After airing reruns on the WPIX network, “I Dream of Jeannie” came in at number one during its time slot! The show seemed to have started to gain popularity after it had originally aired. The show was not an instant success. It was never #1 rated when it got its start and it somehow never hit the number one spot with the television ratings.
The entire time it was playing in reruns, “I Dream of Jeannie” continued to be one of the most popular television shows. Networks began to play episodes back to back and in prime time slots. It even became the very first off-network show to surpass network competition. What an amazing feat for this little show!
The Other Jeannie?
Did you know that Barbara Eden also played the role of Jeannie’s evil sister on the series? Somehow, most fans do not seem to know this despite the only change being her darker hair color! People would constantly write to her asking which actress played her sister on the show!
As if it wasn't confusing enough, the evil sister on the show who was also named Jeannie. In today's times, actors constantly play multiple roles in shows and movies. This is pretty common knowledge, but we guess it was not a popular back then making it a real mystery for fans of the show!
Not Ideal Conditions
Actors often times have to film in less-than-ideal circumstances. This was definitely the case for the first episode of “I Dream of Jeannie.” They filmed the first episode in Malibu, California In the dead of winter. The location was actually Zuma Beach, but It was supposed to be a deserted island somewhere warm tropical, definitely not California in winter!
You definitely would not be able to tell by watching the episode, but it was absolutely freezing on set. Eden admitted that she was freezing the whole time they were shooting, but it still remains her favorite episode!
Their Set Was Destroyed
When a television series is canceled or ends, you may wonder what happens to the set and all of the props that they used for the show. Back in the day during the filming of “I Dream of Jeannie” it was pretty common for studios just to burn down the set.
Once the network canceled “I Dream Of Jeannie,” they had to decide what to do with the set and the props. The producers of the show knew that it was going to be very expensive to store everything if that was what they wanted to do. They decided to burn down the set, to avoid the cost of storing all of the props. The cast and crew got to take whatever they wanted from the set before they burned it to the ground.
No Blondes, Please
It is almost impossible to imagine Jeannie as a brunette. But while they were casting the role, the producers were looking to hire an actress who did not have blond hair for the leading role. They were already getting so much slack with people saying they were ripping off Bewitched. They did not want to have another blond lead. Her beautiful blonde hair almost prevented her from getting cast in this iconic role.
However, the casting directors had multiple rounds of auditions and no one suited the role better than Barbara. They decided to go against their initial idea and cast a blond anyway.