Pop Culture Flashback: The Addams Family Moves In (Sept. 18)

As you know, they’re creepy and they’re kooky, mysterious and spooky. They’re altogether ooky. You know, The Addams Family. Their first TV show aired on this day in 1964.

1964 – Meet the New Neighbors, The Addams Family

The cast of The Addams Family TV show pose for a family picture — John Astin, Jackie Coogan, Ted Cassidy, Blossom Rock, Lisa Loring, Carolyn Jones and Ken Weatherwax in *The Addams Family. (ABC via TVDB)*

Cartoonist Charles Addams created a series of single-paneled cartoons featuring his creation of The Addams Family for The New Yorker magazine beginning in 1938. The cartoons proved to be so popular that a TV series was soon developed for ABC.

This odd family is wealthy with a love for the macabre. They aren’t really aware that they were different from others in the neighborhood. The family consists of Gomez (John Astin) a retired lawyer and his wife Morticia (Carolyn Jones) a lover of the arts. She is very fond of snipping of the heads of roses keeping just the stems with thorns.

Unlike more recent versions of her character, Wednesday (Lisa Loring) is a little girl with a sweet personality. She enjoys playing with her headless Marie Antoinette doll and her pets Homer (a black widow spider) and Lucifer (a lizard). Her brother Pugsley (Ken Weatherwax) spends his time building strange machines. He also enjoys playing with his pet octopus Aristotle.

Uncle Fester (Jackie Coogan) likes to relax on a nice firm mattress…full of nails and blasting things. Grandmama Frump (Blossom Rock) is Morticia’s mother. She is a witch through and through. She spends her free time conjuring up potions and spells or reading others’ fortunes.

The Addams’ help consist of Lurch (Ted Cassidy) who is a super tall and frightening butler and Thing which is a disembodied hand who helps around the house as needed.

The show’s main competition was another family, The Munsters which came on the scene just six days later on CBS.

Inspiration for More Addams Family Projects

The show went off the air in 1966, but The Addams Family’s popularity never really died. The show helped lead the way to more shows and movies based on the macabre family. Hanna-Barbera created two different cartoon series based on the show in 1973 and 1992. Three feature films were released: The Addams Family (1991), The Addams Family Values (1993) and the direct-to-video movie in Addams Family Reunion (1998).

Isaac Ordonez, Luis Guzmán, Jenna Ortega and Catherine Zeta-Jones from the TV series "Wednesday" — Isaac Ordonez, Luis Guzmán, Jenna Ortega and Catherine Zeta-Jones in *Wednesday (Netflix)*

In 2019, MGM released a brand new full-length animated film which was pretty good followed by a sequel two years later which wasn’t. Then in 2022, Jenna Ortega starred in a new Netflix show centering on the character of Wednesday Addams, but all of the Addams have supporting roles for the series Wednesday including Luis Guzman (Gomez), Catherine Zeta-Jones (Morticia) and Isaac Ordonez (Pugsley).

The cast from "WKRP in Cincinnati" — Richard Sanders, Jan Smithers, Rim Reid, Gordon Jump, Frank Bonner, Howard Hesseman, Loni Anderson and Gary Sandy in *WKRP in Cincinnati. (CBS via TVDB)*

1978 – ‘WKRP in Cincinnati’ Hits the Airwaves

The office sitcom centered on the staff of a little radio station known as WKRP (in Cincinnati) premiered in 1978. Created by Hugh Wilson, WKRP was actually inspired by Wilson’s days working for the advertising sales department of radio station WQXI in Atlanta, Georgia. Many of the characters and even some of the stunts (including the infamous turkey drop Thanksgiving episode) were based on real people and events.

The cast of WKRP included program pirector Andy Travis (Gary Sandy), DJ Dr. Johnny Fever (Howard Hesseman), general manager Arthur Carlson (Gordon Jump), receptionist Jennifer Marlowe (Loni Anderson), DJ Venus Flytrap (Tim Reid), station ingenue Bailey Quarters (Jan Smithers), news reporter Les Nessman (Richard Sanders) and sales manager Herb Tarlek (Frank Bonner). During its four-year run, WKRP received 10 Emmy Award nominations but only won one for videotape editing.

When the show went into syndication, it was almost more popular than its first run. Because of this, a new version of the show, The New WKRP in Cincinnati ran in syndication from 1991 to 1993 starring Jump, Sanders and Bonner who all reprised their roles. Hesseman, Reid and Anderson also appeared a few times as guest stars.

SATURDAY MORNING TV

Remember watching your favorite cartoons with a bowl of cold cereal? Here are some that began airing on this day. How many do you remember?

1964 – Jonny Goes on a Quest

Action scene from Jonny Quest — *Jonny Quest (TVDB)*

Created and designed by comic book artist Doug Wildey, Jonny Quest was inspired by radio serials. As a Hanna-Barbera production, it featured more a more realistic art form and a more serious tone overall.

The main cast featured 11-year-old Jonny Quest, his scientific father Dr. Benton C. Quest, his adopted brother Hadji Singh, special agent Roger T. “Race” Bannon and Bandit, Jonny’s bulldog.

Jonny Quest debuted on prime time in 1964 on ABC. Though a ratings hit, the show was expensive to produce and was cancelled after just one season. It was shown on Saturday mornings on CBS from 1967 to 1970. In the mid 1980’s, 13 new episodes were produced and were shown along with the originals as part of the syndicated The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera.

In 1993, USA Network presented the feature-length movie Johnny’s Golden Quest and in 1997, the show got a makeover as The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest with Jonny and Hadji (and their friend Jessie) as older teenagers which aired on Cartoon Network, TBS and TNT.

