paul on Nostr: I’m going to cheat the question here and write a comment not about special effects, ...
I’m going to cheat the question here and write a comment not about special effects, but about the most stunt that was NOT considered an unqualified special effect.
Samantha’s nose twitch.
According to the producers and director, Elizabeth Montgomery had a common affectation when she was nervous. And what could be more nerve wracking than auditioning for and beginning the filming of a television show in the 1960’s? Montgomery had a nervous twitch of moving her upper lip.
In trying to find a gesture for Samantha when she was enacting a magic spell it was noted that when Montgomery moved her upper lip, it tended to also wiggle her nose. So in deference to going for the over statement of, say, a stereotyped wave of the hand, the director tried the understatement of Montgomery appearing to simply wiggle her nose.
However there was an added effect that really wasn’t all that “special.” When possible, such as in close ups, to make Montgomery’s ”nose wiggle” look surrealistic, the director would slightly speed up the film. This rendered a lot of “nose wiggle’ copycat viewers convinced the “nose wiggle” had to be a special effect, such as animation.
There are reports that the actress that played her daughter, Tabitha, [Erin Murphy] claimed that her nose wiggle was, indeed, a special effect. Ms. Murphy did not necessarily have to be exaggerating or lying. Not all people “inside” a production know of all of the specifics of a production. And what does an “actress” call a “a special effect?”
https://www.quora.com/What-special-effects-were-used-in-the-television-show-Bewitched
Samantha’s nose twitch.
According to the producers and director, Elizabeth Montgomery had a common affectation when she was nervous. And what could be more nerve wracking than auditioning for and beginning the filming of a television show in the 1960’s? Montgomery had a nervous twitch of moving her upper lip.
In trying to find a gesture for Samantha when she was enacting a magic spell it was noted that when Montgomery moved her upper lip, it tended to also wiggle her nose. So in deference to going for the over statement of, say, a stereotyped wave of the hand, the director tried the understatement of Montgomery appearing to simply wiggle her nose.
However there was an added effect that really wasn’t all that “special.” When possible, such as in close ups, to make Montgomery’s ”nose wiggle” look surrealistic, the director would slightly speed up the film. This rendered a lot of “nose wiggle’ copycat viewers convinced the “nose wiggle” had to be a special effect, such as animation.
There are reports that the actress that played her daughter, Tabitha, [Erin Murphy] claimed that her nose wiggle was, indeed, a special effect. Ms. Murphy did not necessarily have to be exaggerating or lying. Not all people “inside” a production know of all of the specifics of a production. And what does an “actress” call a “a special effect?”
https://www.quora.com/What-special-effects-were-used-in-the-television-show-Bewitched