"Biography" The Munsters: America's First Family of Fright (2003)

Director:

Rick Hull

Writer:

Jerry Decker (writer)

TV Series:

"Biography" (1987)

Original Air Date:

8 July 2003

Genre:

Documentary | Biography | History

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Character Name In Title | Anthology | Celebrity | One Word Title | Publicity

Cast

Donald F. Glut	...	Himself (as Donald Glut)
Matt Roush	...	Himself - Television Critic
Mike Dann	...	Himself - Former Head of Programming at CBS
Norman Abbott	...	Himself - 'Munsters' Director
Al Lewis	...	Himself
Beverley Owen	...	Herself
Karl Silvera	...	Himself - 'Munsters' Make-Up Artist
Butch Patrick	...	Himself
Yvonne De Carlo	...	Herself
Pat Priest	...	Herself
Richard Baer	...	Himself - Writer
Bob Burns	...	Himself
George Barris	...	Himself
Debbie Watson	...	Herself
Edward Herrmann	...	Himself
Bill Mumy	...	Himself - Narrator (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Murray the 'K'	...	Himself (archive footage)
Claire Carleton	...	Yolanda Cribbins (archive footage)
Nate Derman	...	Edward Wolfgang Munster (archive footage)
John Fiedler	...	Warren Bloom - Mailman (archive footage)
Fred Gwynne	...	Herman Munster (archive footage)
Edward Mallory	...	Jack (archive footage)
Joan Marshall	...	Phoebe Munster (archive footage)
Jeanne Arnold	...	Grace (archive footage) (uncredited)
Hermione Gingold	...	Lady Effigie Munster (archive footage) (uncredited)
George Harrison	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Boris Karloff	...	The Monster (archive footage) (uncredited)
John Lennon	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Bela Lugosi	...	Dracula (archive footage) (uncredited)
Paul McCartney	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Marilyn Monroe	...	Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Ringo Starr	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Terry-Thomas	...	Freddie Munster (archive footage) (uncredited)
Ray Walston	...	Uncle Martin (archive footage) (uncredited)

Directed by
Rick Hull

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Jerry Decker		writer

Produced by
Tracy Allan	....	associate producer
Kevin Burns	....	executive producer
Scott Hartford	....	senior associate producer
Rick Hull	....	producer
Erika Schroeder	....	coordinating producer
Kim Sheerin	....	supervising producer

Film Editing by
Bryan Richert

Makeup Department
Patri Lucy-Romolo	....	makeup artist
T.C. Thecla Luisi	....	makeup artist
Rada Maksimovich	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Sharon Berman Keimon	....	post-production manager
Chrissy Richards	....	production manager

Sound Department
Sandy Fellerman	....	sound
Brian Gerstner	....	sound re-recording mixer
Alan Halcon	....	sound
Joe Kalish	....	sound assistant engineer
Robin Lance	....	sound
Percy Urgena	....	sound
Michael J. White	....	sound re-recording mixer

Camera and Electrical Department
Lars Bunch	....	motion still camera
Patrick Higgins	....	camera operator
Martin Kauper	....	motion still camera
John Lawrence	....	camera operator

Editorial Department
Andrew Giacometti	....	director of post-production
Mark W. Jacobs	....	on-line editor
Kenny Mittleider	....	assistant editor
Jose Valencia	....	post-production coordinator

Music Department
Lloyd Hardy	....	music supervisor

Other crew
Norman Abbott	....	photographs courtesy of
Kyrsten Beidelman	....	clearance coordinator
Ronald V. Borst	....	photographs courtesy of
Jordan Erlich	....	researcher
Wendy Exley	....	production administrator
Erin Feldmar	....	director of business and legal affairs
Donald F. Glut	....	photographs courtesy of
Rebecca Gullion	....	production intern
Erik Hebler	....	production assistant
Dennis Jelovic	....	assistant accountant
Kerry Jensen	....	story editor
Calvin Jones	....	media manager
Jerianne Keaney	....	director of clearance
Wade Lageose	....	main title graphics
Shelley Lyons	....	vice president of production
Michelle Parker	....	unit publicist
Wendy Radwan	....	production coordinator
Tyrone Richardson	....	media technician
Vicki Rocco	....	production accountant
Karl Silvera	....	photographs courtesy of
Amy Smolev	....	assistant accountant (as Amy Fitzer)
Jesse Lee Stout	....	media assistant
Amy Tamez	....	programming coordinator: A&E Network
Doug Whitney	....	main title graphics

