From the movie “Johnny Cool,” Elizabeth Montgomery, 1963
For everyone growing up in the 1960s and ’70s, Elizabeth Montgomery was an iconic performer. She started in small roles like Johnny Cool, but it was her turn as Samantha Stephens in Bewitched in 1964 that brought her into the homes of everyone in America. The show was so popular that after it ended she was haunted by the character.
Montgomery didn’t want to talk about the series after it ended, not because she hated the role but because she knew that she could do more than play Samantha, it’s just that viewers weren’t ready for it. Even in the final season of Bewitched, Montgomery was over the series. Her biographer said:
The show was not the same — if you look at that last season, she’s dragging her feet. She’s just gone. She’s bored out of her skull and you can see it. Now everybody thinks ABC canceled the show because of low ratings. Elizabeth Montgomery canceled the show.