"I Dream of Jeannie" (1965) TV series 1965-1970

Creator:

Sidney Sheldon

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

18 September 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy

Plot:

A United States astronaut finds his life vastly complicated when he stumbles on to a bottle containing a female genie.

Plot Keywords:

Bottle | Genie | Astronaut | Desert Island | Florida

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

 (Series Cast Summary - 4 of 82)

Barbara Eden	...	Jeannie / ... (139 episodes, 1965-1970)
Larry Hagman	...	Major Anthony Nelson / ... (139 episodes, 1965-1970)
Bill Daily	...	Major Roger Healey / ... (129 episodes, 1965-1970)
Hayden Rorke	...	Dr. Alfred Bellows (127 episodes, 1965-1970)

Runtime:

Argentina:30 min | USA:30 min (139 episodes) | Chile:30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White (1965-1966) | Color (1966-1970)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:TV-G | Australia:PG (some episodes) | Singapore:PG | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Sunset Gower Studios - 1438 N. Gower Street, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

National Broadcasting Company (NBC)

Trivia:

In the episode "My Poor Master the Civilian", Jeannie uses a future telling machine to see how Tony's life would turn out if he quit the space program and took a civilian job. The interior set used for Tony's office is the set used for Darrin Stephens' office in "Bewitched" (1964).

Goofs:

Continuity: In one episode Jeannie's eyes are dilated after getting an exam. She is unable blink a jewelry shop out of Tony's office, but after saying she can't blink, she does.

Quotes:

Blue Djinn: How does thou wish to die?
Major Nelson: Of old age.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Late Night with Conan O'Brien: 10th Anniversary Special (2003) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Theme song

truly one of the funniest shows of all time

I would say that "I Dream of Jeannie," "Bewitched" and "The Flying Nun" constitute the trifecta of ultimate 1960's TV shows. That is, they were all fantasies and had very loony premises. In all three cases, a new kind of person enters the scene and upsets the status quo.

In Jeannie's case, when Maj. Nelson brings her home, she turns Cocoa Beach, Florida, upside down. The whole city goes from being a drab, old-order bastion, to a wacky, hippie-like enclave. In that sense, Jeannie's colorful outfit is a great contrast to Maj. Nelson's monochromatic uniform.

On a given episode, Maj. Nelson can expect Jeannie to do something like put an elephant in his house or repaint his office like an Arabian palace. Her antics always catch the attention of psychiatrist Dr. Bellows, who reports it to the general. But, as is always the case in silly comedy, she fixes it before Dr. Bellows can show the general, and Dr. Bellows ends up looking like an imbecile.

Maj. Nelson's hopeless romantic friend, Maj. Healey, hilariously has the worst luck of all. Every time he asks Jeannie for help, it always gets him in trouble.

One of the funniest aspects of this show is the fact that even people who do not know that Jeannie exists get affected by her magic. Dr. and Mrs. Bellows suffer the most, but even guest characters see their lives turned crazy when some misused magic messes something up.

So that's "IDOJ." This is one show that I never miss a chance to watch on TVLand. One thing that would have been really neat would have been if Jeannie and Samantha ("Bewitched") could have teamed up. Knowing what each woman did individually, just imagine what they could have done if they had combined their magic!

In conclusion, I will always dream of Jeannie.