We were all stunned by the sudden death of Elizabeth Montgomery.

The show aired for eight seasons from 1964 to 1972 and quickly made Elizabeth a household name. Her signature nose twitch became iconic, with fans everywhere imitating the gesture.

Reflecting on her experience, Elizabeth told the Associated Press in 1965, “I’d never thought much about a series because I liked the idea of picking a script I liked with a character I thought I could sustain for an hour.

In a series, you live with one character day in and day out – and you only hope it will be one that will not drive you crazy.” During her time on Bewitched, she earned five Primetime Emmy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations.

After Bewitched ended and her marriage with William Asher concluded, Elizabeth turned to television movies, which allowed her to explore darker and more complex roles.

She starred in films such as Mrs. Sundance (1973), A Case of Rape (1974), The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975), Black Widow Murders (1993), The Corpse Had a Familiar Face (1994), and Deadline for Murder:

From the Files of Edna Buchanan (1995). During the filming of Mrs. Sundance, she met Robert Foxworth, who became her partner until her death, though they only married in 1993.

Author Herbie J. Pilato, who has written extensively about Elizabeth, said, “Before Jane Seymour, before Lindsay Wagner, and before Valerie Bertinelli, Elizabeth was the first Queen of the TV movies;

she went from queen of the witches to queen of the TV movie, and it was no longer a struggle to break away from Bewitched.”

Elizabeth Montgomery’s life was tragically cut short by cancer. Though she had believed herself to be free of the disease, she became ill while filming Deadline for Murder.

By the time she was diagnosed in March 1995, the cancer had already spread to her liver. She passed away peacefully in her sleep at her Beverly Hills home, surrounded by her husband and three children.

A memorial was held a month later at the Canon Theatre in Beverly Hills, with famous jazz musician Herbie Hancock performing and author Dominick Dunne speaking about his lifelong friendship with Elizabeth.

She was cremated at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles. Throughout her career, Elizabeth relished playing a variety of characters. Continue reading…