Barbara Eden

Barbara Eden (born Barbara Jean Morehead, August 23, 1931)[1] is an American actress and singer, best known for her starring role of "Jeannie" in the sitcom I Dream of Jeannie.

Barbara Eden
Eden at Life Ball 2013 in Vienna
Born	Barbara Jean Morehead August 23, 1931 Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Other names	Barbara Huffman Barbara Eicholtz
Alma mater	San Francisco Conservatory of Music
Occupation	Actress singer
Years active	1955–present
Spouse(s)	Michael Ansara ​ ​ (m. 1958; div. 1974)​ Charles Fegert ​ ​ (m. 1977; div. 1982)​ Jon Eicholtz ​ (m. 1991)​
Children	1
Website	www.barbaraeden.com

Early years

Eden was born on August 23, 1931, in Tucson, Arizona, to Alice Mary (née Franklin) and Hubert Henry Morehead.[2] For decades, her year of birth was thought to be 1934,[3][4] an age difference of three years. After her parents' divorce, her mother and she moved to San Francisco, where her mother married Harrison Connor Huffman, a telephone lineman, by whom she had a daughter, Eden's half-sister. The Great Depression deeply affected the family, and as they were unable to afford many luxuries, Alice entertained her children with singing.

Eden's first public performance was singing in the church choir, where she sang the solos. As a teenager, she sang in local bands for $10 (roughly equivalent to $130 in 2017) a night in night clubs. At age 16, she became a member of Actor's Equity, and studied singing at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and acting with the Elizabeth Holloway School of Theatre. She graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School in San Francisco in the Spring Class of 1949[5] and studied theater for one year at City College of San Francisco. As Barbara Huffman, she was elected Miss San Francisco in 1951 and she also entered the Miss California pageant.[6][7]

Television and film roles

Eden began her television career as a semiregular on The Johnny Carson Show in 1955.[8][9] She also made featured appearances on shows such as The West Point Story, Highway Patrol, Private Secretary, I Love Lucy, The Millionaire, Target: The Corruptors!, Crossroads, Perry Mason, Gunsmoke, December Bride, Bachelor Father, Father Knows Best, Adventures in Paradise, The Andy Griffith Show, Cain's Hundred, Saints and Sinners, The Virginian, Slattery's People, The Rogues, and the series finale of Route 66. She guest starred in four episodes of Burke's Law, playing different roles each time. She was an uncredited extra in the movie The Tarnished Angels with Rock Hudson, in partnership with 20th Century Fox studios. She then starred in the syndicated comedy TV series How to Marry a Millionaire. The series is based on the 1953 film of the same name.

Discovery, in the Hollywood sense, came when she starred in a play with James Drury. Film director Mark Robson, who later directed her in the movie From the Terrace, had come to the play and wanted her for 20th Century Fox studios. Her screen test was the Joanne Woodward role in No Down Payment (1957). Though she did not get the role, the studio gave her a contract. She did a screen test for the role of Betty Anderson in the 1957 film version of Peyton Place, but Terry Moore got the role. She had minor roles in Bailout at 43,000; Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?; and The Wayward Girl, then became a leading lady in films, starring opposite Gary Crosby, Barry Coe, and Sal Mineo in A Private's Affair. She had a co-starring role in Flaming Star (1960), with Elvis Presley.

The following year, she played in a supporting role as Lt. Cathy Connors in Irwin Allen's Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. She starred in The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm, a Cinerama film directed by George Pal for MGM, and another Irwin Allen production for 20th Century Fox, Five Weeks in a Balloon (1962). She was the female lead in the 1962 Fox comedy Swingin' Along, starring Tommy Noonan and Peter Marshall, in their final joint screen appearance. She did a screen test with Andy Williams for the 20th Century Fox movie State Fair, but did not get the role.[10]

Her last film for 20th Century Fox was The Yellow Canary (1963). She left Fox and began guest starring in television shows and acting in films for MGM, Universal, and Columbia. She played supporting roles over the next few years, including The Brass Bottle and 7 Faces of Dr. Lao.

