# Addams Family vs. the Munsters **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 25, 2008, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079 "2008-02-25T14:37:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/21 "2008-02-25T18:29:01Z")
I always liked the Munsters better, but when I was watching them, I was 7 or 8, watching them in reruns. Watching Gomez and Morticia flirt? Ick! But what about their theme music? When I was taking guitar lessons, our instructor gave us the “Peter Gunn” sheet music for practice. I asked him if he knew the Munsters’s base line, and he said he liked the Addam’s Family music better. :eek: There’s just no middle ground, is there? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/22 "2008-02-25T18:41:14Z")
I have to give this one to the Addamses. Even as a hulking, nightmarish figure, Lurch way outclassed Herman. And Lurch was concise. He only said what he needed to say. He didn’t babble and blubber like Herman constantly did. And besides, he played one mean harpsichord! ---
**Author:** ![BaneSidhe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c5a1d2/32.png) [@BaneSidhe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BaneSidhe)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/23 "2008-02-25T19:10:46Z")
Used to be a tie, now it’s Addams Family, esp. after I discovered the comics. Nicely creepy any time of the year 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Terrifel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c68b51/32.png) [@Terrifel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terrifel)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/24 "2008-02-25T19:11:23Z")
[QUOTE=cochrane] I have to give this one to the Addamses. Even as a hulking, nightmarish figure, Lurch way outclassed Herman. And Lurch was concise. He only said what he needed to say. He didn’t babble and blubber like Herman constantly did. And besides, he played one mean harpsichord! [/QUOTE] And that quiet, long-suffering groan… For such a huge guy, Ted Cassidy showed a real knack for understated delivery in that role. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/25 "2008-02-25T19:57:14Z")
[QUOTE=Voyager] (snip) No accident that Paul Rudnick’s script for the second movie had the great camping scene, where Wednesday and the nerdy Jewish kid team up against the WASPs. (Best sequence in either movie.) He got the appeal perfectly. [/QUOTE] And that nerdy Jewish kid grew up to play Mr. Universe in _Serenity_. I guess you coulda seen that one coming a mile away. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/26 "2008-02-25T20:46:52Z")
[QUOTE=Terrifel] And that quiet, long-suffering groan… For such a huge guy, Ted Cassidy showed a real knack for understated delivery in that role. [/QUOTE] In 1963, Cassidy was a radio reporter in Dallas during the time of JFK’s assassination (true). I often imagine his reports sounding like this: Studio anchor: President Kennedy was shot today in Dallas. We go live now to Ted Cassidy at Parkland Memorial Hospital. Ted, what is the President’s conditon? Cassidy: GROAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNN! ---
**Author:** ![Terrifel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c68b51/32.png) [@Terrifel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terrifel)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/27 "2008-02-25T21:23:25Z")
[QUOTE=ZenBeam] But what about their theme music? When I was taking guitar lessons, our instructor gave us the “Peter Gunn” sheet music for practice. I asked him if he knew the Munsters’s base line, and he said he liked the Addam’s Family music better. :eek: There’s just no middle ground, is there? [/QUOTE] I dunno, I always thought the Munsters’ theme music was far and away the best feature of the show (along with the cars). Lively yet vaguely spooky, with an incongruous dash of surf rock-- this is a tune that says, “Hi. It’s the 1960’s; and whatever chemical is responsible for your mood right now, we’re prepared to offer you a half-hour of diverting television entertainment, at least until _Batman_ comes in. Please enjoy!” The cheerful little head-shake Fred Gwynne does in the opening credits nicely complements the mood. It’s wacky. The Addams Family theme works well too–it’s got a very suitable off-kilter quality to it, and the cheerfully slapdash lyrics underscore the rather impulsive character of the Addamses themselves. Of course it also gives my man Lurch a chance to shine on his mean harpsichord. But my favorite bit is probably the finger-snapping, which ties in nicely with the opening credits-- the family posing in an exaggeratedly formal Victorian portrait, and then they all simultaneously give the Beatnik salute. ---
**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/28 "2008-02-25T21:24:12Z")
Your judgments should be based only on the first few episodes of “The Munsters”. The original writers were fired, and possibly the (Rocky and Bullwinkle’s) producers who sold the series to the network. ---