Thanks
Bob Burns	....	acknowledgment
Yvonne De Carlo	....	very special thanks
Debbie Gwynne	....	very special thanks
Al Lewis	....	very special thanks
Gary Matheson	....	acknowledgment
Beverley Owen	....	very special thanks
Butch Patrick	....	very special thanks
Pat Priest	....	very special thanks
Gene Trindl	....	acknowledgment: photographs courtesy of
Debbie Watson	....	very special thanks

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Agnes Nixon		creator

Distributors

• A&E Television Networks (USA) (TV)
• Koch Media (2007) (Germany) (DVD)

Runtime:

USA:50 min | Germany:43 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Movie Connections:

Features "Bewitched" (1964)

'The Munsters' Popularity Never Ends!

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Has any show that was ever on TV for only two years ever been so popular as "The Munsters?" I don't know, but it would be hard to beat this show which is still extremely popular today, as it was in 1964 and 1965. That's over 40 years and three generations. Kids and adults still love this show.

Everybody who starred in the sitcom is interviewed for this "Biography" TV show except for Fred Gwynn, who died from pancreatic cancer in 1993. It was very interesting to see what they all look like. This particular episode aired in July of 2003 so it was probably filmed earlier in the year or late in 2002. Yvonne De Carlo ("Lily Munster") , Al Lewis ("Grandpa"), Beverley Owen and Pat Priest (who both played "Marilyn") and Butch Patrick ("Eddie") all comment about the show, such as what it was like being a star back then and still today, the relationships between everyone, the pounds of makeup that had to be applied to the "monsters," etc. Since then, De Carlo passed away in 2007 and Lewis in 2006. The only person I didn't recognize was Priest. Everyone else you'd still guess who they are, even little Eddie who is now in his 50s.

In this Biography episode, we learn background history of "The Munsters" and witness some of color footage of a 16-minute promotion for it. Munster fans might be interested to know that Joan Marshall played "Phoebe," who is "Lily" as we know her. That, obviously, was changed quickly as was the actor who played Eddie. He was a Happy (Nate) Derman and he came across as a nasty, bitter "Eddie." Producers wound up with the gentler, nicer Patrick.

Owen left the show after just 13 episodes because she was homesick for her boyfriend. She would have crying fits, they explain, on the set that would go on and on and on, so they finally let her out of her contract, she moved back east and married the guy! Priest succeeded her and was the exact same size, so they didn't have to change the wardrobe.

I knew this show was a hit right off the bat (I was one of the viewers), but I didn't how big it was until this show when they explain about all the merchandise that was associated as soon as this became a hit. (It was in the Top Ten almost immediately.) When you hear all the cast had to do to help promote it and capitalize on the success, you feel sorry for them. After the first season, they were all exhausted.

One really feels sorry for poor Gywnne, who Lewis said "suffered horribly" with that big rubber suit on which almost suffocated him. He had to gulp tons of water all the time for all the sweating he was doing. It all sounded really bad. De Carlo's wig weighed 20 pounds. I had heard that she was the one who complained a lot and refused to go on, leading to the cancellation of the show....but that is not true, according to this program. Biography said that when "Batman" became an enormous hit in 1965, the Munsters, especially in black-and-white against the colorful Batman shows, started to literally pale in comparison. CBS got nervous and cancelled the show. They also claim the writers were beginning to run out of ideas for stories. There were 70 Munsters programs in just two years.

Biography then details all the different efforts to revive "The Munsters," none of which worked. The most intriguing part, I thought, was a 1995 made-for-TV movie called "Here Come The Munsters," which starred Edward Herrmann as Herman. He's a waiter in a restaurant and in one scene, the customers are DeCarlo, Lewis, Patrick and Priest! That was cute.

Thanks to cable TV, "We've never been out of syndication," boasts Lewis.

Patrick added, "People tell me they've watched all the episodes many times and they never get tired of watching them."

Boy, that is so true.