Actress Barbara Eden, 91, has been in the business for an incredible seven decades and is still going strong.
Despite having appeared on our screens ten years prior, the actress, singer, and producer is best known for her role in “I Dream of Jeannie,” which debuted in 1965.
I Dream of Jeannie, the well-known 1960s sitcom about an astronaut who brings home a 2,000-year-old female genie, has been viewed by generations of TV viewers.
Despite the ridiculousness of the premise, Barbara Eden, the stunning and gifted actress who played Jeannie, attracted viewers and made them laugh.
Fans might find it hard to believe, but Barbara is 91 years old!
She’s still around and healthy, despite the fact that she hasn’t been spotted on television in harem-style clothing in a while.
However, Barbara’s life hasn’t always been simple.
In 1931, Barbara Eden was born in Tucson, Arizona, in the US. She relocated to San Francisco and enrolled at the Conservatory of Music to study singing after her parents divorced.
Barbara used to play in little bands in the local nightclubs when she was a young girl in Golden Gate City. But in the end, she made the decision to pursue acting as well.
“My mother said, ‘Barbara, you don’t sound like you mean a word you’re singing. I think you should also study acting,” Eden recalled.
She moved to Los Angeles and started performing on some of the best shows of the 1950s after deciding that acting was a good fit for her.
She appeared on our televisions for the first time in 1955 as a semi-regular guest on The Johnny Carson Show, but her role in the renowned fantasy sitcom “I Dream of Jeannie” catapulted her to fame.
The actor from Arizona portrayed Jeannie, a seductive genie who was let out of her bottle by astronaut and actor Larry Hagman’s character, Captain Anthony “Tony” Nelson of the United States Air Force.
“We just… clicked. We shared a beat. Whatever we were doing produced the same truth, according to Eden.
“I enjoyed him. Some actors take a lot of effort to get along with, so put that thought in a different file. But with Larry, I never had to. He was always there. ”.
She played the role for five years, appearing on the show as both Jeannie’s sister and mother. Eden gained notoriety because of her harem outfits, which at the time were a little risqué for television.
In 2015, close to the show’s 50th anniversary, she said to Today, “Executives at NBC got very scared.”. “They started being very picky about the navel. ”.
Eden asserted that a different, much earlier interview with the Hollywood Reporter helped to spread the legend after her friend and columnist Mike Connolly started making fun of her about it.
“It quickly spread like wildfire when Mike entered the room and began making fun of my belly button. I would tease him back, and we had a good time with it, but I had no idea it would turn into something. ”.
Many people, including notable admirers like John F., saw Eden as a TV sex icon thanks to the timeless attire. Elvis Presley and John F. Kennedy, who texted her his phone number.
In her memoir, Jeannie Out of the Bottle, published in 2011, the actress said, “I binned the piece of paper, but I wish I still had it.”.
Eden has been in more than 50 films and is still active at the age of 91.
Her most recent movie, My Adventures with Santa, was released in 2019, and she portrayed Mrs. Claus in it. Melissa Gardner made her stage debut in the production of “Love Letters” the same year the movie was made. ”.
Barbara said, “I feel young!” and added that she felt fortunate to have the job she did. “I feel bad for people like my poor father, who was forced to work every day at a job he detested.
My job is enjoyable.
Even now, I have a job. ”.
Barbara asserted that she had continued her weightlifting, spin classes, and gym visits up until a few years ago. In order to help her with resistance training, a trainer now pays her a visit at home. The two then take a stroll.
The TV legend remarked, “I have a lot of friends.
Socially, I’m fairly active.
”.
Even an appearance is scheduled for March 2022.
She chuckled, “If I’m around, I’ll be there; I like it.”.
Barbara enjoys writing children’s books as well as performing. She and another author collaborated on the book Barbara and the Djinn, which tells the story of a young girl named Barbara who meets a “charming and wizardly Genie” who leads her on adventures resembling those in her well-known role.
Since “all they do is look at telephones,” she claims, she hopes her books will help kids understand the importance of reading.
Barbara rejects the notion that “I Dream of Jeannie” might seem a little out of date to viewers today.
Come on, this is a classic theme, she said. This is a beautiful, wonderful fantasy called “One Thousand and One Nights.”. ”.
And let’s face it, she was in charge, you know. She was in no way submissive. ”.
Thanks to her inspiring outlook and boundless energy, Barbara Eden has had an incredible life. She is evidence that age is merely a number.
If you also adore this illustrious actress, kindly spread the word.
