There were not many recurring characters on the show aside from the two stars. So when one actor disappeared quite suddenly, it did not go unnoticed. The actor Barton MacLane was one of the other semi-regulars on the series (aside from the lead roles). Barton MacLane came down with a severe case of pneumonia and then suddenly passed away in 1969 during filming. Because of this sudden death, they were not able to really right any resolution into the show, and they just had to keep going.
He was known as a fantastic character actor with many TV and film credits under his belt before his untimely death.
Not So Factual
Like we said earlier about editing mishaps and continuity errors, another funny one can be seen in an episode where Tony is changing his rank from Captain to Major. In this episode, he is seen wearing the wrong rank!
On his uniform, he has these little silver clusters - which are meant for a Lieutenant Colonel. During season 2 though, his clusters changed color to gold which is actually for the rank of Major. This error may seem small, but it is actually surprising since Larry really did serve off-screen, so he should have caught that little error, and we are surprised that he did not!
Same Actor, Different Shows
You may know the actor Paul Lynde for his role as the crazy Uncle Arthur on the series “Bewitched.” But did you know, Paul also made three separate appearances on the show “I Dream of Jeannie?” There were not many recurring roles on the show aside from Tony and Jeannie, so Paul came on the show 3 different times in three different bit parts.
His first role was Harry Huggins, he then appeared in the show as a director from Hollywood and then finally as a tough, physical fitness teacher who makes fools out of Tony Nelson and Healy during an exhausting fitness class!
Bill Daily - From Stand Up Comedy To Guest Star
Making regular appearances on “I Dream of Jeannie” was Bill Daily, who played the role of Roger Healey. Roger was, like Tony, an astronaut. The two were good friends on the show, and the character of Roger was always showing up in episodes!
The storyline of Roger and Tony was mainly focused on adding a good amount of comedy to the series. The episodes including Roger would usually be focused on Tony trying to hide Jeannie’s “powers” from him thus creating a nice storyline of silly dialogues and scenes. This was easy for Bill, as he was also a stand-up comedian prior to joining the cast of “I Dream of Jeannie.”
Playing For Two Teams
Did you know that Jeannie had an evil twin sister on the show? Her name, strangely enough, was also Jeannie! This sister character was created by a former “Bewitched” writer named James S. Henerson.
James was swiftly fired from the “Bewitched” writing team after someone, probably because another writer or producer discovered that he was writing for the two shows simultaneously. This was bad news since “I Dream of Jeannie” was often said to be a rip off of “Bewitched!” They did not want to have any similarities between the two shows, so he was fired right away!