Saturday, June 20, 2009

The Salem Saga

On June 20, 1970, the cast and crew of the popular television situation comedy Bewitched moved their production to the city of Salem, Massachusetts. The decision to suddenly shoot a series of episodes on location was necessitated by a fire that damaged and destroyed some of the Bewitched sets in the studio that normally housed the production. The writers rapidly set to work, crafting a series of episodes that would have the characters visiting both Salem and Gloucester, Massachusetts.

The on-location shoots brought an expected temporary burst of business to Salem, which had been financially suffering as its shipping business decreased over the years. It also had an unexpected long term effect in that the episodes, once aired, caused tourism interest among some television viewers. The initial boost in tourism turned into escalating waves of tourists, until Salem was transformed into the city full of museums, tourist shops, psychics, and haunted attractions it is today.

The episodes which where shot on location in Massachusetts are collectively referred to as The Salem Saga. Among the episodes are two that deal with an enchanted bed warmer that chases Samantha following her visit to Nathaniel Hawthorne's House of Seven Gables.

Venture to the House of Seven Gables and see what follows you home.

-Tom G

3 comments:

Wings1295 said...

Great post! Love Bewitched, used to watch it all the time. The Salem Saga is fun and adds something different to the show.

Chris 'Frog Queen' Davis said...

Oh, wow, thanks for sharing. I must have missed those episodes. I am defiately going to look for them now.

Thanks for sharing.

Cheers!

suzanne said...

Those were some of my favourite Bewitched episodes. There is actually a statue of Samantha, on her broomstick of course, on a corner in downtown Salem.