Elizabeth Montgomery’s sudden death shocked us all
When you hear the name Elizabeth Montgomery, it’s impossible not to hear the little twinkle that accompanied her character’s nose twitch on Bewitched.
The stunning actress became a household name and global phenomenon in the 1960s – but sadly, she died unexpectedly in 1995.
At Newsner, we have written about many beautiful and talented women – but Elizabeth Montgomery stole my youthful heart right off the bat.
Most movie & TV actors and actresses need makeup and hair stylists to make them look good – Elizabeth did not. She was a natural beauty, and I loved watching her in Bewitched.
So what happened to Elizabeth Montgomery after her run as Samantha Stephens in the popular 1960s sitcom?
In 2024, the talented actress would have celebrated her 91st birthday, but let’s take a look back at her career in film and television before her untimely death in 1995.
Elizabeth Montgomery was born in Los Angeles on April 15, 1933 to a Broadway actress and film star, so acting was in her blood since birth.
“Dad tells me I often climbed on his lap after dinner and remarked, ‘I’m going to be an actress when I grow up.’ I don’t know whether he encouraged me or not, but he told me he would humor me and would tell me to wait and see what happened when I grew up,” Elizabeth said in 1954 interview with the Los Angeles Times.
Her father, Robert Montgomery, was a very popular and acclaimed actor.
”I’ll be real honest and say that Daddy did help me get a break in TV and I’m really grateful for his assistance and guidance. He’s my most severe critic, but also a true friend as well as loving father.”
Elizabeth attended school in California before moving to New York City, where she attended the Spence School. After graduating, she attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts for three years.
When she was still a teenager, she made her television debut on her father’s show, Robert Montgomery Presents. She continued to make several appearances on his show.
By 1953, Elizabeth had made her Broadway debut starring in Late Love. Two years later in 1955 she appeared in her first film, The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell, and then two years later she returned to Broadway.
As her career continued to advance, Elizabeth found love, but it never lasted long.
In 1954 she married Frederick Gallatin Cammann, but the couple divorced a year later. She married Gig Young, an award-winning actor, in 1956, and the two stayed married until they divorced in 1963.
While filming Johnny Cool, Elizabeth met William Asher, a director and TV producer. Not only would he prove to be beneficial to her career, but the two also hit it off romantically.
They married in 1963 and had three children together.
Starring in Bewitched
While Elizabeth Montgomery did star in shows such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Loretta Young Show, The Untouchables, and The Twilight Zone, perhaps her most well-known role was as the nose-twitching witch Samantha Stephens on Bewitched.
The supernatural comedy, which aired for eight seasons from 1964 to 1972, propelled Elizabeth into the spotlight.
Suddenly she became a household name and everyone was trying to replicate Samantha’s famous nose twitch.
”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,” Elizabeth told AP in 1965.
She earned five Primetime Emmy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations during her spell on the show.