Upon learning the news that Yvonne De Carlo would take over the role of Lily Munster, both Fred Gwynne and Al Lewis weren’t happy with it at all. The two actors had no clue who De Carlo was as an actress and person except for her status as one of Hollywood’s glamor queens.
Gwynne and Lewis were convinced that De Carlo would not be able to complement their distinct style of acting, which revolved more on comedy as opposed to drama. Additionally, they were troubled with the prospect that the American-Canadian actress might belittle them as she was widely recognized as a movie star during the time. Obviously, all of their worries were put to rest following her inclusion as a staple member of the show’s cast
What Happened to The Pilot Episode?
Only a handful of people are truly aware of the existence of a pilot episode of "The Munsters." You will find plenty of fascinating facts surrounding the show, and there are plenty of distinctions between the pilot version and the actual show. First off, the pilot version was filmed in color and was never broadcasted on TV.
While the producers of "The Munsters" ultimately opted to film the show in black and white to cut costs, it eventually worked out for the best. Surprisingly, the two characters of Ernest and Lily were portrayed by different actors instead of Fred Gwynne and Yvonne De Carlo, and Lily’s first name was Phoebe in the show’s pilot episode.
Behind the Munster Characters
Universal Television held full ownership of "The Munsters," which meant that Universal Studios enjoyed the same exclusive rights to the show. During that time, Universal Studios also had ownership rights of many iconic monsters in movies, including "Dracula," "Wolf Man," and "Frankenstein." The management of CBS recognized an advantage that they enjoyed over "The Addams Family," which was the ability to exploit Universal Studios’ monsters without any cost.
With that being said, "The Munsters" always topped "The Addams Family" in viewership numbers since their monster characters were more familiar to the general audience, as opposed to the latter, which had to create their own monsters from scratch.
Gwynne's Makeup Journey
Special effects makeup has brought on some of the most iconic characters in pop culture, like the Grinch, Mrs. Doubtfire, and Norbit. There is so much that goes into creating such a distinct face and body, and the work done on Fred Gwynne was no different.
Getting into character meant that Gwynne's had to wear foam-rubber paddings under his outer suit to create his huge form. All this padding meant that he'd sweat—a lot. In fact, he has even lost some weight due to all this sweating. In order to hydrate, he would consume insane amounts of lemonade while on set.
Beverley Owen Then
Marilyn Munster resided with the Munster family for the entire duration of the show for reasons that were never really explained in clarity. Marilyn’s vampire parents were revealed to have hailed from Transylvania. For the rest of the Munsters, though, her “typical” appearance was brought about by some type of horrible condition.
In reality, Beverley Owen was only able to portray the character of Marilyn Munster from episodes 1 to 13. After she left the TV series, Owen quit acting entirely. The American actress was cut off from "The Munsters" following a prolonged depression after she and her boyfriend broke up. Owen just couldn’t stop crying during the filming of the show, resulting in interruptions during its production.