**Author:** ![Terrifel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c68b51/32.png) [@Terrifel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terrifel)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/29 "2008-02-25T21:24:56Z")
[QUOTE=cochrane] In 1963, Cassidy was a radio reporter in Dallas during the time of JFK’s assassination (true). I often imagine his reports sounding like this: Studio anchor: President Kennedy was shot today in Dallas. We go live now to Ted Cassidy at Parkland Memorial Hospital. Ted, what is the President’s conditon? Cassidy: GROAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNN! [/QUOTE] That is the worst thing I’ve laughed at all day. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/30 "2008-02-25T21:32:52Z")
Addams Family all the way. The first movie was one of my favorites as a kid. ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/31 "2008-02-25T22:04:59Z")
Addams Family, most certainly. They were different, and happy about it (or at least, cheerfully oblivious). Also, I always felt that the writing was a lot more fun, in general. Tangent: Back when the DFW Dopers got together pretty often, we generally made reservations as “The Adams Family”. On at least one occasion, we did the finger-snap. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/32 "2008-02-25T22:22:31Z")
I recently caught some episodes of the Addams Family and was surprised how little use they made of the premise. One completely wasted a guest appearance by, um, what’s her name, the Wicked Witch of the West, as Morticia’s mother, by having her play a generic dotty old lady who thought she overheard plans to put her in a rest home against her will. Nonetheless, I give them the honors just for style. Gomez and Morticia were unlike anyone on TV in that decade, and not just because of wacky makeup or clothes. And they had a gnarly bong. [QUOTE=Knead to Know] Carolyn Jones was one of the smokin’-hottest women ever. [/QUOTE] I see what you did there. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/33 "2008-02-25T22:38:12Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] Addams Family, hand down. Also, the Addamses had better movies. MUCH better movies.\* [/QUOTE] I actually felt guilty for seeing Raul Julia and Anjelica Huston and thinking “Damn! they’re better than John Astin and Carolyn Jones!”, but, props where they’re due. Trivia about Ted Cassidy: One of his cars was a VW Bug that he drove by removing the front seats and sitting on the back seat. Does anybody remember the Nick’at’Night commercial for the Munsters in which actual college genetics professors (I looked them up at the time as a matter of curiosity) “explained” (tongue-in-cheek, of course) the recessive and dominant genes necessary for a male vampire to produce a vampiress who marries a reanimated corpse and produce a wolfboy, while the same vampire has another child whose daughter is normal? It was one of their better commercial moments. Addams Family also had the best dialogue: Judge: Mr. Addams I am holding you in contempt! Gomez: Good! That means we’re even! Morticia: Think of Romeo and Juliet. Gomez: They died! Morticia: Oh, but what fun they had those last three days. Morticia: It’s just like great-grandpa-pa Addams observed when cousin Squint was born- “Two heads are better than one”. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/34 "2008-02-25T23:02:54Z")
Addams family by a mile, for all of the reasons stated. As a kid I thought it would be cool to live next door to them. Actually, I still think it’d be cool. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/35 "2008-02-25T23:08:23Z")
[QUOTE=TWDuke] I see what you did there. [/QUOTE] Oh, thank heaven. I was beginning to think I’d lost my touch. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/36 "2008-02-25T23:12:12Z")
Addams Family, no contest. Their show was actually funny. The Munsters never was, other than “Oh! He looks like Frankenstein’s monster!” ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/37 "2008-02-25T23:25:27Z")
I always thought The Musters were just a poor man’s Addam’s Family. You should get a mod to correct your title. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/38 "2008-02-25T23:33:14Z")
[QUOTE=KneadToKnow] Oh, thank heaven. I was beginning to think I’d lost my touch. 🙂 [/QUOTE] _Jamais._ ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/39 "2008-02-25T23:34:10Z")
[QUOTE=KneadToKnow] Addams Family, hands down. Carolyn Jones was one of the smokin’-hottest women ever. [/QUOTE] Amen. I had a crush on her when I was 10. Also, have any of you ever sat down & reflected on the way they behaved? Unlike other TV families, Daddy _was not_ a schnook, Gomez was cool & smart; Mom _didn’t_ lie to Dad, Morticia & Gomez treated each other with respect; the Kids were _never_ sassy, Wednesday & Pugsley honored their parents & respected their values. Let’s face it: the Addams’ had more in common with the Waltons than with the Munsters. The Addams were the Goth Waltons. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2008, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079/40 "2008-02-25T23:37:12Z")
[QUOTE=Biffy the Elephant Shrew] _Jamais._ [/QUOTE] _Merci._ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/addams-family-vs-the-munsters/439079.md?page=3)