Grandpa (The Munsters)
Encyclopedia
Sam Dracula, Count of Transylvania (known as "Grandpa"), is a fictional character
in the CBS
sitcom The Munsters
, originally played by Al Lewis. The doting, irritable, and sarcastic father of Lily Munster
, Grandpa is an undead
vampire
. The role was later played by Howard Morton
in the 1980s television series The Munsters Today
.
, King Arthur
, Richard the Lionheart and Jack the Ripper
. He describes having been married many times, and although his wives are all dead, he still keeps in touch with them.
His identity as Count Dracula
is also alluded to in the series. For example, in the episode "The Musician", Mr. Gateman refers to him as "Count Dracula" when he comes to dinner.
in the cellar
of the house, and often refers to "going down to the lab." The potions and magic spells he devises there are central to many of the show's stories. Many of his inventions are less than successful, but he never stops thinking up new ones.
Grandpa can transform himself into a wolf or a bat, as per Bram Stoker
's Dracula
. In "Herman's Sorority Caper" and Munster, Go Home!
it is revealed that he takes special pills to turn himself into these creatures.
Grandpa has an extremely sarcastic personality, and often insults his son-in-law Herman. Despite this, Grandpa and Herman are quite close; in one episode, Lily says that if not for Herman, Grandpa would be "living in a cave picking fleas out of his wings". Most of the Munsters episodes revolve around the zany schemes Grandpa and Herman concoct, which either end successfully or result in Lily scolding the two for their failure.
Grandpa has a pet bat named Igor who "hangs around" in Grandpa's lab.
Grandpa doesn't always display the traits that are commonly associated with vampires. For example, in one episode he looks in the mirror and casts a reflection. Traditionally, vampires do not cast reflections. However, a running gag on the show is Grandpa's attempts to bite someone on the arm which usually end in failure. Instead, Grandpa is depicted as a goofish yet loveable mad scientist.
, Grandpa's name was Vladimir Dracula (reflecting Vladislav Dracula
).
In an episode of The Simpsons
, when Marge Simpson
exclaims that she can see "grandpa", Homer Simpson
responds expectantly "Grandpa Munster?", only to be disappointingly told "no, Grandpa Simpson". In the intro of a "Treehouse of Horror
" episode, Grandpa was parodied as the similar character.
In 1987, Al Lewis reprised the character as the host of TBS's Super Scary Saturday movie. The program aired each Saturday at noon from October of 1987 to the fall of 1989. The name "Munsters" was never referred to in the show or its promotion and Lewis's character was simply referred to as "Grandpa".
Atari licensed the likeness of Al Lewis for the video game Midnight Mutants
. However, as with the "Super Scary Saturday" movie, the name "Munster" does not appear anywhere in the game.
Democratic Senator (MI) Carl Levin
bears some resemblance to Al Lewis, which inspired Jon Stewart
of The Daily Show
to jokingly refer to Sen. Levin as "Grandpa Munster".
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
sitcom The Munsters
The Munsters
The Munsters is a 1960s American family television sitcom depicting the home life of a family of monsters. It starred Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster and Yvonne De Carlo as his wife, Lily Munster. The series was a satire of both traditional monster movies and popular family entertainment of the era,...
, originally played by Al Lewis. The doting, irritable, and sarcastic father of Lily Munster
Lily Munster
Lily Munster, Countess of Shroudshire , is a fictional character in the CBS sitcom The Munsters, originally played by Yvonne De Carlo. The matriarch of the Munster household, Lily is an undead vampire. Her character resembles Vampira...
, Grandpa is an undead
Undead
Undead is a collective name for fictional, mythological, or legendary beings that are deceased and yet behave as if alive. Undead may be incorporeal, such as ghosts, or corporeal, such as vampires and zombies...
vampire
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
. The role was later played by Howard Morton
Howard Morton
Howard Morton was an American actor.A tall man with comedic talent, Morton appeared as Dolph Sweet's doltish police subordinate on Gimme a Break! for five seasons and appeared in many other TV shows and films...
in the 1980s television series The Munsters Today
The Munsters Today
The Munsters Today is an American sitcom that aired in syndication from 1988 to 1991. The series served as a sequel to the 1960s sitcom The Munsters.-Production:...
.
Origins
A running gag in the television series is his extreme age - his car, the DRAG-U-LA bearing his gravestone reading "born 1367–?" - and he talks of having personally known various figures through history, including NeroNero
Nero , was Roman Emperor from 54 to 68, and the last in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his great-uncle Claudius to become his heir and successor, and succeeded to the throne in 54 following Claudius' death....
