History Film / BellBookAndCandle

* WitchWithACapitalB: Shep's jilted fiancee Merle ''almost'' calls Gillian the b-word.

''Bell, Book and Candle'' is a 1958 romantic comedy/fantasy film [[TheFilmOfThePlay adapted]] from a 1950 play of the same name by John Van Druten, directed by Richard Quine and starring [[Creator/JimmyStewart James Stewart]], Creator/KimNovak, Creator/JackLemmon, and Creator/ErnieKovacs.

''Bell, Book and Candle'' was the follow-up to a far different Stewart-Novak pairing from earlier that same year, ''Film/{{Vertigo}}''. It is also notable as the last film in which Stewart played a romantic lead. The TV sitcom ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'', which premiered six years later, borrowed several elements from this film (it didn't hurt that this was a Creator/ColumbiaPictures film and ''Bewitched'' was produced by Columbia's TV subsidiary Creator/ScreenGems).

Remade as a 1976 MadeForTVMovie directed by Hy Averback and starring Creator/YvetteMimieux, Creator/MichaelMurphy, Creator/DorisRoberts, Creator/JohnPleshette, and Creator/SusanSullivan.

Shep Henderson (Stewart) is a book publisher in Manhattan who happens to live above a dealer in African art named Gillian Holroyd (Novak). Besides being an art dealer, Gillian is a witch from a family of witches that includes her aunt Queenie (Elsa Lanchester) and brother Nicky (Lemmon). Gillian takes an interest in bachelor Shep, and when she finds out that he's about to marry her old college enemy Merle Kittredge (Creator/JaniceRule), she casts a spell to make Shep fall in love with her instead. Complications arise when Nicky hooks up with Sidney Redlitch (Kovacs), an author of books about witchcraft, and threatens to expose Gillian's secret life.

''Bell, Book and Candle'' was the follow-up to a very different Stewart-Novak pairing from earlier that same year, ''Film/{{Vertigo}}''. It is also notable as the last film in which Stewart played a romantic lead. The TV sitcom ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'', which premiered six years later, borrowed some elements from this film (it didn't hurt that this was a Creator/ColumbiaPictures film and ''Bewitched'' was produced by Columbia's TV subsidiary Creator/ScreenGems).

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/12e21eeb898d8516c3cd70c80c2353c5.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:C'mon, she didn't need the cat.]]

* DoesNotLikeShoes: One of the first peculiarities we're shown about Gillian is that she prefers to be barefoot all the time, and when she's first introduced, the camera pans out to draw attention to her bare feet. She will wear shoes for appearances' sake only. In conversation, she mentions that she has started wearing shoes in public to avoid being criticized. [[spoiler:She outgrows this habit after losing her powers- [[AgonyOfTheFeet and after running out into a cold and slushy street full of snow.]]]]

Shep Henderson (Stewart) is a book publisher in Manhattan who happens to live above a dealer in African art named Gillian Holroyd (Novak). Besides being an art dealer, Gillian is a witch from a family of witches that includes her aunt Queenie (Elsa Lanchester) and brother Nicky (Lemmon). Gillian takes an interest in bachelor Shep, and when she finds out that he's about to marry her old college enemy Merle Kittredge (Janice Rule), she casts a spell to make Shep fall in love with her instead. Complications arise when Nicky hooks up with Sidney Redlitch (Kovacs), an author of books about witchcraft, and threatens to expose Gillian's secret life.

* {{Expy}}: As pointed out above, ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'' was partly inspired by this film and several ''Bewitched'' characters could be considered analogues to the characters here. Aunt Queenie/Aunt Clara is the most obvious, with Gillian/Samantha, Shep/Darrin and Nicky/Uncle Arthur making decent matches. Bianca De Passe is similar to Endora, even though here she's the lead's SitcomArchNemesis.

* LovePotion: A spell, actually. Gillian might have been able to make Shep fall in love with her the regular way, because she is Kim freaking Novak, but Shep's getting married tomorrow, so she has to act quickly. She uses Pyewacket to cast a love spell on Shep.

