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Barbara Eden is everyone’s favorite “Jeannie” and one of America’s most endearing and enduring stars. Her NBC television series, I Dream of Jeannie, has been airing globally for longer than three decades and currently enjoys a life on the TV Land cable network, as well as in syndication throughout the world.
We met at the Cypress Inn on Lincoln Street in Carmel on an uncharacteristically hot afternoon for a lunch interview. After stopping at the front desk to say hello to the concierge, Eden spent a few moments chatting with the staff. Her soft voice could be heard a few feet away, her laugh gentle and sweet. The staff was clearly under her spell, as they stood transfixed by her beauty and warmth. Her husband, Jon Eicholtz and their chocolate Labradoodle, Djin-Djin, accompanied her.
Having just walked Carmel Beach, Eden was wearing blue jeans and T-shirt. Her blond hair was pulled back into a ponytail tucked under a designer baseball cap studded with Swarovski crystals. Sunglasses hid her blue eyes for the moment. A corner table had been arranged, away from some guests of the inn who, after recognizing their “Jeannie,” began to linger. Jaws dropped and whispers started. We heard someone saying, “I can’t believe it. Is that really her?” Disappearing into the Moroccan décor of Terry’s Lounge, we sat down and got comfortable against soft, velvet, plush pillows. Is this what it would be like to be a visitor inside Jeannie’s “bottle?” Djin-Djin, named after the invisible genie dog on the television series, sat obediently on the floor next to our table and listened intently.
You have been coming to Carmel for many years, haven’t you?
Yes, I know what you mean. It’s very difficult, though, for me to separate the particular emotion it evokes in me. Of course, it feels like at home, you see. As far as Carmel, Monterey, the Bay Area, to me, evokes family, permanence, I don’t know, safety; feelings I had as a child.
Does this place hold something special for you like no other place that you’ve traveled to?
I have so many feelings, so many different colors about the area. It’s like the foghorns on San Francisco Bay. Someone was saying how mournful they were to them. I said “No, no, no, no.” I just remember those foghorns, you know, going over to see my great aunt in San Leandro on the ferry boat, from the ferry building, by the way; when it was still there. And coming home sooo sleepy on the ferry and hearing the foghorn. But to me it is a wonderful sound. I love it. And I remember Carmel, too.
Do you have any particular memories of this area when you visited here from childhood?
I remember being very little and my father fishing off the beach, and I was so tiny and running in the surf. I remember the beach, I remember the trees, and you know, the smell of the pines and the eucalyptus. Those smells evoke memories. And I also went to church camp around here somewhere but I don’t remember where. When I got older in high school, I sang with a little dance band in San Francisco and we would come down and I sang in the officer’s club at Fort Ord.
What is a typical day for you when you come to the peninsula?
Well, we drive from Los Angeles because we have our Djin-Djin in the back of the car. I like to pack a picnic basket so that we do not have to spend a lot of time getting here. Besides, it’s more fun that way.
Is this one of your favorite vacations?
This is our most favorite vacation — coming to Carmel. We come four times a year at least. And we stay at the Cypress Inn. We go to the beach in the morning, and then we walk through the town.
Do you shop when you come here?
We shop … we always shop. But my husband doesn’t like to shop that much (laughs), but I make him shop. And then we rest a little bit, and we go out to the beach again in the afternoon with the dogs. And then we will come home, get ready, and go out for dinner.
Where do you go for dinner?
We go out wherever they are friendly to the dogs. We will go wherever we can take our dogs.
Do you have a favorite restaurant?
Well, we have several. We love to eat at the Cypress Inn. And we love Casanova. They are very dog friendly.
Are there any other places that you like to go to dinner here?
The Forge in the Forest. They’re also dog friendly. And that’s about it. We haven’t really found any that are dog friendly and also have heaters. And I have learned to layer here because of the weather changing. I always bring warm socks and boots. Believe me, I have learned.
People find that they love to walk everywhere in Carmel.
Usually that is just what we are doing — just walking. It’s so pleasant just to walk. And walk with the dog. It’s so nice. And the store for dogs. Diggity Do?
Diggedy Dog.
Well, I love going in there with Djin-Djin. Generally, we have a small breakfast and then maybe lunch, but a small one, and then dinner. I watch my calories. If I start by having coffee, I will have cake or cookies, or ice cream. Well … they have to drag me away from the candy store on Ocean Avenue because I’m looking at it.
Cottage of Sweets?
Yes, that’s the place. I’m a sweetaholic, I am. So I seriously try to stay away from them if I can. My husband says he isn’t like that, but I’ve noticed that he’s always eating the sweets that I get. So, I think he is a sweetaholic and he just doesn’t want to say it, because then he will become that. But I know I am.
Do you ever come up from L.A., and take the coast highway up through Big Sur?
We generally want to get here as quickly as possible, so no, although it is very beautiful. You know, we take the I-5. And then we come across Highway 46 from Spreckles. We make one stop. And we start out with those sandwiches in the car so we don’t have to waste anytime getting here to Carmel … Now I remember! Yes, I remember it was Big Sur where I went to church camp. I remember now, the mountains and the sea next to them.
What are your plans for the rest of the day?
We are going to walk some more and then get ready for dinner — we are meeting with some dear friends that are joining us later. More walking. Carmel is so wonderful and it feels so magical.
