
Erin and her twin sister, Diane, played Tabitha Stephens, the daughter of Darrin Stephens (Dick York) and witch Samantha Stephens (Elizabeth Montgomery) in the 1960s fantasy sitcom, in which the latter used her superpowers despite having vowed not to as a housewife.
But when Dick was forced to quit the show in February 1969 after he collapsed, passed out, and had an epileptic fit, caused by a previous injury, Erin claimed Elizabeth never spoke to him again, despite her and Dick seemingly having a close bond.
Erin, 61, revealed on the latest episode of The Magnificent Others With Billy Corgan podcast, “She never talked to Dick York after he left the set.”
“There are some lovely stories out there on social media about how she showed up when he was dying, and that no, he left the show and she never spoke to him again.”
Staying in Touch with Elizabeth
The ex-child star, however, stayed in touch with Elizabeth after the show ended in 1972 because Erin had befriended her children, William Jr., 62, Robert, 61, and Rebecca, 57, whom Elizabeth had with her ex-spouse, Bewitched director Bill Asher.
Erin said, “It’s like the show ended, and you know, we’d stay in touch with Christmas cards. And I was dear friends and still am with Elizabeth Montgomery and Bill Asher’s kids.”
“So I stayed in touch with her through her children…She was the mom of my friends.”
The entertainer was shocked that Elizabeth had “no pictures of Bewitched” when the former visited her and Bill’s home.
She recalled, “There would be, you know, photos from other jobs, but no Bewitched photos. I know she liked the show. She was actively involved… but it was a job, and she moved on.”
“Nothing Like Samantha”
Erin said Elizabeth “was nothing like Samantha” in Bewitched. The series ended in 1972 after season eight because Bill separated from his wife.
The Joe Dirt cast member explained, “Just like in a weird way, Lucille Ball was not I Love Lucy, even though that’s who we love and that’s what we kind of want them to be.”
“She was a businesswoman. Liz and Lucy were businesswomen actively involved with the production of their show.”
“She was at a point in her life where she didn’t want to do movies. She had a family, but she wasn’t a stay-at-home mom.
“I spent a lot of my life thinking, ‘Well, I wanna be a stay-at-home mom because my two biggest role models, my mom and Elizabeth Montgomery, were stay-at-home moms.'”
“It took maybe being a teenager to a young adult to realise Elizabeth Montgomery was the furthest thing from a stay-at-home mom. She was on set working all day, and they had a nanny.”
“A Kid’s Recollection”
And Elizabeth “wasn’t necessarily as soft and kind as Samantha.”
Erin remembered, “She was a beautiful woman, but this is a kid’s recollection, which may not be kind, but it’s my honest recollection. I saw everyone come in before makeup… I remember being fascinated.”
“One of the things that led me to be a makeup artist was being fascinated by what everyone would come in looking like and just how transformative hair and makeup was.”
She continued, “It’s like I saw her as kind of it’s like how you see your mom, and they look different at home than maybe when they go out to dinner with somebody. So I saw her as that.”
“I also saw her side where she wasn’t necessarily as soft and kind as Samantha.”
“She was a businesswoman, and she was serious and definitely had that side. She was also, and I’ve said this, she had a very dirty sense of humor, and so do I. I know I got that from her. She was a guy’s girl.”
Cast Deaths
Dick was replaced by Dick Sargent. The former died from complications of emphysema in February 1992 at the age of 63. Dick Sargent passed away from prostate cancer in July 1994 at the age of 64.
Elizabeth, meanwhile, lost her battle with colon cancer in May 1995 at the age of 62. Bill died from Alzheimer’s disease in July 2012 at the age of 90.