I Dream of Jeannie

Eden as Jeannie in a variation of the famous "Jeannie costume" seen only in the pilot episode

Bewitched was the number-two show on television in 1964, and following on its heels, in 1965, producer Sidney Sheldon signed Eden to star in his upcoming fantasy sitcom I Dream of Jeannie that would air on NBC. After various brunette starlets and beauty queens unsuccessfully tried out for the role, Eden was approached by Sheldon, who had seen her in The Brass Bottle and had received numerous recommendations for Eden from various colleagues. Eden played Jeannie, a beautiful genie set free from her bottle by astronaut and United States Air Force Captain (later Major) Anthony "Tony" Nelson, played by Larry Hagman.

Eden played this role for five years and 139 episodes. Additionally in eight episodes, Eden donned a brunette wig to portray Jeannie's evil sister (also named Jeannie) who lusts after Tony Nelson, and in two episodes played Jeannie's hapless mother.[11][12][13]

Later career

After Jeannie, Eden did an unaired pilot, The Barbara Eden Show,[8] as well as another pilot, The Toy Game. Her first TV movie was called The Feminist and the Fuzz. Although she is best known for comedy, most of these films were dramas, as when she starred opposite her Jeannie co-star Larry Hagman in A Howling in the Woods (1971).

In The Stranger Within (1974), Eden played housewife Ann Collins, a woman impregnated by extraterrestrials. Later, Eden played Liz Stonestreet, a former policewoman now private detective investigating the disappearance of a missing heiress, in a critically acclaimed TV movie Stonestreet: Who Killed the Centerfold Model? (1977). She starred in and co-produced, with her own production company (MI-Bar Productions), the NBC TV movie romantic comedy The Secret Life of Kathy McCormick (1988). She also starred in and produced the romantic comedy TV movie Opposites Attract (1990), co-starring John Forsythe.

In 1978, she starred in the feature film Harper Valley PTA, based on the popular country song. This led to a namesake television series in 1981. In both the movie and the TV series, Eden played the show's heroine, Stella Johnson. The show won 11 of its 13 time slots during its first season. It was a comedy version of Peyton Place, with Anne Francine playing wealthy villain Flora Simpson Reilly. In one episode, Stella dressed in a blue and gold genie costume and in another she played both Stella and her cousin Della Smith (similar to Jeannie's evil twin-sister character). The TV series Harper Valley PTA began January 16, 1981, and was renamed simply Harper Valley when the show began its second season on October 29, 1981. During this time, Eden also became the spokeswoman for L'eggs pantyhose and appeared in a series of print ads and TV commercials for the brand from 1979 to 1983.[14]

Eden in 1987 (age 56) at a United Services Organization show aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Okinawa

From April 3 through September 16, 1984, Eden starred in the Lee Guber and Shelly Gross national production of the John Kander and Fred Ebb Tony Award-winning musical comedy Woman of the Year, playing the role of Tess Harding Craig, alongside Don Chastain (as Sam Craig), and Marilyn Cooper. In 1990, Eden had a recurring role as a billionairess seeking revenge against J.R. Ewing in five episodes of the final season of Dallas, playing the captivating character LeeAnn de la Vega, reuniting her with Hagman. In her final episode, the character admits that her maiden name was "LeeAnn Nelson", which was a production gag, as "Nelson" was the surname of Hagman's character and Eden's character's married name in I Dream of Jeannie. In 1991, she starred in the stage play Same Time, Next Year with Wayne Rogers, and reprised her role of Jeannie in a television movie of the week. In 1993, she starred in an 11-city national tour of the play Last of the Red Hot Lovers with Don Knotts.

Eden starred in such musical comedies as Nite Club Confidential (playing the role of Kay Goodman, in 1996), The Sound of Music, Annie Get Your Gun, South Pacific with Robert Goulet, The Pajama Game with John Raitt, and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes playing Lorelei Lee. She has been a musical guest star in many variety television shows, including 21 Bob Hope specials, The Carol Burnett Show, The Jonathan Winters Show, The Jerry Lewis Show, This Is Tom Jones, Tony Orlando and Dawn, and Donny and Marie. She released an album entitled Miss Barbara Eden in 1967 for the record label Dot Records.

