| Above, you see 4
photographs, all of which depict what we have come to refer to as the First
Season Golden Vines bottle. For some time there has been much debate
over which genie bottle artists create an "accurate" re-creation of this
mysterious bottle. I am here to tell you that they all do, and none of
them do. Because different versions of the bottle were used in the
show, there will NEVER be an ACCURATE replica of this bottle.
As evidenced by the photographs, it is apparent that
more than one bottle design was used for the 1st season bottle. I will
walk you though my step by step analysis of the differences. You may
click on any of the above photographs to view an enlarged version.
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Bottle #1 was used for promotional
photographs. It was apparently taken before the pilot was shot,
based on the style of Mr. Hagman's hair. Obviously this was taken
BEFORE he was given his "military" hair cut.
Item 1 - there is no gold line around the
stopper just below the tear drops. This may have been intentional,
or just a coincidence of making the bottle appear aged. The point
of the stopper isn't clearly visible, so we can't tell if the peak of
the stopper was painted entirely gold, or just the tip and then lined to
the bottom (as is the 2nd season bottle).
Item 2 - there are no gold tear drops or
dots in the band around the neck of the bottle. Again, this may
have been intentional, or just a coincidence of making the bottle appear
aged.
Item 3 - It is not entirely clear in this
photograph if this bottle was given a "green wash" to make it appear to
have been in the ocean for centuries, however, there is a slight blemish
around Larry's left index finger which may indicate a green wash was
used, or it's just smudge from his finger.
Overall - Most of the leaves and vines
have been chipped off, most likely to make the bottle appear old.
They are much smaller and have a wider spacing than those of the other
bottles. They also have a hash mark design inside the leaves.
Based on the spacing, I would speculate that there were only 4 vines
with leaves on this bottle.
The lower tear drops have apparently been
chipped up to "age" the bottle, but much of the "green wash" effect we
see in other bottles is absent or not as prevalent on this bottle. |
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This bottle was taken from a
screen capture of the pilot episode. I captured it myself, it was
the scene where Tony realized someone was in his house, and looks over
to his bag and sees the uncorked bottle and realizes it's Jeannie.
Item 1 - The rim leaves are clearly visible
on this bottle, however, the gold line under them isn't.
Item 2 - The neck leaves are also clearly
visible on this bottle, and you will note the direction of the leaves.
They go around the bottle in pairs, with the upper leaves pointing up,
and the lower leaves pointing down.
Item 3 - Here we clearly see the middle
tear drops have been filled in with gold on this version of the bottle.
Item 4 - There are clearly 3 vines and
leaves visible on 1 side of the bottle. This would indicate that a
total of 6 vines were painted on it.
Item 5 - The "green wash" is more evident
and covers more of this bottle than the previous one. There is
less paint chipping on this bottle as well.
Overall - You may notice there are no
intricate designs inside the leaves. On most bottles, the artist
paints little "hash" marks on the leaves to give them a more detailed
appearance. There are none on this bottle, not even in the 4 large
leaves that go around the bottle's rim. |
 |
Bottle #3, also taken from a
screen capture of the pilot episode, is from the scene where the bottle
magically spins around and lands on the bar. It has shown a
slightly different design combination.
Item 1 - The rim leaves are most obscured with green wash, however,
there are no "hash marks" visible in them. The gold line under the
rim leaves is clearly visible and exhibits excessive "green wash".
Item 2 - The neck leaves are of a
completely different design than bottle 2. Here the vine is more
of a wave design and the leaves all point to the right, as if they were
lying down.
Item 3 - The tear drops are very hard to
make out. I can't tell if they were filled in with gold or not,
the green wash is obscuring most of them.
Item 4 - The middle vines and leaves
appear to have reverted back to a 4 vines pattern as only two vines are
visible on a single side of the bottle. Again, they are greatly
obscured by the green wash, and again, they do not exhibit any hash
marks in the leaves. They do appear to have some paint chipping.
Item 5 - Again, extensive green wash has
obscured some of the leaves and the gold line around the top of the
lower tear drops. The tear drops show only a very small amount of
paint chipping and green wash effect.
Overall - The leaf designs are a more rounded
design than the previous bottle which has a more narrow and pointed tip
to the leaf. |
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This bottle photograph was
obtained from a website called
Profiles in History, a place that deals in authentic historical
items. The bottle was pictured along side Jeannie's original
costume, and claims to be an original bottle painted from the first
season of I Dream of Jeannie. Item 1 - the stopper
has the "lined" effect on the spike, however, it is not lined on the
tops of the ridges, but rather in the spaces between the ridges.
All the tear drops appear to be there, as well as the line under them.
They have green wash on them for an aged appearance.
Item 2 - The rim leaves are very
pronounced and hard to miss. They appear to have a "humped" look
to them, and based on the number of leaves visible, I would speculate
there are only 4 leaves around the rim.
Item 3 - The neck leaves again appear to
all point in the same direction (to the right), however, the vine
appears to be a more of a straight line than a wavy line as in the
previous bottle.
Item 4 - The middle tear drops are
clearly defined on this bottle, as are the gold lines that go above and
below them. Very little is obscured by a green wash on them.
Item 5 - The middle leaves are of varying
shapes and sizes, and all appear to exhibit the hash marks.
However, the vines on this bottle appear to be a straighter design than
the curved vines of the previous bottles. Again, based on the
number of vines visible, I would say this bottle also has 6 vines with
leaves on it.
Item 6 - Minimal green wash has been
given to this bottle compared to the previous two. It is visible,
but not overly so that it obscures the design patterns or the gold
color.
Item 7 - chipping is again evident on
this bottle, most likely to give it an aged appearance.
Overall - This is a much "cleaner" looking
bottle because the designs are not obscured by the aging effect of a
green wash spray. The website where this picture was obtained
claims the bottle was possibly used in the pilot episode or in the first
10 - 12 black and white episodes. I find that hard to believe
given the two previous examples that were screen captured from the
pilot. |
So as you can see, there is no doubt that more than
one golden vines bottle was used during the first season. There is
also no doubt that the designs on the bottle were not set in stone or
identically replicated with much success.
What does all this mean for replica collectors?
It means you need to decide which version of the bottle you like the best,
and then try to find an artist who can give you a reproduction of that
design.
If you come across someone claiming to be the only
one to re-create this bottle correctly, they are not lying, just mistaken.
No one could ever make that claim and be entirely correct or entirely
incorrect. The decision lies with those who are purchasing the bottle.
If YOU feel it is a good reproduction ... then there is no one who can
dispute you.
You may visit my
Screen Captures page to view more
screen shots of the Golden Vines bottle with both of the first season clear
stoppers. That's right I said BOTH. Most are unaware that there
were 2 different clear glass stoppers used during the first season.
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