Dr. Bellows

Dr. Alfred E. Bellows is a fictional character in the popular 1960s situation comedy I Dream of Jeannie, which ran for five seasons, starring Barbara Eden as Jeannie, Larry Hagman as Tony Nelson and Bill Daily as Roger Healey. Dr. Bellows is portrayed by Hayden Rorke. Hayden Rorke is perhaps most memorable for his role of NASA medical officer in this sixties sitcom. He reprised this role in the movie "I Dream of Jeannie - 15 years later" and it was his last role as he died of cancer soon afterwards. As Dr. Bellows, he appeared "Tall, well postured and handsome with a kindly face, wavy graying hair, steely blue eyes and a friendly smile". He was also prolific as Dr. Bellows.

Rorke portrayed Dr. Bellows from 1965 to 1970.

Overview

Dr. Bellows from the first season onwards is the psychiatrist at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). I Dream of Jeannie is set in the town of Cocoa Beach, Florida. Dr. Bellows is a colonel.

Dr. Bellows is a shrewd and cautious man who is inevitably and unfortunately used as a scapegoat. Tony Nelson and Roger Healey (captains at the start of the series but promoted to major during the first season) become the fascination of Dr. Bellows when they are caught in a web of inexplicable situations resulting from the magic of a genie, appropriately named Jeannie. Tony Nelson in particular baffles Dr. Bellows because of his peculiar behavior. He observes, records and ponders their activities, determined to uncover the cause.

Dr. Bellows is always made to look foolish and he never proves that he is right about Tony Nelson. Generals Hadley, Peterson, Stone, and Schaeffer in turn reluctantly accompany Dr. Bellows when he attempts to prove Tony's strange "tricks". Fortunately, thanks to Jeannie, none of these generals witness the strange events and Tony is saved from being fired from the space program. This means that the generals are more wary of Dr. Bellows than Major Nelson or Major Healey. In some cases the trick can extend to the generals, such as Jeannie's mother trying to court Dr. Bellows and dressing him in the robes of a pasha (and causing Jeannie to scold her mother for going after a married man). Dr. Bellows' appearance causes one general to worry he is suffering from hallucinations by seeing Dr. Bellows in pasha robes, and Bellows in turn saying the vision is real but he has no clue how he acquired such exotic clothing. Nevertheless, Dr. Bellows relentlessly devotes his entire life to "figuring out" Major Nelson. At one point Bellows seems to "catch on" by telling Nelson and Healy that the moment he brings in General Peterson it all goes away, so he is forgetting this is brought up.

In season 2, it is revealed that Dr. Bellows is married (actually, his wife was mentioned in a first-season episode but was not seen or heard). His wife, Amanda Bellows, is an inquisitive woman who shares his interest in Major Nelson and Major Healey. Despite wanting to unravel the mystery around Tony and to some extent Roger, Dr. Bellows remains a true and loyal friend to Tony though he is never as close to Tony as Roger is. That is understandable, since Roger is the only character other than Tony who knows and understands Jeannie's true identity. Despite Bellows' trouble for Tony and Roger, at one point Tony needed to preserve Bellows' medical career when the generals had enough of Bellows' antics and ordered a new medical officer brought in, who was far more blunt and planned to inject Tony with truth serum. Had this happened, Jeannie's true abilities would have been revealed.

Yet his manner causes Tony and Roger to sometimes make fun of him in private. Jeannie is often sorry for him as her attempts to help her master often result in landing Dr. Bellows in trouble as well as Tony and Roger. Sometimes Jeannie will Dr. Bellows is quite smart. Fans of this 1960s sitcom created a journal in which Dr. Bellows recorded his psychiatric observations of Tony Nelson.

Dr. Bellows never discovers Jeannie's true identity, although in season 5, after her marriage to Tony, Tony dreams that Bellows discovers and accepts the truth about his wife. However, after Tony introduces Jeannie to Bellows as his fiancee, Bellows concludes that Tony simply being "in love" was the underlying cause of much of what Bellows perceived as unusual behavior. His relationship with Tony subsequently changes, with his wife Amanda appearing more frequently. This does cause some tension, as the well-meaning Bellowses perceive Jeannie as naive and become overbearing towards the newlyweds at times.

When he made his cameo appearance in "I Dream of Jeannie - 15 years later" Dr. Bellows had retired from the U.S. Airforce and become a psychiatrist in private practice.

Similarity

In Dr. Bellows' continual witnessing of strange events, inevitably erased before he can summon his superior as a witness, he assumes a role analogous to that of "Gladys Kravitz" on the sitcom Bewitched, who was likewise unsuccessful in having her husband corroborate the strange happenings she had seen.

External links

• Dr. Bellow's Journal
• I Dream of Jeannie Episode Guide
• Google Book Search
• Great Character Actors