Sabrina first appeared in the Archie comic books in 1962, just one of the band of teenagers popularized in that series. But Sabrina had a secret: she was in fact a witch with real magical powers. The young witch was a recurring character in the comics and also appeared in The Archie Show cartoon in 1969. A year later, she co-starred in the hour long amalgam series Sabrina and the Groovie Goolies and a year after that, she was mistress of her own domain with Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

The cartoon followed Sabrina on her everyday adventures. Besides school, boys, dating and makeup, Sabrina had a lot of magical concerns on her mind. It was very tempting to use her powers for even the smallest task or to solve bigger problems but she knew that magic can complicate things. Not to mention that it was better to keep her friends in the dark about her magical leanings, rather than risk rejection or worse, endless requests for favors.

Sabrina was a high school student and an apprentice witch. Her magic was not completely fool proof but luckily she could rely on her family for tutoring and help. She lived with her aunts, witches Hilda and Zelda and other family members like uncle Ambrose, also popped in to lend a magical hand. Sabrina's companion and familiar was a warlock-turned-cat, Salem.

The series aired until 1973 and Sabrina resurfaced in 1977 teaming up with old friends for the The New Archie/Sabrina hours.