One of television's oldest icons, actress and writer Barbara Eden has always mesmerized fans with her acting. But even the most devoted fans of women do not know what their idol really was. We invite you to visit the biography of Barbara Eden, you will be very impressed!

Beginning

Barbara Jean Morehead, the renowned actress, was born outside of Los Angeles, California. Eden was born on August 23, 1931, and she is originally from Tucson, Arizona.

Since Barbara Eden—then Morehead—intentionally lied about her age to seem years younger than she actually was, this wasn't made known for a time. For many years, it was believed that Eden was born in 1941.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Singing talent

Eden's aptitude as a vocalist was evident right away. She began performed for her family as a young child to share her passion of singing and music.

From there, she was given a spot in a church choir where she could speak more freely in front of audiences other than her close relatives. Eden was really performing in clubs by the time she was a teenager, earning $10 every show.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Relocate

Eden's family relocated from Arizona to San Francisco, California, when she grew older. She attended Abraham Lincoln High School, where she received her high school diploma in 1949.

Eden joined Actors' Equity Associate when she was 16 years old, a union in the United States that focuses on live theatre performance rather than cinema and television. It was obvious at this moment that Eden has a unique talent.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

The beginning of a career

Eden did not abruptly leave the City College of San Francisco. After experiencing the adrenaline of entertaining large crowds with her wonderful singing voice, she realized she wanted to be an actor and singer.

She entered the Miss America pageant to test her stage presence, and even though she didn't place first, her career took off in 1955. She was then chosen to appear on The Johnny Carson Show on occasion.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

The first popularity

Although many younger generations today may not be familiar with Johnny Carson, he was undoubtedly one of the most well-known faces on television in the 1950s, and Barbara's work on the program brought her significant exposure.

Eden would make a number of prominent TV appearances over the following couple of years. She had appearances on The West Point Story (1956), Highway Patrol (1957), and The Millionaire (1957), and she played Diana Jordan on I Love Lucy (1957).

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

A promising prospect

Eden's career was just getting started at this point, but it was clear that this kid had promise. Among the numerous sitcoms she appeared on at the period were Target: The Corruptors!, Crossroads, Perry Mason, Gunsmoke, and December Bride.

The actress then appeared as a guest star in four episodes of the 1963 detective series Burke's Law, appearing in a different role each time. The Tarnished Angels, a Rock Hudson-starring film, included the young artist in an uncredited role as well.

@Burke's Law - S1E1 - Who Killed Holly Howard?/Video Archives/YouTube.com

Success and failure

The actress's big break came when she was offered the screen test at a major studio, which is something that every actor and actress wants while attempting to break into Hollywood. The movie for which the screen test was conducted was 1957's No Down Payment.

She was not granted the job despite being personally invited by director Mark Robson to participate in the screen test. She was instead presented with a contract with 20th Century Fox.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

How to Marry a Millionaire

It must have been disheartening for this starlet to not be selected for the job after auditioning during a screen test that the director personally asked you to.

Eden was given the c10/hance to sign a contract with 20th Century Fox just as she probably thought her career had reached a new low. She received a leading part in the 1957 television series How to Marry a Millionaire, which was adapted from the 1953 motion picture.

@Barbara Eden reflects on her classic TV series "How To Marry A Millionaire?" - documentary interview/BarbaraEdenFan/YouTube.com

A colleague of Marilyn Monroe

How to Marry a Millionaire was a television series that ran from 1957 to 1959 and was based on the 1953 comedy movie of the same name. Eden portrayed the major character in the movie, which featured none other than Marilyn Monroe.

Numerous producers were drawn to her position in the series because they thought her skill belonged on the big screen. 

@How To Marry A Millionaire | Marilyn Monroe Glasses | Airplane scene/K Caldwell/YouTube.com

Michael Ansara 

Let's just say that Eden's work life was going rather nicely. She has been in a number of shows and had a long-running television show of her own.

Her personal life was also improving, in addition to her career. She was about to undergo a significant upheaval in her personal life as well. The celebrity wed Syrian actor Michael Ansara in 1958. He is well remembered for his role in the 1956 movie Broken Arrow.

