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Erin Murphy says once turned down a role on The Waltons because she wanted to finish her stay at Girl Scouts camp
Speaking to Celebrity Drop, Murphy said, "The Walton's offer came when Bewitched was cancelled"
But Murphy instead left acting behind to live a normal life as a kid
A formerBewitchedactress says she once turned down a role onThe Waltonsbecause she wanted to finish her stay at sleepaway camp.
Actress Erin Murphy, the former child star who played young Tabitha Stephens — daughter of magical Samatha Stephens (Elizabeth Montgomery) and Darrin Stephens (Dick York) — toldCelebrity Dropin a recent interview, "TheWalton's offer came whenBewitchedwas cancelled."
"I was at Girl Scout camp. And the call came in and the decision was made that I wanted to stay at Girl Scout camp," Murphy, 61, added.
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Murphy began her role onBewitchedat just two years old, ultimately leaving the industry after graduating elementary school.
"It was a time where my sister and I had graduated from elementary school," she said, adding that her family then moved from Los Angeles to Orange County, where she became a regular student in regular school.
"It was kind of great being a normal kid and being a cheerleader and all of those things," Murphy said. "I like that I had both sides of that childhood,"
Even while she was shootingBewitched, she added, she attended regular school and made friends with other students.
"I think in some ways I overcompensated ... some of it is because people have perceptions about what an actor – especially a child actor — is like," she said.
After Murphy left acting behind, she still dabbled in the industry, working as a casting director and makeup artist and even doing stunt work.
Speaking with PEOPLE in 1999, Murphy said shenever watched the showas a child, because it aired after her bedtime. Filming the series also pulled back the curtain on the mystical moments viewers saw on TV.
"I knew the magic wasn't real," said Murphy. "People were on the rafters above us, holding fishing poles with wires."
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Bewitchedaired from 1964 to 1972 and, in addition, Murphy appeared in more than 80 TV commercials (including a detergent ad withRonald Reagan).
The Waltons, meanwhile, aired from 1972 to 1981, and focused on a family in rural mountainous Western Virginia of the Appalachian Mountains.
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