Artwork for The Gary Coleman Show — *(TVDB)*

1982: The Gary Coleman Show

Diff’rent Strokes star Gary Coleman starred in the made-for-TV movie, The Kid with the Broken Halo for NBC where he played an apprentice angel sent to help people. Hanna-Barbera created The Gary Coleman Show which was based on the movie.

Artwork for Gilligan's Planet — *(TVDB)*

1982: Gilligan’s Planet

Filmation’s Gilligan’s Planet is a spin-off of The New Adventures of Gilligan cartoon, which was based on the sitcom, Gilligan’s Island. The castaways made it off the island with a rocket that the Professor built only to get stranded in outer space.

1993: Sonic the Hedgehog

This Dic Productions cartoon series follows the video game character and his group of Freedom Fighters in battle to free their home world, from Dr. Robotnik. The ABC show was more serious than some kids were used to and was lightened up for season 2.

Artwork for "Cadillacs and Dinosaurs" — *(TVDB)*

1993: Cadillacs and Dinosaurs

Set in the year 2627, Mark Schultz’s Cadillacs and Dinosaurs is based on Schult’s comic book series, Xenozoic Tales. The series made by De Souza Productions for CBS was more mature with ecological and political themes.

Other TV Show That Debuted on This Day:

1982: Pandamonium; Meatballs and Spaghetti; Shirt Tales; The Incredible Hulk and the Amazing Spider-Man
1993: Tales from the Cryptkeeper; All-New Dennis the Menace; Marsupilami; Biker Mice from Mars
1999: Beast Machines: Transformers

1965 – This Jeannie is Out of the Bottle

Barbara Eden has her arms around Larry Hagman's neck from "I Dream of Jeannie" — Barbara Eden and Larry Hagman in *I Dream of Jeannie (NBC via TVDB)*

In 1964, Bewitched was the #2 TV show. Wanting a similar piece of the pie, NBC added the sitcom I Dream of Jeannie to their lineup the following year. The show starred Barbara Eden (as Jeannie the genie) and Larry Hagman (as Tony Nelson who released the genie from her bottle). Creator Sidney Sheldon didn’t want a blond to play the role of Jeannie since Elizabeth Montgomery (from Bewitched) was a blond, but nobody read the role as he intended except for Eden. Ironically, I Dream of Jeannie was produced by Screen Gems who also produced Bewitched.

I Dream of Jeannie was inspired by the movie The Brass Bottle which also starred Barbara Eden, but as a mortal. It was Burl Ives who played the genie in that movie! The series begins with Captain Tony Nelson coming down in Stardust One, a one-man capsule, and landing on a desert island in the South Pacific. He finds an odd bottle, rubs it, removes the stopper and then is shocked to find a genie who has been trapped inside for 2,000 years.

Like Samantha from Bewitched who wiggles her nose when working magic, Jeannie crosses her arms and blinks to grant wishes. She makes a helicopter magically appear to rescue Tony who is grateful and tells her that she is free. But she manages to sneak inside his duffle bag and hitches a ride to his home instead. Once home, she “serves” her “master” and raises eyebrows from Tony’s neighbors and co-workers thinking that the two are shacking up.

The show also starred Bill Daily as Tony’s friend (who is the only one who knows about Jeannie’s secret identity) and Hayden Rorke as Colonel Alfred Bellows (Tony’s boss who conveniently is also a psychiatrist).

The show was set in Cape Kennedy, Florida but filmed in California. However, one street in Cocoa Beach was dedicated as “I Dream of Jeannie Lane” in 1996.

NBC Didn’t Have a Lot of Faith in the Series

Sheldon wanted the first season to be filmed in color, but NBC didn’t want to pay for the extra expense as they didn’t have much hope that the show would last very long. Sheldon even went as far as offering to pay the extra $400 needed per episode to make the show in color, but was told, “Sidney, don’t throw your money away.” So, it became one of two shows that debuted that year in black-in-white while all of NBC’s other shows were in color. (The show was shot in color the following year.)

Though never a ratings winner, Jeannie stayed on the air for five years and was followed by two reunion films in 1985 and 1991. Hagman did not appear in either of those movies, but Eden appeared in five episodes of Hagman’s later series, Dallas. In 1991 Eden played Lee Ann De Le Vega, a woman from J.R.’s past wanting revenge.

1965 – Time to ‘Get Smart’

Barbara Feldon and Don Adams standing back-to-back in "Get Smart" — Barbara Feldon and Don Adams in *Get Smart (NBC via TVDB)*

It was on this day in 1965 that the hit spy comedy TV series, Get Smart premiered on NBC. Created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, the series starred Don Adams as Max, inept spy Agent 86 who was aided by the much smarter Agent 99 (played by Barbara Feldon) who always gave the credit of their success to Max. The two were under the leadership of “Chief” played by Edward Platt and were always at tasked with stopping the evil organization, KAOS.

It is said that Brooks and Henry were asked to create a show based on two of the most popular things in the entertainment world at the time: James Bond and Inspector Clouseau. The show ran for five years (with the fifth airing on CBS) and won seven Emmy Awards including Outstanding Comedy Series (1968 and 1969) and Outstanding Continued Performance by an Actor in a Comedy (Don Adams in 1967, 1968 and 1969) along with two Golden Globes. Despite its successes though, it wasn’t a huge ratings winner.

Years later, Adams reprised the role (sans Feldon) for the theatrical movie, The Nude Bomb in 1980. ABC also aired the made-for-TV movie, Get Smart, Again! (with Feldon) In 1989. In 1995, the show became a revival series on FOX that starred Adams, Feldon and Andy Dick as their son, Zack, but the fun didn’t last long.

In 2008, Get Smart was re-imagined with a new theatrical release that starred Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway. A sequel was planned but never materialized. Some say that they “missed it by that much.”