From 2000 to 2004, Eden starred in the national touring production of the play The Odd Couple: The Female Version playing the role of Florence Unger opposite Rita MacKenzie as Olive Madison. In March 2006, Eden reunited with her former co-star Larry Hagman for a publicity tour in New York City to promote the first-season DVD of I Dream of Jeannie. They appeared together on Good Morning America, The View, Access Hollywood, Entertainment Tonight, Martha, and Showbiz Tonight, among other shows.

In March 2006, Hagman and Eden again reunited, this time onstage, in New York, for Love Letters at the College of Staten Island, and at the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York. This was Eden's first return visit to the academy since appearing in the 1956 Ziv Television Programs, The West Point Story. [15] Eden starred in the play Love Letters with Hal Linden in 2006, and a guest-starring role on the Lifetime series Army Wives, written and produced by her niece, Katherine Fugate. In December 2008, she began filming the TV movie Always & Forever for the Hallmark Channel, shown in October 2009.

In May 2013, Eden appeared with former US President Bill Clinton, Elton John, and Fergie at the opening ceremony of the 21st Life Ball in Vienna, where Eden wore her famous Jeannie harem costume. In late 2013, Eden was cast in the movie One Song, which was filmed in Excelsior, Minnesota.[16]

Eden has also done voice work for the animated children's television series Shimmer and Shine, wherein she voices the genie teacher Empress Caliana, who is retired genie mentor of Princess Samira, who mentors the title characters. Caliana aids the main protagonists Leah and her twin genies Shimmer and Shine in rescuing Samira from a crystal cave in "The Crystal Queen". She also voices Caliana in the season-three episode "Samira and Zeta", which reveals that Caliana taught at Genie Hall, a genie school attended by both a young Samira and the series' main antagonist Zeta back when both were genies-in-training.

Personal life: Jeannie Out of the Bottle

Eden with son Matthew Ansara (1966)

Eden wrote her memoir Jeannie Out of the Bottle, which was released on April 5, 2011, by Crown Archetype, a division of Random House.[17] It debuted at number 14 on The New York Times Best Seller List.[18][19]

Jeannie Out of the Bottle chronicles her personal life and Hollywood career of more than 50 years, and includes intimate details about her early childhood, her rise to popularity in her teens and early 20s, her co-stars over the years, and her work leading up to I Dream of Jeannie. It also covers her marriages to Michael Ansara (1958–1974), Charles Fegert (1977–1982), and Jon Eicholtz (1991–present), and her "emotional breakdown" following the 2001 death of her son from a drug overdose. Her son was named after Michael's relative from Grand Rapids,Michigan. [20]

Honors

On November 17, 1988, Eden received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contributions to television.[21] In 1990, the University of West Los Angeles School of Law granted Eden an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.[21]

Filmography

Feature films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1956	Back from Eternity	Blonde College Girl	Uncredited
1957	Bailout at 43,000	Blonde at Nightclub	Uncredited
1957	Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?	Miss Carstairs	With Tony Randall. Secretary (minor part)
1957	The Wayward Girl	Molly
1959	A Private's Affair	Sgt. Katey Mulligan
1960	Twelve Hours to Kill	Lucy Hall
1960	Flaming Star	Roslyn Pierce	Opposite Elvis Presley
1960	From the Terrace	Clemmie Shreve	Minor part with Newman
1961	Swingin' Along	Carol Walker
1961	All Hands on Deck	Sally Hobson
1961	Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea	Lt. Cathy Connors
1962	The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm	Greta Heinrich
1962	Five Weeks in a Balloon	Susan Gale	With Red Buttons
1963	The Yellow Canary	Lissa Paxton
1964	7 Faces of Dr. Lao	Angela Benedict	Opposite Tony Randall
1964	Quick, Let's Get Married	Pia Pacelli
1964	The Brass Bottle	Sylvia Kenton	Opposite Tony Randall
1964	The New Interns	Laura Rogers
1964	Ride the Wild Surf	Augie Poole
1976	The Amazing Dobermans	Justine Pirot
1978	Harper Valley PTA	Stella Johnson
1984	Chattanooga Choo Choo	Maggie Jones	With Joe Namath
1985	The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal	Herself	Documentary
1987	Creepshow 2	Annie Lansing	Segment: “The Hitchhiker.” Replaced by Lois Chiles on set due to family emergency.
1996	A Very Brady Sequel	Jeannie	Cameo cross-over
2003	Loco Love	Jackie
2003	Carolina	Daphne St. Claire
2019	My Adventures with Santa	Mrs. Claus

