The Munsters

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The Munsters
Season One opening, with Yvonne De Carlo featured behind the title
Created by	Allan Burns Chris Hayward[1]
Developed by	Norm Liebmann Ed Haas
Starring	Fred Gwynne Yvonne De Carlo Al Lewis Beverley Owen (1964) Pat Priest (1964–66) Butch Patrick
Theme music composer	Jack Marshall Bob Mosher (unaired lyrics)
Opening theme	"The Munsters' Theme"
Composer	Jack Marshall
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	70 (list of episodes)
Production
Producers	Joe Connelly Bob Mosher
Production locations	Universal Studios, Universal City, California
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	25 minutes
Production companies	Kayro-Vue Productions Universal Television
Distributor	NBCUniversal Television Distribution
Release
Original network	CBS
Picture format	Black-and-white 35mm film
Audio format	Monaural
Original release	September 24, 1964 (1964-09-24) – May 12, 1966 (1966-05-12)
Chronology
Followed by	The Munsters Today Mockingbird Lane

The Munsters is an American sitcom depicting the home life of a family of benign monsters. The series starred Fred Gwynne as Frankenstein's monster^[2] and head-of-the-household Herman Munster; Yvonne De Carlo as his wife Lily; Al Lewis as Lily's father, Grandpa, the somewhat over-the-hill vampire Count Dracula^[3] who longs for the "good old days" in Transylvania; Beverley Owen (later replaced by Pat Priest) as their teenage niece Marilyn, who was attractive by conventional standards but the "ugly duckling"^[4] of the family; and Butch Patrick as their werewolfish son Eddie.

Produced by the creators of Leave It to Beaver, the series was a satire of American suburban life, as well as both traditional monster movies and the wholesome family fare of the era.^[5][6] It achieved higher Nielsen ratings than the similarly macabre-themed The Addams Family, which aired concurrently on ABC.

In 1965, The Munsters was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series^[7] but lost to The Rogues. In the 21st century it received several TV Land Award nominations, including one for Most Uninsurable Driver (Herman Munster).^[8]

The series originally aired on Thursday at 7:30 pm on CBS from September 24, 1964, to May 12, 1966. Seventy episodes were produced. It was cancelled after ratings dropped to a series low due to competition from ABC's Batman.^[9] Butch Patrick said, "I think ‘Batman’ was to blame. ’Batman' just came along and took our ratings away."^[10] But The Munsters found a large audience in syndication. This popularity warranted a spin-off series, as well as several films, including one with a theatrical release, and several more recent attempts to reboot it.^[11]

Premise[]

The Munsters are a Transylvanian-American family living at 1313 Mockingbird Lane in the fictional city of Mockingbird Heights. The series' running gag is that the decidedly odd-looking family with strange tastes considers itself to be an average American family.^[12] Herman is the family's sole wage-earner, though Lily and Grandpa make short-lived attempts to earn money from time to time. While Herman is the head of the household, Lily also makes many decisions. According to episode 44 ("Happy 100th Anniversary"), in which Lily and Herman try to surprise each other for their anniversary, they were married in 1865.

Using a family of mostly supernatural-seeming creatures, the show satirized the typical family sitcom formula of the era: the well-meaning father, the nurturing mother, the eccentric live-in relative, the naïve teenager, and the precocious child. Members of the Munster family even mention by name several sitcoms which the Munsters themselves watch.^[13] Al Lewis, in an interview with Daily Variety^[14] explained, "We can do a lot of satirical pointed things on society that you couldn't do on an ordinary show."

Lewis also said, "Philosophically, the format is that in spite of the way people look to you physically, underneath there is a heart of gold. ^[15] The Munsters reflected changes in social attitudes during the Civil Rights Era, and in 2020 the speech Herman makes to Eddie in the 1965 episode "Eddie's Nickname" went viral: "The lesson I want you to learn is that it doesn’t matter what you look like. Whether you are tall or short; or fat or thin; or ugly or handsome – like your father – or you can be black, or yellow, or white. It doesn’t matter. What matters is the size of your heart and the strength of your character."^[16][17].

The costumes and appearances of the family (other than Marilyn) were based on the classic monsters of Universal Studios films from the 1930s and 1940s, including the iconic version of Frankenstein's monster^[18] whose costume and make-up were first created by Jack Pierce for the 1931 Universal Studios film Frankenstein. Universal jointly produced The Munsters and was thus able to use these copyrighted designs. Make-up for the series was credited to Bud Westmore, who pioneered many other make-up effects and designs for Universal's monster movies after Pierce.

