The Munsters
1 9 6 4 - 1 9 6 6 (USA)
70 x 25 minute episodes
At 1313 Mockingbird Lane in Mockingbird Heights stood a musty,
cob-web covered gothic mansion - the home of the Munster
family.
Herman (the father) was seven feet tall and
bore a striking resemblance to Frankenstein's monster. Lily
(his wife) and Grandpa (her father, whose real name is Sam
Dracula) were vampires. Eddie (their young son) was a werewolf.
Marilyn (their live-in niece) was the only normal one (and was
considered ugly by the family).
Herman worked at the Gateman, Goodbury and Grave Funeral Home,
while Lily was aged 137 with long black hair with a white streak
and a penchant for Chanel No. 13.
Early Munsters episodes were darker and scarier (for example,
Grandpa keeps trying to bite people in the neck) but as the show
progressed the comedic element came to the fore and the show
became less scary.
 As a lad, I desperately wanted a Munster Koach, or better yet,
a Munster Roadster - basically a coffin on wheels dressed up as a
street rod (pictured at left). I also wanted to bonk Marilyn
Munster. But that's another story . . .
A movie, Munster Go Home, featuring the TV cast, was
released in 1966 and the original cast returned in 1981 in a
made-for-TV movie called The Munsters' Revenge. Herman and
Grandpa are accused of a crime spree when the evil Dr Dustin
Diablo (Sid Caesar) makes robot replicas of them.
A 1988 'revival' series called The Munsters Today
introduced a new cast under the premise that the family reawaken
at 1313 Mockingbird Lane after 20 years in suspended animation.
Lee Meriwether played Lily Munster in the new series. Other cast
members included John A Shuck, Jason Marsden, Hilary Van Dyke and
Howard Morton. The new series was an eminently forgettable
disaster!
TRIVIA NOTES
The house used for the exterior shots on The Munsters
was located on the back lot of Universal Studios and has been used
in many movies, including Dragnet (1987); and The Burbs
(1989).
Fred Gwynne would spend an hour and a half every day before
shooting having his face painted green - despite the fact
the show was filmed in black and white (except for the pilot which
was filmed in colour).
Lily Munster's
first name was originally Phoebe in the pilot.
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