James S. Henerson obit

James Henerson, Writer on ‘I Dream of Jeannie’ and ‘Bewitched,’ Dies at 84

James Henerson, an Emmy-nominated writer and producer who worked on such shows as 'I Dream of Jeannie,' 'Bewitched' and 'The Flying Nun,' has died. He was 84.

 He was not on the list.

James Henerson, an Emmy-nominated writer and producer who worked on such shows as I Dream of Jeannie, Bewitched and The Flying Nun, has died. He was 84.

Henerson died Thursday in his sleep at his home in Sherman Oaks, his sons, Matthew and Evan, announced.

A staff writer for the famed TV studio Screen Gems, Henerson also wrote episodes of The Partridge Family, The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, Combat!, National Velvet, Love on a Rooftop, Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice and The Second Hundred Years.

With partners Jim Hirsch and Michael Douglas, he produced the 1986-87 ABC series Starman, which starred Robert Hays and was based on the John Carpenter-directed film.

He was nominated for an Emmy for writing the 1980 ABC telefilm Attica, based on Tom Wicker’s memoir about his experience as a negotiator during the infamous 1971 prison uprising in upstate New York.

And Henerson won a WGA award in 1999 for the CBS telefilm The Love Letter, a time-travel love story starring Campbell Scott and Jennifer Jason Leigh. 

Born in Brooklyn on Feb. 16, 1936, Henerson grew up in Oakland, California. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history at UC Berkeley, where he roomed and did plays with future Incredible Hulk star Bill Bixby.

While attending UCLA to earn his master’s and gathering material for Broadway musicals, he took a job as a story editor on the CBS series Lassie in 1958. He went on to pen 36 episodes of NBC’s I Dream of Jeannie from 1967-70 and 12 installments of ABC’s Bewitched from 1966-69.

He wrote and/or produced several telefilms, including 1985’s The Rape of Richard Beck, starring Richard Crenna; 1986’s Johnnie Mae Gibson: FBI, starring Howard E. Rollins Jr.; 1991’s And the Sea Will Tell …, starring Rachel Ward; 1994’s Getting Gotti, starring Lorraine Bracco; and 1999’s Mutiny, starring Michael Jai White.

He also scripted and exec produced a 1993 miniseries, The Fire Next Time, about the cataclysmic results of climate change.

In addition to his sons, survivors include his wife of more than 60 years, Marlene, and three grandchildren.

Writer

Mutiny (1999)

Mutiny

5.7

TV Movie

written by (as James Henerson)

1999

 

The Tempest (1998)

The Tempest

4.9

TV Movie

written by (as James Henerson)

1998

 

Jennifer Jason Leigh and Campbell Scott in The Love Letter (1998)

The Love Letter

7.2

TV Movie

teleplay

television story (as James Henerson)

1998

 

Lorraine Bracco and Tony Denison in Getting Gotti (1994)

Getting Gotti

5.0

TV Movie

written by (as James Henerson)

1994

 

To Save the Children (1994)

To Save the Children

6.0

TV Movie

written by (as James Henerson)

1994

 

Bonnie Bedelia, Richard Farnsworth, and Craig T. Nelson in The Fire Next Time (1993)

The Fire Next Time

6.0

TV Mini Series

written by (as James Henerson)

1993

2 episodes

 

A Mother's Justice (1991)

A Mother's Justice

5.7

TV Movie

written by (as James Henerson)

1991

 

And the Sea Will Tell (1991)

And the Sea Will Tell

6.8

TV Movie

teleplay (as Jim Henerson)

1991

 

Tom Skerritt and Linda Evans in She'll Take Romance (1990)

She'll Take Romance

5.3

TV Movie

written by (as James Henerson)

1990

 

Erin Gray and Michael Cavanaugh in Starman (1986)

Starman

6.7

TV Series

written by

1986–1987

3 episodes

 

For Love or Money (1984)

For Love or Money

5.4

TV Movie

Writer (as James Henerson)

1984

 

Intimate Agony (1983)

Intimate Agony

5.2

TV Movie

teleplay (as James Henerson)

1983

 

Attica (1980)

Attica

6.4

TV Movie

Writer

1980

 

Billy Crystal in Breaking Up Is Hard to Do (1979)

Breaking Up Is Hard to Do

5.7

TV Movie

Writer

1979

 

Barnaby and Me (1979)

Barnaby and Me

5.4

TV Movie

written by (as James Henerson)

1979

 

