The Munsters

From 1964 to 1966, CBS had its The Munsters family, derived from Universal's classic monsters, while rival ABC had The Addams Family, inspired by Charles Addams cartoons, both at the same time. For viewers, such a situation is always a plus, because both concepts are liked and there is always something interesting to watch. (10/31/2021)

It's a magical affair. A classic family of monsters experiencing true American problems. The coexistence of several generations, the joys and sorrows of everyday life. But there's a catch - the monsters have their hearts in the right place... although the grandfather is a vampire, his daughter married Frankenstein's monster and they had a werewolf. They live together with a "normal" blonde (two actresses have taken turns in this role and were not even noticed by the audience at the time) and resist the seductions of modern consumerism. The films do a great job with horror styling, music, and especially humor. Lily and Herman are a fairly normal couple. She is a housewife and keeps the family hearth warm, he regularly bickers with his father-in-law (he'd like to finally finish reading "The Murders in the Rue Morgue"), and in his sheer naivety dreams of a career change. Grandpa is always talking about the old world and is quite inventive. Through the schoolboy Eddie, the family is introduced to various modern trends, such as the belief in life on Mars or family holidays in nature. The outside world reacts to the Munsters in different ways, the wise understand, while others faint in horror... In the 1960s, family sitcoms drew on the tradition of Lucille Ball's series, and a key show in shaping the new television genre was 1951's I Love Lucy. The progress of each decade was evident, especially in such a creative world as that of the Munsters. Black and white television was never more fun. (11/28/2021)

The Munsters phenomenon stands and falls with the quality cast of this original series. That is why all subsequent attempts at revival have had less success. Unlike The Addams Family, for example, where the characters are always more in the forefront and the actors, while important, are also secondary. Fred Gwynne and Al Lewis have had many opportunities to hone their flair for television comedy on Brenner, The Phil Silvers Show, and Car 54, Where Are You?, while the great Yvonne De Carlo offered television her experience from a 25-year film career. The chemistry between the various members of the Munster family is excellent in both series and is still fondly remembered by viewers today. Which is something that not every show is able to do. The end came rather abruptly after an excellent 70 episodes (one reason for this could be the emergence of the series Batman), so fans were relieved to see the colorful film Munster, Go Home! (1966), returning years later in The Munsters' Revenge (1981), and finally, they got a cameo from the surviving gang consisting of Yvonne De Carlo, Al Lewis, Butch Patrick, and Pat Priest in Here Come the Munsters (1995). (11/28/2021)