No matter what roles she plays, no matter what she does, Barbara Eden will always be known as the lovable 2,000-year-old genie from '60s sitcom I Dream of Jeannie.

The veteran actress, 75, is well aware that it's her magical eye blinking and head nodding that grabbed the most hearts. And she's OK with that.

``I'm very lucky,'' Eden says from the California home she shares with her third husband, Jon. ``The fans are still very kind to me.''

The two most-asked questions: ``Where's the bottle?'' and ``Do you have a belly button?'' (Censors forbade revealing navels).

Eden is still surprised by the popularity of the show, which ran on NBC from 1965-1970.

``It's still huge overseas, especially in Italy,'' says Eden. ``I still get mail from all over the world. It's kind of fun and nice to be appreciated.''

Though she catches an episode here and there, Eden doesn't identify with the girl in veils anymore.

``It's like, `Awww, look at her,' '' Eden says. ``I was a different person.''

Eden's latest role is playing a nosy mom in Hallmark's Always & Forever, starring Rena Sofer and Dean McDermott as lovers who reconnect at a high school reunion. Yet another departure.

``It's fun playing an interfering mother,'' laughs Eden. ``I like being a little bit duplicitous.''

-- MADELEINE MARR

``Always & Forever'' premieres 9 p.m. Saturday on The Hallmark Channel.

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