Dick York Called On-Set Health Episode That Led Him to Leave “Bewitched” the ‘Worst Day of My Life’
Dick York played Darrin Stephens from 1964 to 1969 before Dick Sargent took over the part
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Elizabeth Montgomery, Maurice Evans and Dick York in the 1969 episode of 'Bewitched' in which York was injured filmingGetting the role of Darrin Stephens on Bewitched was the moment of a lifetime for Dick York. It was for that reason it was so hard to leave it behind.
In the Bewitched 60th anniversary special, a new independent documentary by Daniel Henares, there's a look back at how the actor ultimately ended up giving up a role he loved so dearly.
Audiences were charmed by York's portrayal of the awkward, reactive, but kind-hearted Darrin. (So was his on-screen daughter, Erin Murphy.) During the show's fifth season, however, the actor began to struggle with the physical comedy that was part of the role.
One interview in the special showed Sandra Gould, who played the Stephens' neighbor Gladys Kravitz, recalling York's dependence on painkillers after an injury he suffered on a previous set.
“He was on all kinds of pain pills and it finally got so bad that he just couldn’t work anymore. It was devastating," she recalled. "It was just awful.”
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ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty
Dick York and Elizabeth Montgomery on the set of 'Bewitched' in 1966York would struggle with his lines when medicated, but when he wasn't, he'd struggle with physical demands. This led writers, trying to help him, to write Darrin's appearance in at the beginnings and ends of episodes.
The situation came to a head while he was filming an episode in February 1969. York was being hoisted onto a platform when he collapsed and passed out due to the pain. While he was unconscious, York suffered an epileptic seizure that led him to be rushed to the hospital.
In April 1969, York had no choice but to leave the series permanently, which was a crushing blow to him on top of his physical ailments, he said at the time.
ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty
Dick Sargent and Elizabeth Montgomery on a 1969 episode of 'Bewitched'“That was the worst day of my life because I thought I’d failed everybody," York recalled in an interview featured in the special. "It was the only thing I’d started that I didn’t finish. I didn’t finish that show so I felt guilty and I felt embarrassed and I felt that I let everybody down.”
Writers were then faced with the issue of how to address the star's departure. Knowing that fans wouldn't accept the idea of Samantha and Darrin divorcing — or Darrin dying — the team behind Bewitched decided to take a risk and recast the role.
In recasting, they revisited the original actors considered for the part and landed on Dick Sargent. Sargent would stay in the role until the series' conclusion in 1972.
Speaking to PEOPLE at an event in Los Angeles on Oct. 19, Erin Murphy, who played the couple's daughter Tabitha, praised both actors as "wonderful guys."
“Dick York was a dad and he had a lot of kids and he was just more paternal. So he was more like a dad," the 60-year-old shared. "Dick Sargent was a great guy and we were in touch up until he passed away."
York died in 1992 at age 63, while Sargent died in 1994 at age 64.
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