Witchy Wives
“Love is stronger than witchcraft,” proclaims Jennifer, the witch played by Veronica Lake in I Married a Witch (1942). A romantic comedy, the movie features a father-daughter duo of witches returned to exact revenge on the descendants of the Puritans who burned them at the stake in Salem, MA. The line captures the sentiment of many comedies portraying witches who find themselves transplanted to the modern world, reimagined as wives whose powers are a source of bewilderment, misunderstanding, and comedic relief.
Even in more recent fare, such as the 2005 remake of the classic TV show Bewitched, the witch Isabel, played by Nicole Kidman, longs to live a “normal” life and ultimately chooses to stay with a mortal man and renounce her magic. In the process of winning him over, she casts a love spell on him, swiftly disposes of his estranged wife by magically persuading her to sign their divorce papers, levitates him on her broom, and ultimately settles down with him in the suburbs.