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Delightful interview with Barbara Eden
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Eden: A true class act
I was pleased to end my day yesterday with a truly incredible interview with the indescribably gracious Barbara Eden, who played Jeannie in what regular readers know is one of my all-time favorite shows “I Dream of Jeannie.”
This was the best genie therapy that I could have ever received, and it happened on a day that I really needed it; Eden expressed sincere appreciation when I told her that I always watched the show as genie therapy when I was feeling sad.
I had planned to incorporate this interview into an entry that will mention “I Dream of Jeannie” next week but felt that Ms. Eden’s candid and wonderful comments deserved their own entry.
When asked to comment on the romance between Jeannie and Major Nelson, Eden replied that it was one-sided and described the problem as Jeannie not considering herself as being different than a human and Nelson being scared because she was “weird” and was not a human.
On a similar note, I speculated that the show lasted only five seasons because comedy was becoming more reality and issues-based in the early 1970s. Eden replied that she thought that it ended because she and Nelson married.
Eden added that the marriage changed the dynamic of the one-sided attraction to a show that involved a married couple that was like every other married couple on television.
Eden said as well that she agreed with my comment in my entry on the first season of the show that finding even a platonic companion who did what he or she could to support you out of pure love without considering the consequences was more of a fantasy than finding a genie on a beach.
On a related note, Eden replied affirmatively when I asked if wanting to keep Nelson’s BFF Major Healy as a playboy was why he never had a steady girlfriend during the run of the show.
I asked additionally if the multi-talented show business legend Mary Martin, who was the real-life mother of Larry Hagman who played Nelson, was considered for the part of Nelson’s mother on the show. Eden replied that she was not but that she was thrilled to meet Martin when she visited the set. Eden shared as well that her real-life mother loved Martin and wanted Eden, who I learned last night sang in many films, to be the next Martin.
On the subject of guest stars, Eden stated too that Groucho Marx was “a love” and “very dear.” She shared that he came on the show because he was a friend of Sidney Sheldon, who created and produced “Jeannie.”
I asked further if Eden knew why the narrative in the opening credits of the show during the first season stated that Cocoa Beach, Fla., was fictional despite there being a real Cocoa Beach. Eden replied that she did not know and that it might have been for legal reasons to not give the impression that they were portraying the actual community. I did not think that the “Bewitched” and “The Partridge Family” houses were in the real city.
When asked if she had any sense if the made-for-tv reunion “I Dream of Jeannie” movies would be released on DVD, she stated that she did not know. She added that it might be an issue of ownership and that she did not know which studio owned them.
I asked Eden as well if she knew anything about the status of a big-budget film version of the show. She replied that she did not but that she had spoken with people about some of the technical aspects of the show with the first people who had worked on getting such a film made.
Eden added that she had spoken to screenwriter Robin Swicord, who wrote the screenplays for the films “Memoirs of a Geisha” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” and that Swicord had told her that she had written a great role for Eden in the “Jeannie” film. Eden state further that Swicord never told her what that role was.
When asked who she would like to see play her in a film, Eden responded “I don’t really know” and that she did not want to make a recommendation because she was afraid of offending someone.
I personally cannot imagine anyone else playing that role and am concerned greatly that the “it” girl of the day will be picked for that reason alone.
All of this shows that Eden is more than I could hope for regarding a celebrity who I have adored for nearly 40 years. I do not see having a beer with her but would love to join her for afternoon tea. She is just as great as she appears on screen.
I do welcome comments as additions to this entry or as e-mail to tvdvdguy@gmail.com. I will also forward any that I receive to the e-mail address of Ms. Eden’s representative.
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