Doctors' Private Lives

TV Series

written by

1979

1 episode

 

Doctors' Private Lives (1978)

Doctors' Private Lives

5.9

TV Movie

screenplay

story

1978

 

Shaun Cassidy, Pamela Sue Martin, and Parker Stevenson in The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries (1977)

The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries

7.3

TV Series

written by (as James Henerson)

1977

1 episode

 

Secrets (1977)

Secrets

7.1

TV Movie

Writer

1977

 

Someone I Touched (1975)

Someone I Touched

6.7

TV Movie

story

teleplay (as James Henerson)

1975

 

Anne Archer, Robert Urich, Anita Gillette, and David Spielberg in Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1973)

Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice

5.1

TV Series

written by (as Jim Henerson)

1973

1 episode

 

The 500 Pound Jerk (1973)

The 500 Pound Jerk

6.8

TV Movie

Writer

1973

 

The Feminist and the Fuzz (1971)

The Feminist and the Fuzz

5.9

TV Movie

written by (as James Henerson)

1971

 

Susan Dey, Danny Bonaduce, David Cassidy, Suzanne Crough, Brian Forster, and Shirley Jones in The Partridge Family (1970)

The Partridge Family

6.6

TV Series

written by

1971

1 episode

 

Barbara Eden in I Dream of Jeannie (1965)

I Dream of Jeannie

7.4

TV Series

written by

teleplay (as James Henerson)

1967–1970

36 episodes

 

Holly Golightly

TV Movie

writer

1969

 

Elizabeth Montgomery, Agnes Moorehead, and Dick York in Bewitched (1964)

Bewitched

7.6

TV Series

written by

story by

teleplay by (as James Henerson)

1966–1968

12 episodes

 

Sally Field in The Flying Nun (1967)

The Flying Nun

6.5

TV Series

written by (as James Henerson)

1967–1968

2 episodes

 

The Second Hundred Years (1967)

The Second Hundred Years

7.6

TV Series

written by (as James Henderson)

1967

1 episode

 

Love on a Rooftop (1966)

Love on a Rooftop

7.1

TV Series

written by

1966–1967

6 episodes

 

Combat! (1962)

Combat!

8.4

TV Series

teleplay

1962

2 episodes

 

Father of the Bride (1961)

Father of the Bride

8.0

TV Series

Writer

1962

1 episode

 

Lori Martin in National Velvet (1960)

National Velvet

7.9

TV Series

teleplay

story

teleplay & story

1960–1961

4 episodes

 

Jon Provost, Tommy Rettig, Lassie the Dog, and Lassie in Lassie (1954)

Lassie

6.5

TV Series

writer

story

teleplay

1958–1959

5 episodes

 

Cannonball (1958)

Cannonball

7.8

TV Series

written by (as James Henderson)

1959

1 episode

 

Producer

Bonnie Bedelia, Richard Farnsworth, and Craig T. Nelson in The Fire Next Time (1993)

The Fire Next Time

6.0

TV Mini Series

executive producer

1993

2 episodes

 

Erin Gray and Michael Cavanaugh in Starman (1986)

Starman

6.7

TV Series

executive producer (as James Henerson)

1986–1987

22 episodes

 

Lynn Whitfield in Johnnie Mae Gibson: FBI (1986)

Johnnie Mae Gibson: FBI

6.4

TV Movie

executive producer

1986

 

Richard Crenna in The Rape of Richard Beck (1985)

The Rape of Richard Beck

6.6

TV Movie

executive producer

1985

 

For Love or Money (1984)

For Love or Money

5.4

TV Movie

executive producer (as James Henerson)

1984

 

Intimate Agony (1983)

Intimate Agony

5.2

TV Movie

executive producer (as James Henerson)

1983

 

For Lovers Only (1982)

For Lovers Only

5.7

TV Movie

executive producer

1982

 

Irene

TV Movie

executive producer

1981

 

Inmates: A Love Story (1981)

Inmates: A Love Story

6.5

TV Movie

executive producer

1981

 

Anne Archer, Robert Urich, Anita Gillette, and David Spielberg in Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1973)

Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice

5.1

TV Series

producer (as Jim Henerson)

1973

11 episodes

 

Additional Crew

Scarlett (1994)

Scarlett

6.3

TV Mini Series

creative consultant (as James Henerson)

1994

4 episodes

 

Barbara Eden in I Dream of Jeannie (1965)

I Dream of Jeannie

7.4

TV Series

story consultant

1968–1970

16 episodes