Charles Addams Born: Jan. 6, 1912 Died: Sept. 28, 1988 Charles Addams first appearance in The New Yorker Magazine in 1932. He quickly became a regular, and by 1935 his cartoons had evolved into his immediately recognizable style. His darkly comedic visions of death and the macabre lasted until 1989, and spawned The Addams Family television show [1964-1966] and a more recently two movies, in 1991 and 1993. Charles Addams believed; '...if the cartoon needed a caption, he felt he had failed in some way, even if the caption was brilliant' Charles Addams was born in Jan. 6, 1912 and died Sept. 28, 1988. He passed away in an appropriately strange way. He was an enthusiast of fast sports cars. After coming back from a trip, he parked in front of his Manhattan apt. building and died while sitting behind the wheel of the car. The Addams Family John Astin and Carolyn Jones starred in the TV show,The Addams Family, based on the cartoons of Charles Addams. Unlike The Munsters, essentially a straight-forward 'Stupid Dad comedy', which also premiered in the same year. Later numerous cartoons featuring the trappings of horror that would follow the theme established by these series. The Addams Family was a truly macabre program, maintaining the essential dignity of its characters in their naïve interactions with the outside world. It contained sixty-four episodes, running in American prime-time from 1964 until September 1966. A made for TV movie, "Halloween with the New Addams Family." was broadcast Oct. 30, 1977. The TV movie reunited John Astin, Carolyn Jones, Jackie Coogan, Ted Cassidy, Lisa Loring and Ken Weatherwax. The Addams Family house also appeared in the horror film "Ben". A guest appearance on Scooby-Doo lead to an animated series between 1973 and 1975. The series featured the voices of Jackie Coogan, Ted Cassidy and a young Jodie Foster as Pugsley. The characters were revived in 1991 and 1993 with the movies "The Addams Family" and "Addams Family Values". Both films starred Raul Julia and Anjelica Huston. The films were directed by Barry Sonnenfield. They were purportedly based on the original cartoons and not the TV show, but there is some disagreement. Charles Addams Books: The World of Charles Addams Author: Charles Addams (Estate, Tee Addams), Alfred A. Knopf Inc, New York, First Printing October 31, 1991. ISBN 0-394-58822-3. Creature Comforts Author: Charles Addams published 1981. Favorite Haunts Author: Charles Addams published in 1976 by Simon and Schuster. My Crowd Author: Charles Addams published 1970. (Reprinted in 1991 with a cover depicting the movie cast.) The Groaning Board Author: Charles Addams published 1964. Black Maria Author: Charles Addams published 1960. Nightcrawlers Author: Charles Addams published 1957 by Simon and Schuster. Homebodies Author: Charles Addams published 1954. Monster Rally Author: Charles Addams published 1950 by Simon and Schuster. Addams and Evil Author: Charles Addams published 1947. Drawn and Quartered Author: Charles Addams published 1942. The Dear Dead Boys Author: Charles Addams published unknown. (Not listed in The World of Chas Addams) Other Books: The Addams Chronicles, Author: Stephen Cox, published 1991 by Harper Perennial, New York. An Unofficial visit with the Addams Family Author: James Van Hise, published 1991 by Pioneer Books, Inc. (Also known as "The Addams Family Revealed.") The Addams Family Author: Elizabeth Faucher, published 1991 by Scholastic Inc. ISBN 0-590-45541-9 TV and Movies: The Addams Family (TV series, 1964 - 1966) Animated Cartoon The Addams Family (1973 - 1975) The Addams Family Movie 1991 Director: Barry Sonnenfield. © Paramount Pictures. Addams Family Values (Sequel of) the Addams Family 1993 Director: Barry Sonnenfield. © Paramount Pictures. The copyright holders of the TV series: Copyright © 1964 Filmways Television Productions, Inc. Copyright © 1964 (Dist.) Worldvision Home Video, Inc. Who's who? Cast Members: John Astin as Gomez Addams Carolyn Jones as Morticia Addams Jackie Coogan as Fester Addams Blossom Rock as Grandmama Ken Weatherwax as Pugsley Addams Lisa Loring as Wednesday Addams Ted Cassidy as Lurch Felix Silla as Cousin Itt Who played Thing? Thing, as I was told, was Ted Cassidy's hand. How many episodes were made? 64 THE LYRICS! They're creepy and they're kookey Mysterious and spookey They're oft together hookey The Addams Family The house is a museum When people come to see'em They really are a scre'am The Addams Family Neat Sweet Petite So get a witch's shawl on A broomstick you can crawl on We're going to pay a call on The Addams Family