@The Life of Barbara Eden I Dream of Jeannie and Best Friend Dawn Wells Gilligan's Island/Cool Classics/YouTube.com

The first main role

Although the blonde-haired beauty appeared to already have it all, she was about to get much more. She received her first leading part in the musical comedy A Private's Affair in 1959.

The movie focuses on Jerry and Luigi, two New Yorkers who enlist in the army and end up getting married unintentionally. Both reviewers and viewers praised the movie, and the next year it garnered a Golden Globe nomination.

@A Private's Affair (1959) Barry Coe, Christine Carère, Sal Mineo, Gary Crosby, Barbara Eden/sfinthecity/YouTube.com

With Elvis Presley

Hollywood is a place where actors frequently worry about appearing in a big movie one year and then abruptly disappearing the next. Thankfully, Barbara didn't need to be concerned about that.

Eden was given a prominent part in the Western Flaming Star, which was released the year following A Private's Affair. The movie, which was based on a book that had been released two years before, starred Elvis Presley as Eden.

@Barbara Eden’s Movie With Elvis Was an Absolute Disaster/Facts Verse/YouTube.com

Flaming Star 

Even though Flaming Star earned well at the box office the year it was released, it would not hold up by today's standards. The film's inaccurate representation of Native Americans as savage horsemen who raid homesteaders is the major cause.

Nevertheless, the movie was a success for its time and everyone appeared to anticipate this. Frank Sinatra was a contender for the part before Presley was selected.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Victory over the opponent

Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra were not the only contestants vying for the lead role. In actuality, there was a fierce battle for the leading lady's position as well.

Initially considered to co-star with Presley was another well-known actress, Barbara Steele, who, ironically, had the same first name as Eden. But when studio officials had a chance to watch Eden perform live, they were blown away and decided to cast her.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm

When Eden outperformed other actresses to land prominent roles next to some of the top stars of the early 1960s, it was evident that she was on the rise in Hollywood. Eden had her next significant role in the 1962 film The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm, which she starred in.

The movie was a success, shattering box office records to earn the most money of the whole year. The movie received an Academy Award nomination the next year.

@Official Trailer- THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF THE BROTHERS GRIMM (1962, George Pal, Laurence Harvey)
/Trailer World/YouTube.com

20th Century Fox

There was no doubt that Eden and 20th Century Fox benefited from their connection. As a result of casting her in multiple main parts, 20th Century Fox had significantly increased its wealth and she was now acknowledged as a great Hollywood star.

Eden was poised to take the lead in her last project with the studio that had done so much for her career in 1963. She bid farewell to the 20th century after the thriller The Yellow Canary.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

I Dream of Jeannie

Anyone who has quit a good job understands that the process can be equally thrilling and terrifying. There is always the worry of being written off as irrelevant, despite the possibility of being more successful than ever before.

Although the risk paid out for Eden, it was a good one. Producer Sidney Sheldon contacted her in 1965 and expressed his opinion that Eden would be ideal for the show I Dream of Jeannie.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

The Brass Bottle

Sheldon had already given auditions to a number of brunette actresses and contestants. Even yet, he wasn't sure he had discovered "the one." Bewitched was 1964's second-most-watched television program. He thought he could create something entertaining, but first he needed to get the appropriate appearance, so he went up to Eden.

He had indeed seen the blonde actress in The Brass Bottle, a fantasy comedy from 1964 about a modern guy who unintentionally befriends a long-forgotten genie.

@🎥 THE BRASS BOTTLE (1964) | Trailer | Full HD | 1080p/MOVIE PREDICTOR/YouTube.com

Another victory

Eden was glad to accept Sidney Sheldon's lucrative offer, especially after Sheldon had been so complimentary of Eden's résumé. Eden was a bit surprised to learn that she was competing against pageant candidates.

Eden said in an interview with Channel 10 News in Australia that she had questioned her agent's knowledge of the competition when she was originally contacted for the role and learned who she would be competing against.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

In the role of Jin

Eden was reluctant to take the job since she would be competing against pageant entrants rather than the tough actors she was used to facing up against.

