How ‘Bewitched’ TV Star Elizabeth Montgomery inspired my life and career

As to any one individual or experience that ultimately influenced or inspired my career, that would involve meeting actress Elizabeth Montgomery, star of Bewitched. I owe her my career, because every good thing that has happened in my career, happened because she granted me my first major celebrity interview. That led to my initial Bewitched Book, followed by the revised Bewitched Forever edition of that book, and my two biographies about Elizabeth, Twitch Upon a Star, and The Essential Elizabeth Montgomery. Every other good thing that happened because of those books.

Additionally, Elizabeth inspired me as a human being. Her father was famed film and TV actor Robert Montgomery and her mother was Broadway actress Elizabeth Allen. And they were a very wealthy and prestigious family; so much so, that Elizabeth could have easily been raised in arrogance or to have some kind of superior attitude. But that was not the case at all. She was a lovely, down-to-earth person who utilized her celebrity for several charitable causes, none the least of which was helping the disabled community, and various minority groups. She also happened to be one of the first celebrities to advocate for those suffering from AIDS. All of that fits with the core message of Bewitched, which is prejudice.

In any event, Elizabeth and Bewitched were really the reasons I went on to form the Classic TV Preservation Society, my formal 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, which celebrates the positive social influence of classic TV shows, because Elizabeth dedicated her life to charitable work and loving-kindness. Her inspiration to me is unending.