The three sets of twins that played Tabatha: In front (left), are Heidi & Laura Gentry (the 1st babies on Bewitched), blondes behind are Diane & Erin Murphy (3rd. set, used from 1966 to 1972) and the 2 chubby ones on the right are Tamar & Julie Young (the 2nd set used) |
Why, you might ask, does Tabatha - wee witch on Bewitched - never look quite like she did last time I saw her? Aha! you say, she's a master of an ancient illusionary art. No. It just ain't the same kid all the time. She...uh, they say are (is?) twins - that is, triple twins. Confusion. Disorder! Wizardry!! No, It's just a long shooting schedule, and a law that says that a child under 6 can only work two hours a day - so producers and directors prefer to use twins. And the reason there are 3 sets of twins is again that long shooting schedule.
The Gentry twins, Heidi and Laura, started on one show last season, and each earned $27 per day for a week. Because slightly older babies were needed, they were then replaced by the Young twins, Tamar and Julie, who "worked" for the remainder of the 1965-66 season. As "extras doing special business", they earned $75 per day because their roles were more clearly defined. Beginning this September Tabatha is Erin and/or Diane Murphy, whose ages coincide not at all with Tabatha's (the other children's did, more or less). They were 2 last June.
How do the children feel about all this? No one's asked them, but their respective parents have differing opinions. Mrs. Gentry wants her children to continue as thespians, "but not if it interferes with their schooling". The Young twins will be allowed to work only until they are 2. Says Mrs. Young, "the whole syndrome of child actors and parents bothers me". The Murphys have been doing commercials, but Bewitched is their first "dramatic" role. Their eyes are on the stars, and if the successful show continues, it might take them there.
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