"The Addams Family" (1964) TV series 1964-1966

Directors:

Stanley Z. Cherry
Arthur Hiller

Writers:

Hannibal Coons (writer) (25 episodes)
Harry Winkler (writer) (25 episodes)

Seasons:

1 | 2

Release Date:

18 September 1964 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family | Horror

Plot:

The misadventures of a blissfully macabre family.

Plot Keywords:

Addams Family | Disembodied Hand | Butler | Macabre | Famous Opening Theme

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Carolyn Jones	...	Morticia Frump Addams / ... (64 episodes, 1964-1966)
John Astin	...	Gomez Addams (64 episodes, 1964-1966)
Ted Cassidy	...	Lurch / ... (64 episodes, 1964-1966)
Jackie Coogan	...	Uncle Fester Frump (62 episodes, 1964-1966)
Ken Weatherwax	...	Pugsley Addams (41 episodes, 1964-1966)
Lisa Loring	...	Wednesday Addams (37 episodes, 1964-1966)
Marie Blake	...	Grandmama Addams (34 episodes, 1964-1966)

Runtime:

30 min (64 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-7 (DVD) (2007) | Singapore:G | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | USA:TV-G

Filming Locations:

General Service Studios - 1040 N. Las Palmas, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

American Broadcasting Company (ABC)

Trivia:

The name of the Addamses' pet lion was "Kitty Cat".

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: While Kitty is consistently referred to with female pronouns throughout the series, the lion that plays Kitty is a male lion.

Quotes:

Lurch: [on why he won't go to the Butlers' Ball] I'm a wallflower.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Gristle (2001)

this proves that macabre can be funny

The Addamses are a delightfully ghoulish family. Father Gomez (John Astin) clears his throat with a sword, mother Morticia (Carolyn Jones) owns several carnivorous plants, and servant Lurch (Ted Cassidy) somberly replies "You rang?" whenever someone rings the bell. And of course, there's their pet, a severed hand named Thing. The family spends their days engaging in activities that most would find weird (to be certain, everything that's normal to us is weird to them). For example, Uncle Fester (Jackie Coogan) likes to rest on a bed on nails. They go through their everyday lives (uh, lives?) doing the sorts of things that most people do, just differently (to say the least).

Among other things, "The Addams Family" was actually better than "The Munsters" (it was cleverer and not so silly). This truly represented a break from the "ideal American family" mold that had previously dominated TV, especially since Gomez and Morticia often got slinky with each other. Definitely watch it whenever it's on (TV Land is currently rerunning it).