Mockingbird Lane

Mockingbird Lane
Genre	Horror Comedy Drama Fantasy
Created by	Allan Burns Chris Hayward (The Munsters)
Developed by	Bryan Fuller
Written by	Bryan Fuller
Directed by	Bryan Singer
Starring	Jerry O'Connell Portia de Rossi Charity Wakefield Mason Cook Eddie Izzard
Composer(s)	Jim Dooley
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English Spanish
Production
Executive producer(s)	Jack Clements Sara Colleton Bryan Singer Bryan Fuller Livia Hanich Loretta Ramos
Producer(s)	Jason Taylor
Editor(s)	Stuart Bass
Cinematography	Guillermo Navarro
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	39 minutes
Production company(s)	Living Dead Guy Bad Hat Harry Productions Universal Television
Distributor	NBC
Broadcast
Original channel	NBC
Picture format	HDTV
Audio format	Surround
Original airing	October 26, 2012 (2012-10-26)
Chronology
Related shows	The Munsters The Munsters Today
External links
www.nbc.com/mockingbird-lane

Mockingbird Lane is a re-imagining of the 1960s CBS sitcom The Munsters. It was developed for NBC by Dead Like Me and Pushing Daisies creator Bryan Fuller. The pilot episode aired on October 26, 2012, as a Halloween special, with the option for a series order.^[1] The special was viewed by 5.47 million American viewers and gained a 1.5/5 ratings share for adults aged 18-49.^[2]

On December 27, 2012, NBC announced that it would not be taking Mockingbird Lane to series.^[3]

Description

A reboot of The Munsters, it was written and executive produced by Fuller as a one-hour drama with "spectacular visuals." It explored the origins of the Munster family and was darker and edgier, while retaining plenty of humor.^[4][5][6] The costumes and make-up for the characters were heavily toned down to have them more closely resemble humans.^[7]

Cast

Starring

• Jerry O'Connell as Herman Munster, a man made from parts of other people. Unlike Herman in the original series, Herman looks human except for some very obvious scars. He is very intelligent but has a sensitive heart. He loves his family, and to a lesser extent his father-in-law. His heart, the last remaining part from his original body, is dying because he "loves too hard".
• Portia de Rossi as Lily Munster, the elegant matriarch of the Munster family and a vampire. Unlike her father, Lily tries not to attack or manipulate humans. She loves her family very much and only wants them safe.
• Charity Wakefield as Marilyn Munster, Lily's niece, who is a normal human with a dark secret. She is considered the oddball of the family because she looks and acts normal. Her mother tried to eat her, but Grandpa talked her out of it.
• Mason Cook as Eddie Munster, an apparently normal adolescent boy who does not initially know that he is a werewolf. When Herman and Lily are forced to break this news to him, they obtain for him a pet dragon to watch over him during his transformations.
• Eddie Izzard as Grandpa (Sam Dracula), Lily's father, also a vampire. He likes to act like he is the head of the family. He enjoys making wisecracks at Herman's expense. This version of Grandpa is much darker than the character in the original series, exhibiting predatory behavior and a fondness for murder and mind control.

Guest stars

• Cheyenne Jackson as Scoutmaster Steve, a widower and leader of Eddie's scout troop who becomes smitten with Lily. Grandpa plots to kill him so he can feed off his blood and replace Herman's heart; despite Herman's clear protests. Grandpa would get what he want as Steve dies during an accident while visiting.
• Beth Grant as Marie, the paraplegic, busybody neighbor who takes a very keen interest in the strange new family next door.
• John Kassir as Tim, Marie's husband.

Production

NBC confirmed ordering the pilot episode in November 2011^[8] and announced in January 2012 that it would be called Mockingbird Lane, a reference to the Munster family address at 1313 Mockingbird Lane.^[9] It was also reported the costumes and make-up for the characters would be heavily toned down to resemble humans.

On March 20, 2012, former The Riches star Eddie Izzard was announced by NBC as "Grandpa", the first of the prospective series' main roles to be cast.^[10][11] More recently, British actress Charity Wakefield has joined the cast, playing Marilyn Munster, Lily's niece, and Spy Kids: All the Time in the World actor Mason Cook as Eddie Munster.^[12] On June 4, 2012, it was announced that Jerry O'Connell has been cast as family patriarch Herman Munster who series writer-producer Bryan Fuller describes as "essentially a zombie in a constant state of decay."^[13] On June 5, it was announced that Mariana Klaveno had been cast to play his wife Lily, contingent on her being released from her contract on Devious Maids.^[14] However, on June 12, 2012, it was announced that Portia de Rossi would play the role.^[15]

On October 11, 2012, it was announced that the Mockingbird Lane pilot would air on October 26 as a special lead-in to a Halloween-themed episode of Grimm, with the option of a series order should it do well in the ratings.^[1][16] Two months after the premiere, NBC officially passed on the series.^[3]

NBC chief Robert Greenblatt said of their decision to pass on the series: "We just decided that it didn't hold together well enough to yield a series. It looked beautiful and original and creative, but it just all ultimately didn't come together... it just didn't ultimately creatively all work. We felt great about that cast, but we tried to make it not just a sitcom. We tried to make it an hour, which ultimately has more dramatic weight than a half-hour. It's hard to calibrate how much weirdness vs. supernatural vs. family story. I just think we didn’t get the mix right".^[17]

References

External links

• Official website
• Mockingbird Lane at the Internet Movie Database
• Mockingbird Lane at TV.com