I Dream of Jeannie quickly evolved from a Sidney Sheldon invention to a full-fledged television series starring none other than Hollywood icon Barbara Eden. Eden portrays a 2000-year-old genie in the program who eventually falls in love with an astronaut who discovers her lamp.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

139 episodes 

139 episodes were produced for the show's last five seasons. In a significant sense, the movie also changed history. I Dream of Jeannie, which debuted in 1965, was the final NBC program to be presented in black and white.

The comedy then made the conversion to color for the following four years that it was on broadcast, mirroring the developments in television happening at that pivotal time.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Her dream came true

The series featured a variety of themes and issues, many of which were depicted via the costumes. This fulfilled a desire for the adored actress. The actress regarded the stunning, custom-fitted apparel as among of the nicest outfits she has ever had the pleasure of wearing.

The clothes merged styles from the counterculture era with designs that were influenced by classical notions from the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Brunette

Eden enjoyed donning incredible outfits and costumes throughout the series, but she also momentarily changed her hair color to brown.

She may not have truly colored her hair, but for eight episodes the actress wore a brunette wig. Why? The wicked fraternal twin sister of Jeannie, whose name also happens to be Jeannie, was also portrayed by Eden. Beginning in the third season, when she constantly tries to kidnap Tony for herself, this character reveals that she has a cruel side.

@Barbara Eden slideshow/randy greenwood/YouTube.com

Good attitude

Eden talked about how she was treated on the set of I Dream of Jeannie with the Today Show as she reflected on her time as a cast member.

She claimed that in addition to receiving the respect they earned, the actors and actresses enjoyed numerous amenities that were not provided to many other people playing comparable roles. We were treated like kings, she said. Anything we could think of, studio would have supplied to us.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Love for bagels

Eden was aware of exactly what she desired to be conveyed. The well-known actress has a need for bagels, which is a little-known but quite entertaining truth about her. Her statement is that "while we were filming, I would custom order heaps of bagels from my favorite shop."

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

A partner named Larry Hagman

The astronaut that Eden's character falls in love with on the episode was played by an actor by the name of Larry Hagman. Eden believed that the strength of their sitcom was based on her connection with Hagman.

The two characters had the traditional on-again, off-again romance that is typical of well-liked television series even today. Both protagonists were married by the fifth season, and Eden thought that was the end of the story.

@Barbara Eden I Dream of Jeannie 2023 Interview/BarbaraEdenFan/YouTube.com

Love for cats

Even though Eden wasn't Joe Exotic, she still had encounters with large cats. In fact, the adored performer divulged a fascinating detail about herself to a group of interviewers.

The actress said that because real lions were used in previous films, she had some expertise working with them. Eden so immediately became friends with the beautiful animal when I Dream of Jeannie decided it required a lion for one of its scenarios.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Fearless

The studio wanted this brand-new series' first season to be a success, so pressure was on. In order to stand out from the competition, the producers decided it would be a good idea to bring a lion to the set and use it in one of the sequences.

Everyone fled except Barbara when the lion let out a loud roar while the cameras were filming at one point.

@Barbara Eden's Strange Hidden Talent/Facts Verse/YouTube.com

Future mother on the set

The fact that Eden was actually carrying her future son, Matthew Ansara, during the first season of the program is a delightful fact that many viewers at the time were unaware of.

This was a major setback for the production crew, who sorely desired Eden's acting talents but whose character couldn't be pregnant because she was a genie. The cast wisely used close-ups and outfits that covered her stomach rather than hiring a stunt double.

@A Pregnant Misunderstanding | I Dream Of Jeannie/I Dream of Jeannie/YouTube.com

A strange scenario

The concept of a genie falling in love with an astronaut is bizarre. Barbara said that the character's history wasn't even complete.

In reality, Jeannie gave various accounts about her ancestry. One episode revealed that she was descended from genies, while another featured Barbara Ansara's husband, Michael Ansara, as the "Blue Djinn," who transformed her into a genie as punishment for refusing to wed him.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Favorite episode

After Barbara was questioned about which of the 139 episodes was her favorite, the question wasn't any simpler for the show. Despite the unpleasant nature of filming on the beach, she said right away that her favorite episode was “The Lady in the Bottle.”

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

The Monkees 

The Monkees were a rock group that was quite active between 1966 and 1971. For those who didn't grow up in the 1960s and regrettably lost out on some of the finest music ever, they were immensely popular during that time.

