Bernard Fox dead: Dr. Bombay on ‘Bewitched,’ actor in ‘Titanic’ was 89

Bernard Fox, Bewitched

Actor Bernard Fox poses Wednesday, June 15, 2005, in Salem, Mass., during the unveiling of a “Bewitched” statue depicting Samantha Stephens, the fictional witch played by the late Elizabeth Montgomery in the series.

Former “Bewitched” star Bernard Fox is dead at 89, his publicist Harlan Boll said Wednesday.

Entertainment Weekly reports the actor, best known for playing Dr. Bombay on the Elizabeth Montgomery sitcom and its spinoff “Tabitha,” died of heart failure at Valley Presbyterian Hospital in Van Nuys, California.

Fox was the child of two Welsh stage actors and nephew of “The Long Voyage Home” star Wilfrid Lawson, but didn’t get his first television credits until after enlisting in the Royal Navy during World War II. He got his start on the British series “Sixpenny Corner” before landing roles on U.S. classics like “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” “Perry Mason,” “The Andy Griffith Show,” and “I Dream of Jeannie.”

His breakout role was as Colonel Crittendon on “Hogan’s Heroes,” leading to his decade-long run as a witch doctor named Dr. Bombay on “Bewitched” and “Tabitha.”

He is survived by Jacqueline, his wife of more than 50 years; daughter Amanda; daughter-in-law Lisa, and two grandchildren. Another daughter, Valerie, died in 2006.