Munster Mansion

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Munster Mansion (a title never used in the series) is the house most associated for its use in the sixties sitcom The Munsters and other uses since then.


Contents

[edit] Construction

The house was built in studio 12 in 1946 for the filming of So Goes My Love. The house was then put in to storage with others from the movie. Then sometime in the 1950's it was reassembled with other houses on the back lot and deemed River Road.

[edit] History

The house received its most famous make-over in 1964 when it was being redressed for the premiere of the sitcom The Munsters. It is rumored that producers spent a 1,000,000 to dress the house. The house was equipped with bare trees, dead leaves and a stone entrance gate. The house was roughed up slightly and finished off with a crooked weathervane vampire-bat weathervane. The house was used for all the exterior shots. The inside scenes were filmed on separate soundstages within the studio. After production of The Munsters in 1966 and After the film Munster, Go Home the house was stripped of its trees gates and other items. In 1981 the house was redressed for the t.v movie The Munsters' Revenge. Around this time the house and other houses on the street were relocated to its current spot Colonial Street. In the late 80's the house had been renovated again and became more modern. The most notable changes were the removal of the center window peak and the tower had been made less dramatic by adding a new wraparound veranda. Soon after this the house fell into a state of disrepair and was falling apart but by 1994 the house had been restored and has been in good shape ever since.

[edit] List of appearances in Film and Television

[edit] Today

The Munster Mansion has been used as a backdrop for many television shows and movies. It's most recent appearance is as one of the main homes on Wisteria Lane on the ABC hit series Desperate Housewives. Over the course of the show a total of four families have established a residence in the home they were: Mr & Mrs Edwin Mullins,Betty Applewhite and her children,Alma Hodge,and Bob Hunter and Lee Hunter. The house has been a center of bad news on Wisteria Lane. The house is a highlight of the Universal Studios Tour. Even though it is no longer the home of the Munsters it is always mentioned on the studio tour because the Munsters have been its most famous residents.

[edit] The Munsters Today

When The Munsters Today a remake of The Munsters came about in 1988 the house could not be used,the producers knew the house was just as important as the characters. So an authentic scale model replica was built. The scale model worked well on the show, and many people didn't notice it wasn't the same house. The garden was decorated with dried oregano. There are some slight differences between the original house and the scale model used for the new show as we approach we see that the gates are now directly in front of the porch as opposed to slightly to the right as on the original show. Also, the gateposts are now dramatically smaller and less bulky, and around the perimeter instead of a wall are yet more posts with spiked fencing in-between for several intervals somewhat similar to what is seen in the 1964 color pilot. Also, there is a small arched basement window that looks down into Grandpa's lab. Today the model can be seen in Universal's new House of Horrors.

[edit] References

  • Cox, Stephen. The Munsters: A Trip down Mockingbird Lane. 2nd. New York, New York: Backstage Books, 2006. The Studio Tour.com, The Munsters Today.co.uk
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