There were multiple references to The Monkees program, which starred the well-known band, in I Dream of Jeannie. In actuality, Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, two of The Monkees' writers, appeared in many appearances as bandmates of Barbara Eden's character.

@The Monkees Greatest Hits [Full Album] - The Best Of The Monkees - The Monkees Songs Playlist/Classic Rock Music/YouTube.com

A magical heirloom lamp

The studio officials determined that burning the set was the wisest course of action when the fifth season of the program came to a close since retaining it would need storage fees. However, Barbara preserved one of the magic lamps and eventually donated it since she couldn't bear to see it all burn to the ground.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Her main role

Many Hollywood actors and actresses have defining roles that viewers will remember them by for centuries. Eden had no doubt that Jeannie would develop into the persona for which she was most known. Despite a lengthy Hollywood career, she said that she didn't mind this.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

The Toy Game

Eden kept herself busy with a variety of projects after the popular show was cancelled in 1970, including two unaired pilots. She filmed a pilot for a show called The Toy Game in addition to The Barbara Eden Show.

Eden and her adored former co-star Larry Hagman play two competing toy industry CEOs in the unreleased series.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

The Feminist and the Fuzz

The actress started connecting herself with the realm of comic acting after becoming famous for portraying the character of Jeannie. Therefore, it wasn't all that surprising when producers and directors approached Eden after the show had ended to offer her parts in other comedies.

The first one included the made-for-television movie The Feminist and the Fuzz from 1971, which was about a woman who wants to be a police officer but has to contend with her obstinate superiors.

@The Feminist and the Fuzz (1971) - Barbara Eden/rockmyworld/YouTube.com

A Howling in the Woods

She may have made her first TV movie after playing a wish-granting genie, but it was definitely not her last. Eden appeared in A Howling in the Woods, a made-for-television movie, the same year this cop comedy was released.

In contrast to many of her earlier performances, this one was a thriller starring Barbara Eden as housewife Liza Crocker, who starts to develop misgivings about the local population.

@Barbara Eden - A Howling in the Woods/Barbara Eden Fan Portal/YouTube.com

ABC show Out to Lunch

With her appearance in the prime-time ABC show Out to Lunch, which aired in December 1974, Eden expanded her audience to include youngsters at this point. She was undoubtedly staying busy at the time. In addition to the Sesame Street Muppets and the ensemble of The Electric Company, Eden herself, Elliott Gould, and Carol Burnett were also featured in the show.

The idea behind the presentation was that because the ABC newscasters had all left for lunch, it was up to The Electric Company and the Muppets to fill up an hour of missing content.

@Barbara Eden Documentary/interesting/YouTube.com

Dallas

The long-running primetime television show Dallas began airing in April 1978 and ran until May 1991. The nighttime soap opera was one of the most watched television shows throughout its existence and frequently peaked at number one in the Nielsen ratings.

In one of the final episodes, Eden got to catch up with Larry Hagman, her former co-star. In contrast to their previous comedic collaborations, the storyline involving their two characters in Dallas was deep and somber.

@Barbara Eden discusses her guest appearances on "Dallas" -EMMYTVLEGENDS.ORG/FoundationINTERVIEWS/YouTube.com

Stella Johnson

In 1978, Eden had the successful primetime serial opera as well as starring roles in Harper Valley PTA, a feature picture based on the hit country song from 1968. The movie centers on Stella Johnson (Eden), a widowed single mother who canvasses neighborhoods selling cosmetics.

It was a huge box office hit that Richard Bennett and Ralph Senensky (who quit the production during filming and was replaced by Bennett) directed!

@Barbara Eden Harper Valley P T A/BoxHead 42/YouTube.com

Harper Valley 

The film was such a smash sensation that a few years later it gave rise to a named-after television series. In both the movie and television series, Eden portrays Stella Johnson, the protagonist of the story. The program won 11 of the 13 timeslots it had in its debut season.

The series was renamed to Harper Valley after its original release in January 1981. During this period, Eden also took on the role of L'eggs pantyhose's spokesperson and appeared in a number of print and television advertisements for the company.