Television films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1971	The Feminist and the Fuzz	Dr. Jane Bowers
1971	A Howling in the Woods	Liza Crocker	Opposite Larry Hagman
1972	The Woman Hunter	Dina Hunter
1973	Guess Who's Sleeping in My Bed?	Francine Gregory
1974	The Stranger Within	Ann Collins
1975	Let's Switch!	Lacy Colbert
1976	How to Break Up a Happy Divorce	Ellen Dowling
1977	Stonestreet: Who Killed the Centerfold Model?	Liz Stonestreet
1979	The Girls in the Office	Lee Rawlins
1980	Condominium	Barbara Messenger
1981	Return of the Rebels	Mary Beth Allen	With Patrick Swayze
1985	I Dream of Jeannie... Fifteen Years Later	Jeannie / Jeannie II	Wayne Rogers as Tony Nelson
1987	The Stepford Children	Laura Harding
1988	The Secret Life of Kathy McCormick	Kathy McCormick
1989	Your Mother Wears Combat Boots	Brenda Andersen	With Matthew Ansara
1990	Opposites Attract	Charlene "Charlie" McKeon
1991	Her Wicked Ways	Tess O'Brien
1991	Hell Hath No Fury	Terri Ferguson
1991	I Still Dream of Jeannie	Jeannie / Jeannie II	With Bill Daily
1993	Visions of Murder	Dr. Jesse Newman
1994	Eyes of Terror	Dr. Jesse Newman
1996	Dead Man's Island	Henrietta O'Dwyer Collins	Opposite William Shatner
2009	Always & Forever	Mary Anderson
2013	One Song	Unknown supporting actor	Undistributed film