Cast[]

Regulars[]

• Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster
• Yvonne De Carlo as Lily Munster
• Al Lewis as Grandpa
• Butch Patrick as Eddie Munster
• Beverley Owen as Marilyn Munster (ep. 1–13)
• Pat Priest as Marilyn Munster (ep. 14–70)
• Mel Blanc Voice of The Raven
• Bob Hastings Voice of The Raven

Recurring characters[]

• Paul Lynde as Dr. Edward H. Dudley (ep. 4, 6, 19)
• Dom DeLuise as Dr. Edward H. Dudley (ep. 55)
• John Carradine as Mr. Gateman Herman's boss at the funeral parlor (ep. 37, 62)
• Chet Stratton as Clyde Thornton & Herman's coworker at the funeral parlor
• Bryan O'Byrne as Uriah, Calvin & another coworker at the funeral parlor

Production[]

Development[]

The idea of a family of comical monsters was first suggested to Universal Studios by animator Bob Clampett, who developed the idea from 1943 to 1945 as a series of cartoons.^[19] The project did not take off until mid-1963^[20] when a similar idea was submitted to Universal Studios by Rocky & Bullwinkle writers Allan Burns and Chris Hayward. The proposal was later handed to writers Norm Liebman and Ed Haas, who wrote a pilot script, Love Thy Monster. Some executives believed the series should be animated, while others argued for live-action. Finally, a presentation was filmed by MCA Television for CBS using live-action.^[18]

The show was produced by Joe Connelly and Bob Mosher, who were already known for creating the Leave It to Beaver television series. Prior to that they wrote over 1,500 episodes of Amos 'n' Andy, a popular network radio program, for nearly its entire history. Gwynne and Lewis were the first to be cast early in February 1964, with De Carlo following in April. De Carlo's character was originally named Phoebe.

Filming[]

Originally conceived as a color show, The Munsters was ultimately filmed in black-and-white to save money and to resemble Universal's vintage monster films. Over the course of season one, the makeup for Herman, Lily, and Grandpa was adjusted. Lily's hair originally had a large white streak, which was reduced in later episodes. Her necklace featured a bat instead of a star, and her eyebrows were angled more. Grandpa's make-up was exaggerated, including heavier eyebrows, and Herman's face was widened for a dopier and less human appearance. Gwynne also added a stutter whenever Herman was angry or wanted to make a point, and he frequently left his mouth open, adding to the effect of a goofy, less frightening, figure.

Sets[]

The Munsters' home was a decaying Second Empire Victorian mansion located at 1313 Mockingbird Lane in Mockingbird Heights. The town's location is not specified in the series, but in later incarnations it is described as a small town outside Los Angeles.

The Munster home was located on the Universal Studios back lot. It was originally constructed with two other houses on Stage 12, the studio's largest soundstage, for the 1946 film "So Goes My Love" (aka "A Genius in the Family"). After that film was completed, the sets were put into storage until 1950, when they (along with other house sets built from stock units) were reassembled on the north edge of the backlot along a road christened Colonial Street, after the Colonial Mansion which was the first house on the street. All three houses were seen in many TV shows and films, including Leave It to Beaver.^[21]

In 1964 the house was redressed as the Munster home and a stone wall was added around the property. After The Munsters ended its run, the house was restored. It was the home of the family in Shirley (NBC, 1979–80).

In 1981 all of the homes on Colonial Street were moved from the north end of the lot to their present location. The former Munster house was used in Coach and, after another remodel, Desperate Housewives.

The interiors of the Munsters' mansion were filmed on Stages 30 and 32 at Universal Studios. The interior was riddled with dust, smoke and cobwebs. (When Lily "dusted" the house, her Electrolux emitted clouds of dust, which she applied to surfaces most people would clean.) As a running gag, parts of the house would often be damaged (mostly by Herman's tantrums or clumsiness), but the damage would not last.

Props[]

In the fourth episode ("Rock-A-Bye Munster"), Lily buys a hot-rod and a hearse from a used car dealership and has them customized into one car (Munster Koach) for Herman's birthday present. The Munster Koach and DRAG-U-LA (built by Grandpa in episode 36, "Hot Rod Herman") were designed by Tom Daniel and built by auto customizer George Barris for the show. The "Munster Koach" was a hot rod built on a lengthened 1926 Ford Model T chassis with a custom hearse body. It was 18 feet long and cost almost $20,000 to build. Barris also built the "DRAG-U-LA," a dragster built from a coffin (according to Barris, a real coffin was, in fact, purchased for the car), which Grandpa used to win back "The Munster Koach" after Herman lost it in a race.