''Bell, Book and Candle'' is a 1958 romantic comedy/fantasy film adapted from a 1950 play of the same name by John Van Druten, directed by Richard Quine and starring [[Creator/JimmyStewart James Stewart]], Creator/KimNovak, Creator/JackLemmon, and Creator/ErnieKovacs.

''Bell, Book and Candle'' was the follow-up to a very different Stewart-Novak pairing from earlier that same year, ''Film/{{Vertigo}}''. It is also notable as the last film in which Stewart played a romantic lead. The TV sitcom ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'', which premiered six years later, borrowed some elements from this film (it didn't hurt that this was a Creator/ColumbiaPictures film and ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'' was produced by Columbia's TV subsidiary Creator/ScreenGems).

Shep Henderson (Stewart) is a book publisher in Manhattan who happens to live above a dealer in African art named Gillian Holroyd (Novak). Besides being an art dealer, Gillian is a witch from a family of witches that include her aunt Queenie (Elsa Lanchester) and her brother Nicky (Lemmon). Gillian takes an interest in bachelor Shep, and when she finds out that Shep's about to marry her old college enemy Merle Kittredge (Janice Rule), she casts a spell to make Shep fall in love with her instead. Complications arise when Nicky hooks up with Sidney Redlitch (Kovacs), an author of books about witchcraft, and threatens to expose Gillian's secret life.

* AllWitchesHaveCats: Gillian has Pyewacket, a Siamese that she uses as her familiar. (ShownTheirWork as that's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyewacket_(familiar_spirit) a genuine name for a witch's familiar]] although the original list by Matthew Hopkins specifies the cat's name was Holt, while Pyewacket was an imp.)

* MsFanservice: If you were putting Kim Novak in your movie in the 1950s, you were contractually obligated to do this. Gillian wears two Sexy Backless Outfits, a series of tight dresses, and a silk robe with AbsoluteCleavage.

* ItIsPronouncedTropay: "Gillian" is pronounced with a hard G. Characters call her "Gil".

* ChekhovsGun: It is established early in the film that witches can't cry or blush, and that falling in love results in a witch losing her powers. At the end, Gillian falls in love and loses her powers, and Shep realizes she loves him for real when she blushes and cries.

* WitchWithACapitalB: Shep's jilted fiancee Merle ''[[GettingCrapPastTheRadar almost]]'' calls Gillian the b-word.

* AllWitchesHaveCats: Gillian has Pyewacket, a Siamese that she uses as her familiar.

* {{Expy}}: As pointed out above, ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'' was partly inspired by this film and several ''Bewitched'' characters could be considered analogues to the characters here. Aunt Queenie/Aunt Clara is the most obvious, with Gillian/Samantha, Shep/Darrin and Nicky/Uncle Arthur making decent matches. Bianca De Pass is similar to Endora, even though here she's the lead's SitcomArchNemesis.

''Bell, Book and Candle'' was the follow-up to a very different Stewart-Novak pairing from earlier that same year, ''Film/{{Vertigo}}''. It is also notable as the last film in which Stewart played a romantic lead. It may or may not have inspired the TV sitcom ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'', which premiered six years later, and whose characters Samantha, Darrin, Aunt Clara, and Uncle Arthur have what could be considered as analogues to them in this film.

''Bell, Book and Candle'' is a 1958 romantic comedy/fantasy film adapted from a 1950 play of the same name by John Van Druten, directed by Richard Quine and starring [[Creator/JimmyStewart James Stewart]], Kim Novak, Creator/JackLemmon, and Creator/ErnieKovacs.

''Bell, Book and Candle'' was the follow-up to a very different Stewart-Novak pairing from earlier that same year, ''Film/{{Vertigo}}''. It is also notable as the last film in which Stewart played a romantic lead. It may or may not have inspired the TV sitcom ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'', which premiered six years later.

* ArtisticLicenseReligion: Artistic license witchcraft? The mantra "ring the bell, close the book, quench the candle" quoted in the movie is characterized as an exorcism rite when it was actually an excommunication rite.