, King Arthur
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
, Richard the Lionheart and Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper
"Jack the Ripper" is the best-known name given to an unidentified serial killer who was active in the largely impoverished areas in and around the Whitechapel district of London in 1888. The name originated in a letter, written by someone claiming to be the murderer, that was disseminated in the...
. He describes having been married many times, and although his wives are all dead, he still keeps in touch with them.
His identity as Count Dracula
Count Dracula
Count Dracula is a fictional character, the titular antagonist of Bram Stoker's 1897 Gothic horror novel Dracula and archetypal vampire. Some aspects of his character have been inspired by the 15th century Romanian general and Wallachian Prince Vlad III the Impaler...
is also alluded to in the series. For example, in the episode "The Musician", Mr. Gateman refers to him as "Count Dracula" when he comes to dinner.
Description
Grandpa keeps a laboratoryLaboratory
A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
in the cellar
Basement
__FORCETOC__A basement is one or more floors of a building that are either completely or partially below the ground floor. Basements are typically used as a utility space for a building where such items as the furnace, water heater, breaker panel or fuse box, car park, and air-conditioning system...
of the house, and often refers to "going down to the lab." The potions and magic spells he devises there are central to many of the show's stories. Many of his inventions are less than successful, but he never stops thinking up new ones.
Grandpa can transform himself into a wolf or a bat, as per Bram Stoker
Bram Stoker
Abraham "Bram" Stoker was an Irish novelist and short story writer, best known today for his 1897 Gothic novel Dracula...
's Dracula
Dracula
Dracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker.Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to relocate from Transylvania to England, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor...
. In "Herman's Sorority Caper" and Munster, Go Home!
Munster, Go Home!
Munster, Go Home! is a 1966 American film based on the hit 1960s family television sitcom The Munsters. It was directed by Earl Bellamy, who also directed a number of episodes in the series...
it is revealed that he takes special pills to turn himself into these creatures.
Grandpa has an extremely sarcastic personality, and often insults his son-in-law Herman. Despite this, Grandpa and Herman are quite close; in one episode, Lily says that if not for Herman, Grandpa would be "living in a cave picking fleas out of his wings". Most of the Munsters episodes revolve around the zany schemes Grandpa and Herman concoct, which either end successfully or result in Lily scolding the two for their failure.
Grandpa has a pet bat named Igor who "hangs around" in Grandpa's lab.
Grandpa doesn't always display the traits that are commonly associated with vampires. For example, in one episode he looks in the mirror and casts a reflection. Traditionally, vampires do not cast reflections. However, a running gag on the show is Grandpa's attempts to bite someone on the arm which usually end in failure. Instead, Grandpa is depicted as a goofish yet loveable mad scientist.
Other media; cultural references
In The Munsters TodayThe Munsters Today
The Munsters Today is an American sitcom that aired in syndication from 1988 to 1991. The series served as a sequel to the 1960s sitcom The Munsters.-Production:...
, Grandpa's name was Vladimir Dracula (reflecting Vladislav Dracula
Vlad III the Impaler
Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia , also known by his patronymic Dracula , and posthumously dubbed Vlad the Impaler , was a three-time Voivode of Wallachia, ruling mainly from 1456 to 1462, the period of the incipient Ottoman conquest of the Balkans...
).
In an episode of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
, when Marge Simpson
Marge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
exclaims that she can see "grandpa", Homer Simpson
Homer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
responds expectantly "Grandpa Munster?", only to be disappointingly told "no, Grandpa Simpson". In the intro of a "Treehouse of Horror
Treehouse of Horror
"Treehouse of Horror" is the third episode of The Simpsons second season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 25, 1990. The episode was inspired by 1950s horror comics, and begins with a disclaimer that it may be too scary for children. It is the first of a...
" episode, Grandpa was parodied as the similar character.
In 1987, Al Lewis reprised the character as the host of TBS's Super Scary Saturday movie. The program aired each Saturday at noon from October of 1987 to the fall of 1989. The name "Munsters" was never referred to in the show or its promotion and Lewis's character was simply referred to as "Grandpa".
Atari licensed the likeness of Al Lewis for the video game Midnight Mutants
Midnight Mutants
Midnight Mutants is an action/adventure video game for the Atari 7800 prosystem, programmed by Radioactive Software and published by Atari Corporation in 1990...
. However, as with the "Super Scary Saturday" movie, the name "Munster" does not appear anywhere in the game.
Democratic Senator (MI) Carl Levin
Carl Levin
Carl Milton Levin is a Jewish-American United States Senator from Michigan, serving since 1979. He is the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
bears some resemblance to Al Lewis, which inspired Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart is an American political satirist, writer, television host, actor, media critic and stand-up comedian...
of The Daily Show
The Daily Show
The Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
to jokingly refer to Sen. Levin as "Grandpa Munster".