Television series

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1956	The Johnny Carson Show	Herself (semi-regular performer)	14 episodes
1956	The West Point Story	Toni DeWitt	Episode: "A Tough Decision"
1957	Highway Patrol	Kathy O'Shea	Episode: "Hostage Copter"
1957	I Love Lucy	Diana Jordan	Episode: "Country Club Dance"
1957	The Millionaire	Billie Walker	Episode: "The Ted McAllister Story"
1957	Crossroads	Polly Grant	Episode: "A Green Hill Faraway"
1957–1959	How to Marry a Millionaire	Loco Jones	52 episodes
1957	Perry Mason	Carla Adrian	Episode: "The Case of the Angry Mourner"
1957	Gunsmoke	Judy Pierce	Episode: "Romeo"
1957	Bachelor Father	Patricia "Patty" Robbins	Episode: "Bentley and the Revolving Housekeepers"
1957	December Bride	Miss Wilson	Episode: "The Other Woman"
1958	Father Knows Best	Marge Corbett	Episode: "The Rivals"
1958	The Lineup	Eleanor	Episode: "The Samuel Bradford Case"
1961	Adventures in Paradise	Ginny Grant	Episode: "The Inheritance"
1962	The Andy Griffith Show	Ellen Brown	Episode: "The Manicurist"
1962	Target: The Corruptors!	Lili	Episode: "Babes in Wall Street"
1962	Cain's Hundred	Terri Emson	Episode: "Savage in Darkness"
1962	Saints and Sinners	Nora Love	Episode: "Daddy's Girl"
1963	Dr. Kildare	Nurse Judy Gail	Episode: "If You Can't Believe the Truth"
1963–1964	Rawhide	Crystal Simpson / Goldie Rogers	2 episodes: "Incidence at Confidence Rock," 1963; "Damon's Road," 1964
1963–1965	Burke's Law	Various Characters	4 episodes: "Who killed Harris Crown?", 1963; "Who killed Cornelius Gilbert?", 1964; "Who killed Paper Dragon?", 1964; "Who killed the Man on the White Horse?", 1965
1964	Route 66	Margo Tiffin / Margo Stiles	Episodes: "Where There's a Will, There's a Way" (Parts 1 & 2)
1964	The Virginian	Samantha Fry	Episode: "The Brazos Kid"
1965	Slattery's People	Lucrezia Kirk	Episode: "Question: When Do We Hang the Good Samaritan?"
1965	The Rogues	Sally Cardew	Episode: "Wherefore Art Thou, Harold?"
1965–1970	I Dream of Jeannie	Jeannie / Jeannie II	139 episodes. 30 first-season episodes filmed in Black and White Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best TV Star – Female (1966) Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best TV Actress – Musical or Comedy (1969)
1967	Armstrong Circle Theatre	Lalume	Episode: "Kismet"
1967	Off to See the Wizard	Melinda	Episode: "Hell Cats"
1972	Love is Barbara Eden	Herself	Variety TV Special with Time Conway
1973	The Barbara Eden Show	Barbara Norris	1 episode. TV Pilot. Unaired
1974	Out to Lunch	Herself (guest star)	TV special
1975	NBC Special Treat	Narrator (voice)	Episode: "Flight from Fuji"
1980	Men who Rate a 10	Guest Host
1981–1982	Harper Valley PTA	Stella Johnson	30 episodes. Young Matthew Ansara appearances
1981	It's only Human	Guest Host	Appearance by Reggie Jackson
1989–1990	Brand New Life	Barbara McCray Gibbons	6 episodes
1990–1991	Dallas	LeeAnn De La Vega	5 episodes: "The Odessa File", 1990; "Sail On", 1991; "Lock, Stock and Jock", 1991; "'S' Is for Seduction", 1991; "Designing Women", 1991
2002–2003	Sabrina the Teenage Witch	Aunt Irma	3 episodes: "A Birthday Wish", 2002; "The Arrangement", 2002; "A Fish Tale", 2003
2003	Teamo Supremo	Evelyn (voice)	Episode: "Brenda's Birthday Bandit"
2007	George Lopez	Ruth	Episode: "George is Maid to be Ruth-Less"
2007	Army Wives	Victoria Grayson	Episode: "Truth and Consequences"
2016	Worst Cooks in America: Celebrity Edition	Herself (contestant)	2 episodes[22][23]
2016–2017	Shimmer and Shine	Empress Caliana (voice)	2 episodes: "The Crystal Queen", 2016; "Samira and Zeta", 2017
2018	Long Island Medium	Herself	Episode: "Sitcom Spirits"

Selected stage productions

Year	Title	Role
1964	The Pajama Game	Babe Williams
1966	Finian's Rainbow	Sharon McLonergan
1970	The Sound of Music	Maria von Trapp
1971	The Unsinkable Molly Brown	Molly Brown
1973	Annie Get Your Gun	Annie Oakley
1977	Blithe Spirit	Elvira
1982	The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas	Miss Mona Stangley
1984	Woman of the Year	Tess Harding
1986	South Pacific	Nellie Forbush
1991	Same Time, Next Year	Doris
1993	Last of the Red Hot Lovers	Elaine Navazio / Jeanette Fisher
1995	Nite Club Confidential	Kay Goodman
1998	Gentlemen Prefer Blondes	Lorelei Lee
2000	The Odd Couple: The Female Version	Florence Unger
2006	Love Letters	Melissa Gardner
2012	Social Security	Sophie
2019	Love Letters	Melissa Gardner

