A classic TV actress dishes on her racy costume for her iconic sitcom… and the time she chipped her co-star’s tooth.
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Barbara Eden, now 90, rose to fame quickly with appearances on The Johnny Carson Show and the 1957 TV adaptation of How to Marry a Millionaire. She even starred alongside Elvis Presley in the 1960 film Flaming Star, per IMDb.
But her most iconic role was as the lovable Jeannie in the beloved sitcom I Dream of Jeannie (1965–70), where she truly worked her magic.
Eden recently looked back on the series and her co-star, Larry Hagman, who played astronaut Anthony “Tony” Nelson opposite her, a naive and mischief-prone genie named Jeannie. But the classic sitcom wasn’t without its challenges—and a few injuries.
“One thing I do remember is Larry breaking a tooth on my knee,” she told Remind. “It was during regular shooting, and they had me standing on the arms of an upholstered chair and then jumping into his lap.”
The stunt didn’t go as planned, and Hagman ended up with a chipped tooth. Of course, Hagman (and his smile) recovered, and he would go on to be the lead in Dallas.
Barbara Eden Reflects on the Hoopla Over Her Costume in the Classic Sitcom
Meanwhile, Eden also reflected on her costume for the iconic sitcom… which proved controversial for TV audiences in the 1960s…Eden loved Jeannie’s costume and praised the show’s fashion designer for customizing it.
“She was wonderful,” Eden said of fashion designer Joie Hutchinson.“She came to me, and we had a fitting before she even designed it. She asked what my favorite color was, and I told her I didn’t really have a favorite color, but pink, I liked that. And she took notes, measured me, and looked at my body to see what she wanted. And then came back with sketches, and they were just great. The costume itself was all I could ever wish for.”
And yes, there was a lot of hoopla about Eden’s belly button in the Jeannie costume, as NBC’s Standards and Practices Department had a strict no-navel policy back then.
“I’ve often said that women in the film are often known for their beautiful eyes or their other body parts, but I ended up with the belly button … In this day and age, you would not believe that,” she told Remind.
“But at the time, even I was giggling about it because it was silly,” Eden added. “Not only did I have pants on that were like a bathing suit pant, I had everything covered except my arms.”