@Barbara Eden - Harper Valley PTA/Green50Hornet/YouTube.com

“Woman of the Year”

A few years after the final episode of Harper Valley aired, Lee Guber and Shelly Gross cast Eden as Tess Harding Craig, the lead in their national production of Woman of the Year, the Tony Award-winning musical comedy by John Kander and Fred Ebb.

The program centers on the romance between a busy television personality named Tess and a charming cartoonist named Sam. Tess, who is poised to receive a "Woman of the Year" award, comes to the conclusion that her relationship with Sam is more important to her than her demanding profession.

Same Time, Next Year

After Dallas ended in 1991, Eden showed to be an irresistible force by appearing with Wayne Rogers in the theatrical production of Same Time, Next Year. A television movie of the week featured the beloved actress reprising her role as Jeannie.

When she and Don Knotts performed in an 11-city national tour of the play Last of the Red Hot Lovers in 1993, Eden demonstrated that she had no plans to slow down.

Music career

Eden has acted in a number of musicals throughout the course of her career, including The Sound of Music, Annie Get Your Gun, South Pacific, The Pajama Game, and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. The Carol Burnett Show, The Jonathan Winters Show, The Jerry Lewis Show, This Is Tom Jones, Donny and Marie, and even 21 Bob Hope specials are just a few of the other variety shows on which Eden has made musical guest appearances.

Given her talent, it is not surprising that Eden also chose to release an album for the Dot Records record company in 1967 under the name Miss Barbara Eden.

The Odd Couple: The Female Version 

Eden began playing the title role in the national touring production of The Odd Couple: The Female Version in 2000, when she was 69 years old. Up until 2004, she portrayed Florence Unger opposite Rita MacKenzie in the character of Olive Madison.

The play, which had its Broadway debut in 1965, was written by Neil Simon, who later modified the screenplay in 1985 to include two female housemates.

Shimmer and Shine

Eden has also been recognized for her voice work throughout the years, particularly for the animated children's TV program Shimmer and Shine. Princess Samira's retired genie mentor Empress Caliana is voiced by the actress in the program.

The main heroes are assisted by Eden's character in rescuing Samira from a crystal cave. The same character is voiced by Eden in the third season episode Samira and Zeta, which reveals that Caliana worked at the genie school Genie Hall, where a young Samira and the show's primary antagonist both attended.

Larry Hagman 

As much as viewers adored Eden in her role as Jeannie the genie, viewers also adored seeing the actress and Larry Hagman together in movies. People appeared to react quite favorably to the two's acting and chemistry because it had been developed over years.

As a result, the two gave another joint performance in 2006, this time on a stage as opposed to a television program set. At West Point and Staten Island College, there were two performances of the play, which was titled Love Letters.

@‘I Dream Of Jeannie’ Star Barbara Eden Made Heartbreaking Confession About Larry Hagman/Nene Star News/YouTube.com

Lifetime Army 

Eden secured a guest-starring role on the Lifetime drama series Army women after co-starring with Hal Linden in Love Letters in 2006. This drama series chronicles the lives of four army women, one army husband, and their kids.

By chance, Eden's niece Katherine Fugate, who produces and writes the program, is involved! Eden started shooting Always & Forever, a TV movie for the Hallmark Channel, in 2008. In October 2009, a year later, the movie was made public.

The Barbara Eden Show

Anyone's ascent to the top is undoubtedly treacherous, and many people experience several setbacks before they achieve success.

People who experience setbacks and nonetheless achieve typically view these experiences as being particularly instructive. Some people even claim that these periods contributed to the amount of success they eventually attained. One of those instances for Eden was the unaired pilot for The Barbara Eden Show.

@Barbara Eden Shows Off Her L.A. Home — and Collection of Genie Bottles! | Hollywood At Home|PEOPLE/People/ YouTube.com

Writing talent

The actress has other skills besides acting and singing, albeit they are the ones for which she is best known. She has written two books that have been published. The first is Barbara Eden: My Story, an autobiography published in 1986.

The majority of the book is devoted to her early life and ascent to popularity and fortune. The second novel, titled Jeannie Out of the Bottle, was released considerably later, in 2011.

@Barbara Eden talking about her Autobiography Book, I Dream of Jeannie/BarbaraEdenFan/YouTube.com