Theme song[]

The instrumental theme song, titled "The Munsters' Theme", was composed by composer/arranger Jack Marshall.^[22] The theme song's lyrics, which the sitcom's co-producer Bob Mosher wrote, were never aired on CBS. Described by writer as a "Bernard-Herrmann-meets-Duane-Eddy sound",^[23] the theme was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1965. A sample of the theme was used in the song "Uma Thurman" by Fall Out Boy.^{[citation needed]}

In 1983, Butch Patrick recorded the novelty song "Whatever Happened to Eddie?", which was set to the theme song of The Munsters.^[24]

The theme also served as inspiration for the song "Agatha All Along" from the 2021 Marvel Studios Disney+ miniseries WandaVision.^[25]

Episodes[]

Pitch episode[]

The first presentation was 16 minutes and in color (later cut to just over 13 minutes) and was used to pitch the series to CBS and its affiliates. (The episode is available on the complete first season of The Munsters DVDs.) It never aired, but the script was reused as the basis for episode 2, "My Fair Munster". The cast in order of appearance in the title sequence was: Joan Marshall as Phoebe (instead of Lily), Beverley Owen as Marilyn, Nate "Happy" Derman as Eddie, Al Lewis as Grandpa, and Fred Gwynne as Herman. Although the same house exterior was used, it was later changed to appear more gothic and "spooky" in the series. This included adding the tower deck and Marilyn's deck; a new coat of paint; and enlarging the living room. Although Grandpa had the same dungeon, Gwynne did not wear padding in the pitch episode, had a more protruding forehead, and was broad but thin. The most noticeable difference was his somber expression, compared to his comic silliness during the series.^[23] Except for Marilyn, the family had a blue-green tint to their skin. The biggest character difference was that Eddie was portrayed by Derman as a nasty brat.^[26] Eddie, as played by Patrick, was always respectful.

The pilot title sequence had light, happy music borrowed from the Doris Day movie The Thrill of It All^[27] instead of the instrumental rock theme. It was also decided that Joan Marshall looked too much like Morticia Addams^[27] and that Happy Derman was too nasty as Eddie, so both were replaced.^[27] On the basis of the first presentation, the new series, still not completely cast, was announced by CBS on February 18, 1964. A second black-and-white presentation was filmed with DeCarlo and Patrick. In this version, Eddie appeared with a more "normal" look, although his hairstyle was later altered to include a pronounced widow's peak.

1965 Easter special[]

During the first season, the Munster family appeared in an Easter special when they visited Marineland of the Pacific in Palos Verdes, California, to get a new pet for Eddie. Shot on videotape, it aired just once on CBS on April 18, and was long thought lost until a copy was donated to the Paley Center in New York in 1997.^[28][29]

Episode list[]

Season		Episodes		Originally aired
				First aired	Last aired
	Pilots			Unaired
	1	38		September 24, 1964 (1964-09-24)	June 10, 1965 (1965-06-10)
	2	32		September 16, 1965 (1965-09-16)	May 12, 1966 (1966-05-12)
	Special			April 18, 1965 (1965-04-18)

Syndication[]

The series entered syndication on local stations after its original run. In the 1990s it aired on Nick at Nite and on TV Land from 2000 to 2008. In October 2011, the series was picked up by Cartoon Network's sister channel Boomerang and ran through the entire month of October that year for Halloween alongside The Addams Family. It vanished from Boomerang after Halloween 2013.

On October 5, 2015, Cozi TV began airing the series, currently on weeknights at 7pm Eastern and in a two-hour block on Sunday evenings.^[30]

Reception[]

Ratings[]

• 1964–1965: #18 (24.7 rating) – Tied with Gilligan's Island
• 1965–1966: #61 (no rating given, 30.7 share)^[31]

Derivative works[]

In 1973, there was an animated one-hour special for ABC, The Mini-Munsters, based on characters from the original series.

Films[]

Several Munsters movies were released, three featuring original cast members.

Reboots[]

A sequel television series, titled The Munsters Today, ran from 1988 to 1991 and lasted for 72 episodes. The unaired pilot episode, written by Lloyd J. Schwartz, explained the 22-year gap through an accident in Grandpa's lab that put the family to sleep. They awake in the late 1980s and have to adapt to their new surroundings. It featured John Schuck (Herman), Lee Meriwether (Lily), Howard Morton (Grandpa), and Jason Marsden (Eddie). Marilyn was portrayed by Mary-Ellen Dunbar in the unaired pilot, and by Hilary Van Dyke thereafter.

A remake from Pushing Daisies creator Bryan Fuller, was developed for NBC. The show was to be a reboot as a one-hour drama with "spectacular visuals".^[32][33][34] NBC ordered a pilot episode,^[35] and announced in January 2012 that it would be called Mockingbird Lane, a reference to the Munster's address.^[36] NBC ultimately canceled plans for Mockingbird Lane to be produced as a weekly series, but later announced the pilot episode would air in late October 2012 as a Halloween special.^[37] The series failed to be picked up by NBC due to disagreements on the dark nature and inconsistent tone.^[38]

In August 2004, it was announced that Keenen Ivory, Shawn, and Marlon Wayans had made a deal to write and produce a modern-day take on "The Munsters," but not appear in it.^[39]

In August 2017, it was announced that Seth Meyers was developing a modern-day interpretation of the series. The show would place the Munsters in Brooklyn, New York, where they try to fit in as an ordinary family.^[40]

In 2021, Rob Zombie was hired to write and direct a Munsters movie, which will receive a theatrical release while also being streamed on Peacock.^[41]

Home media[]

Between 2004 and 2008, Universal Studios Home Entertainment released the entire series on DVD in Regions 1 & 2.

