Barbara Eden

Barbara Eden (born Barbara Jean Morehead; August 23, 1931) is an American actress and singer, who starred as the title character in the sitcom ''I Dream of Jeannie'' (1965–1970). Her other roles included Roslyn Pierce opposite Elvis Presley in ''Flaming Star'' (1960), Lieutenant (JG) Cathy Connors in ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' (1961), and a single widowed mother, Stella Johnson, in the comedy film '' Harper Valley PTA'' (1978) and in the television series.

Eden began singing in bands as a teenager and studied singing and acting. In 1955, she began her television career with appearances on '' The Johnny Carson Show'' and on various other series, such as '' Burke's Law''. By 1957, she was starring in the comedy TV series ''How to Marry a Millionaire''. She also began to act in plays. In 1959, she had her first major film role in '' A Private's Affair''. After ''I Dream of Jeannie'', Eden appeared mostly in dramatic roles, such as in the TV movie '' Stonestreet: Who Killed the Centerfold Model?'' (1977). She also appeared in musical comedy tours, other theatrical roles and a TV broadcast of '' Kismet'', released an album, appeared on variety television shows and USO shows, and headlined Las Vegas acts. After starring in the film and TV series ''Harper Valley PTA'', she played opposite her ''I Dream of Jeannie'' co-star Larry Hagman on several occasions, including in five episodes of the final season of ''Dallas'' and the play '' Love Letters''.

Eden continued to perform until the age of 90; she continues as of 2024 to make public appearances at comic-cons and other fan-related events.

Early years

Eden was born on August 23, 1931, in Tucson, Arizona, to Alice Mary (née Franklin) and Hubert Henry Morehead. She is a descendant of Benjamin Franklin. For decades, her year of birth was thought to be 1934. After her parents' divorce, she and her mother moved to San Francisco, where her mother married Harrison Connor Huffman, a telephone lineman, by whom she had a daughter, Eden's half-sister. Eden grew up in San Francisco's Parkside neighborhood, and traces her family back four generations in San Francisco, remembering stories about her grandmother who came in a covered wagon and her grandfather who came on a clipper ship.

The Great Depression deeply affected the family, and as they were unable to afford many luxuries, Alice entertained her children with singing. Eden remembers having a "very musical family".

Eden's first public performance was singing in the church choir, where she sang the solos. As a teenager, she sang in local bands led by Howard Fredericks and Freddie Martin. At age 16, she studied singing with voice teacher Paulina Giovanini 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 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.

Television and film roles

Eden began her television career as a semiregular on '' The Johnny Carson Show'' in 1955.Story, David. ''America on The Rerun'' 1993, p. 190, Citadel Press; 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.

Film director Mark Robson, who later directed Eden in the movie ''From the Terrace'', took note of Eden's performance in a play with James Drury and wanted her to work for 20th Century Fox studios. Her screen test was the Joanne Woodward role in ''No Down Payment'' (1957). Although she did not get the role, the studio gave Eden 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.

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''

In 1965, producer Sidney Sheldon signed Eden to star in his upcoming fantasy sitcom ''I Dream of Jeannie'' for 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.

Musicals and 1970s TV movies

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 played Lalune in a TV adaptation of '' Kismet'' (1967). From April through September 1984, she starred in the national production of ''Woman of the Year'', playing the role of Tess Harding Craig. 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 titled ''Miss Barbara Eden'' in 1967 on Dot Records. She also had long-running stints headlining in Las Vegas.

After ''Jeannie'', Eden starred in an unaired pilot, ''The Barbara Eden Show'', and another pilot, ''The Toy Game''. Her first TV movie was called '' The Feminist and the Fuzz'' (1971). 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 a policewoman-turned-private detective investigating the disappearance of a missing heiress, in the 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 romantic comedy movie '' 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.

''Harper Valley PTA'' and later career

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 protagonist Stella Johnson. It was a comedy version of '' Peyton Place'', with Anne Francine playing wealthy villainess 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). It debuted January 16, 1981, winning 11 of its 13 time slots during the first season. It was renamed simply ''Harper Valley'' when it 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 advertisements and TV commercials for the brand from 1979 to 1983.

In 1990, Eden played a recurring role as a billionairess seeking revenge against J.R. Ewing in five episodes of the final season of ''Dallas'', as the captivating character LeeAnn de la Vega, reuniting her with Hagman. In her final episode, the character admits that her maiden name is Nelson (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.

From 2000 to 2004, she 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.'' Eden also starred in ''Love Letters'' opposite Hal Linden the same year and had a guest-starring role on the Lifetime series ''Army Wives''. She starred in the TV movie ''Always and Forever'' on the Hallmark Channel 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 familiar Jeannie harem costume. She was next cast in the movie ''One Song'', filmed the same year. She has also done voice work for the animated children's television series ''Shimmer and Shine''.

Personal life

Eden wrote the memoir ''Jeannie Out of the Bottle'', published on April 5, 2011 by Crown Archetype, a division of Random House. It debuted at number 14 on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list.

''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 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 Matthew Ansara (1965–2001) from a drug overdose.

In June 2021, while talking about her children's book ''Barbara and the Djinn'', Eden revealed that she and her husband Jon Eicholtz had recovered from COVID-19. In 2023, she celebrated her 92nd birthday and said, "My life is very centered around my family, my house, my husband, my dog Bentley and my friends."

Honors

On November 17, 1988, Eden received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contributions to television. In 1990, the University of West Los Angeles law school granted Eden an honorary doctor of laws degree.Story, David. ''America on The Rerun'' (1993), p. 197, Citadel Press; .

Filmography

Feature films

Television films

Television series

Selected stage productions

Discography

Singles

Albums

Books

*Eden, Barbara, and Warburton, Dustin. ''Barbara and the Djinn.'' Neighborhood Publishers. 2021
*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,

References

External links

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Barbara Eden remembers Elvis
@ elvis.com.au

Interview with Barbara Eden
PBS

Barbara Eden
@ biography.com

Barbara Eden singing
on season 1 of the '' Carol Burnett Show'' (after 18:30)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eden, Barbara
1931 births
Living people
American film actresses
American television actresses
American stage actresses
American musical theatre actresses
American women singers
Actresses from San Francisco
Actresses from Tucson, Arizona
People from Tucson, Arizona
Singers from San Francisco
Singers from Arizona
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses