The title piece in this set is a forty-five minute long history of the show that shows how Universal Studios nurtured it and passed it over to CBS where it became the show we all know and love today. It’s interesting to learn that the show was initially going to be a cartoon until the suits decided that live action was the way to go. Casting is covered in quite a bit of detail here, and a lot of analysis centers in on what made the series work and how it has enjoyed popularity decades since new episodes stopped being made. CBS Studio executive Mike Dann shows up here to give his take on the genesis and ongoing appeal of the show as does series’ director Norman Abbot. These two never appeared in front of the camera but they did have a fairly strong influence on the series even if it was from behind the scenes so it’s interesting to see what they have to say about the show’s history and its success. Don Glut (recently the subject of his own documentary, I Was A Teenage Movie Maker and his pal Bob Burns both show up to lend some critical and fan based insight into what made the series tick but it’s the cast interviews that make this as good as it is…Most of the cast members are here (excluding Herman himself, Fred Gwynne, as he had passed away by the time that this documentary was made), interviewed on camera, and they give their take on the time that they spent on the series. All seem quite gracious for the opportunity to stroll down memory lane a bit and talk about their work, and they talk quite kindly about one another and about the late Gwynne as well. Three different woman played Marilyn Munster throughout the relatively brief life of the show and each of these girls shows up here alongside Yvonne De Carlo, Butch Patrick, and crazy Al Lewis. We learn why Beverly Owens left the show so early on in its run and how Fred Gwynne and Al Lewis played off of one another so well both in front of the cameras and in real life. The documentary covers not only the television series but also the movies that were made after it had stopped airing, including Munster, Go Come! and the Gwynne-less Here Come The Munsters in which Edward Hermann plays the part of Herman (it’s just not the same, though he gets points for trying).