Discography

Singles

Year	Title	Label
1967	"I Wouldn't Be a Fool / Bend It!"	Dot Records
1967	"Rebel"	Dot Records
1967	"Pledge of Love / I'm a Fool to Care"	Dot Records
1978	"Widow Jones"	Plantation Records

Albums

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1967	Miss Barbara Eden	Dot Records
1978	Harper Valley PTA (soundtrack)	Plantation Records	Performed 2 songs: "Mr. Harper", "Widow Jones"

Books

• Eden, Barbara, and Leigh, Wendy. Jeannie out of the Bottle. Norwalk, CT: Easton Press. 2011.
• Smith, Joe. Las Vegas Celebrity Cookbook: The private recipes of 50 international entertainers. Hollybrooke House. 1982.

Audiobooks

• 2011: Jeannie Out of the Bottle, with Wendy Leigh (read by the author), Random House Audio, ISBN 978-0-3079-1434-7

References

1. "Barbara Eden profile". Biography.com. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
2. "Barbara Eden profile". Biography.com. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
3. Guttman, Monika (September 19, 1989). "Barbara Eden wouldn't dream of quitting". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. 9, Food.
4. Derschowitz, Jessica (May 27, 2013). "Barbara Eden, 78, dons "I Dream of Jeannie" costume at charity gala". CBS News. Retrieved September 8, 2018.
5. "Senior Class photos – Spring 1949" (PDF). Abraham Lincoln HS. Retrieved February 4, 2012.
6. Robert Sokol (July 4, 2011). "Barbara Eden is coming home to San Francisco". The Examiner. Retrieved February 4, 2012.
7. "Past Titleholders". MissSanFrancisco.org. Archived from the original on February 11, 2012. Retrieved February 4, 2012.
8. Story, David. America on The Rerun 1993, p. 190, Citadel Press; ISBN 0-8065-1410-8
9. 1955 appearance by Eden on The Johnny Carson Show (online video clip, YouTube, May 17, 2012); accessed July 29, 2016.
10. Andy Williams – State Fair – Screen Test with Barbara Eden (RARE) on YouTube published Nov 19, 2009
11. Stephen Cox; Howard Frank (March 18, 2000). "Chapter 24. Episode Guide". Dreaming of Jeannie: TV's Prime Time in a Bottle. St. Martin's Press. pp. 209–268. ISBN 0-312-20417-5.
12. "Jeannie II (Character)". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved February 4, 2012.
13. "Episode #4.18: Is There a Doctor in the House?". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved February 4, 2012.
14. L'eggs at "Retroland"
15. Murray, Kathleen Wereszynski. "'Love Letters' reunites actors Eden, Hagman star in Gurney play," Poughkeepsie Journal, March 24, 2006.
16. "Excelsior Invests, Co-Stars in Independent Movie". Retrieved August 23, 2015.
17. Itzkoff, Dave (June 29, 2010). "Poof! Barbara Eden's 'Jeannie' Memoir Will Appear Next Year". Arts Beat. New York Times. Archived from the original on December 15, 2013.
18. "Barbara Eden Biography". Barbaraeden.com. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
19. Taylor, Ihsan. "Best Sellers". The New York Times. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
20. Swertlow, Frank (March 11, 2002). "Tragic Waste". People.
21. Story, David. America on The Rerun (1993), p. 197, Citadel Press; ISBN 0-8065-1410-8.
22. Meet Worst Cooks Celebrity recruit Barbara Eden
23. Worst Cooks Celebrity Edition Exit Interview Barbara Eden

External links

• Official website
• Barbara Eden at IMDb
• Barbara Eden at the TCM Movie Database
• Barbara Eden discography at Discogs
• Archive, emmytvlegends.org; accessed August 23, 2015.
• Interview with Barbara Eden, elvis.com.au; accessed February 24, 2014
• Barbara Eden article, nydailynews.com; accessed August 23, 2015.
• Biodata, biography.com; accessed August 23, 2015.