'Addams Family' taking high road, 'Munsters' going below the belt

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BY PHILIP POTEMPA ppotempa@nwitimes.com 219.852.4327 | Tuesday, August 05, 2008 | (No comments posted.)

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Yes, it's true

"Daily Variety" has confirmed that cartoonist Charles Addams' ghoulish group "The Addams Family" are heading to New York and the Broadway stage.

Okay, but first, try to follow this thread of character development that has followed this group of "dead heads."

* What was once a popular late 1950s cartoon strip by Addams in "The New Yorker" magazine became a 1964 television series starring John Astin, Carolyn Jones, Jackie Coogan and Ted Cassidy until it was cancelled in 1966.

* Then in 1973, the scary set was resurrected as a Saturday morning animated cartoon, using cartoonist Addams "The New Yorker" artist stylings, but with only Coogan as Uncle Fester and Cassidy as zombie butler Lurch lending their familiar vocal talents, along with a very young Jodie Foster's raspy voice as the Addam's son Pugsley. (Both Astin and Jones did lend their voices to their respective characters, joining Coogan and Cassidy for the pilot episode used in 1972 when cartoon canine Scooby Doo and his gang stumbled upon the Addams Family in an episode of "The Scooby Doo Movies.")

* After the cartoon show was cancelled in 1975, the family seemed destined for eternal deep sleep until, in 1991, a big-screen version by Paramount Studios with Anjelica Huston cast as Morticia and Raul Julia as Gomez and Christina Ricci as spooky youngest Addams' daughter Wednesday.

* Riding the wave of renewed interest, the Addams Family once again returned to Saturday mornings in animated form with new "softer" cartoon stylings for the characters and with Carol Channing voicing Grandma Ma Addams, Astin once again lending his voice as Gomez and confetti-throwing comedian Rip Taylor as Uncle Fester.

That brings us to the latest announcement from "Daily Variety," which has actor Nathan Lane confirmed to read as Gomez and Bebe Neuwirth as Morticia this month during a "closed reading" of a rough outline of the proposed Broadway project, which will be a musical with scare by Andrew Lippa and the book by the same team that did "Jersey Boys," Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice.

Launched by Elephant Eye Theatrical Productions, the stage version is planned to be up and ready for an "out of town" run by the 2009-2010 season before opening in New York. Neither Lane nor Neuwirth is officially signed for a part, but rather, just "testing the water." "Daily Variety" reports Lane is already attached to play the Tom Hanks role in the stage musical adaption of the 2002 film "Catch Me if You Can."

Low blow

While "The Addams Family" has taken the "high road" and headed to Broadway, it's a different story for those rival ripped-off counterparts "The Munsters," who quickly were created by CBS and Universal Studios during the 1964 television season as an answer to ABC's licensing of Charles Addams' characters.

"The Munsters," which also aired from 1962 to 1966, starred Fred Gwynne, Al Lewis, Yvonne De Carlo, Butch Patrick and Pat Priest.

Well, Universal Studios lawyers get ready, because filming has just wrapped on a triple-X porn version of "The Munsters."

"This Ain't the Munsters XXX" is directed by Anton Slayer, and the movie will be released by Hustler Video in time for Halloween.

Slayer even went to great lengths to recreate many of the iconic "Munsters" sets, from the cemetery to Grandpa's laboratory to the Munster family living room.

"I am very pleased with how everything came out from the makeup, costumes and even the acting," Slayer said in a press release announcing the video had finished filming.

"It was a blast to make, and I hope everyone who sees it will like it as much as I do."

The skin flick stars Lee Stone as Herman, Roxy Deville as Lily, Shawna Lenee as Cousin Marilyn, Trent Soluri as Eddie and Gavin Wells as Grandpa.

"The sets, makeup and costumes were so well done that it was truly like spending the day with the Munster Family," said Drew Rosenfeld, creative director of Hustler Video.

"Everyone involved was genuinely excited to be a part of such a cool project."

Hmmm, the whole idea sounds pretty scary to me.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer. He can be reached at ppotempa@nwitimes.com or 219.852.4327.

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