DVD Name	Ep#	Region 1	Region 2	Region 4	Additional Information
Season 1	38	August 24, 2004[42] February 5, 2013 (re-released)[43]	October 17, 2005	November 30, 2006	Original un-aired pilot Dual-Sided Discs (Region 1 only)
Season 2	32	October 25, 2005[44] February 5, 2013 (re-released)[45]	May 1, 2006	October 25, 2006	America's First Family of Fright Fred Gwynne: More Than A Munster Yvonne De Carlo: Gilded Lily Al Lewis: Forever Grandpa Dual-Sided Discs (Region 1 only)
The Complete Series	70	October 7, 2008[46] September 13, 2016 (re-released)[47]	N/A	N/A	Original un-aired pilot America's First Family of Fright Fred Gwynne: More Than A Munster Yvonne De Carlo: Gilded Lily Al Lewis: Forever Grandpa "Family Portrait" – colorized Version Munster, Go Home The Munsters' Revenge 12 Single-Sided Discs
The Complete Series (Closed Casket Collection)	70	N/A	October 8, 2007		Original un-aired pilot America's First Family of Fright Fred Gwynne: More Than A Munster Yvonne De Carlo: Gilded Lily Al Lewis: Forever Grandpa 12 Single-Sided Discs
The Complete Series				August 3, 2016	The Munsters' Revenge Here Come the Munsters 12 Single-Sided Discs

The "Family Portrait" episode in color, which was absent from the season 1 and 2 standalone box sets, was released on a standalone Region 1 DVD on October 7, 2008.^[48]

Merchandise[]

Gold Key Comics produced a Munsters comic book which ran 16 issues from 1965 to 1968 and had photo covers from the TV series. When it first appeared, the Comics Code Authority still forbade the appearance of vampires in comic books. However, this was not a problem at Gold Key, because Gold Key was not a member of the Comics Magazine Association of America and therefore did not have to conform to the Comics Code. Lily and Grandpa appeared in the comics without controversy.

Other merchandise included a set of rubber squeaky toys, Colorforms, and an Aurora model kit of the living room and family. AMT produced model kits of the Munster Koach as well as Drag-u-La. The Aurora model of the living room featured Herman in his electric chair, Eddie squatting in front of the fire, Lily was knitting and Grandpa was hanging, bat like, from the rafters. Marilyn was not included. ERTL later produced a very detailed 1:18 scale diecast of the Munster Koach. Mattel issued two Herman Munster Dolls, one was a talking doll and the other was a hand puppet (both having chatty rings that you could pull to make them talk utilizing Gwynne's actual voice) that were issued from 1964 until around 1968.

A video game based on The Munsters was published by "Again, Again" (a division of Alternative Software) in 1989. It was available for the Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Commodore Amiga, Atari ST, MSX, and DOS, but was heavily criticized by gaming press at the time because of its short length and lackluster game play.^[49]

In 1990, Atari Corporation released Midnight Mutants for the Atari 7800, featuring Al Lewis' likeness in his Grampa Munster character on the box art and label art. However, since Atari did not sign an agreement with Universal, they could not call him "Grampa Munster"; he was simply called "Grampa".

The first episode guide for the series was written by Richard H. Campbell for Media Sight #3, 1981.

Sawyer's View-Master Stereo Pictures issued a 3-D reel set of The Munsters depicting the episode "The Most Beautiful Ghoul in the World" in 1966, Packet No. B 481. The set contains three reels, each with seven 3-D views, as well as a small booklet containing drawings and additional text. The View-Master set is notable because the photographs provide rare color views of the characters and sets, including house interiors and Grandpa's dungeon laboratory. The photos are an accurate depiction of the characters' makeup as designed for black and white filming. Herman, Eddie, and Grandpa all wear heavy greenish-white facial makeup, which contrasts noticeably with their un-made-up hands and wrists. Lily, besides heavy facial makeup, has light greenish-white makeup on her hands and wrists. Marilyn, identified on the packet as "Daughter Marilyn," is of course in non-character "normal" makeup.

See also[]

• Vampire films
• List of vampire television series

References[]

Bibliography[]

• Joe Connelly and Bob Mosher. (1964). The Munsters. Hollywood: Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS).
• The Munsters: A Trip Down Mockingbird Lane.

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Munsters.

• The Munsters at IMDb
• The Munsters Episode Guide