Movie Musings: Disney and More

The World’s Greatest Frankenstein

When we think of Fred Gwynne, we obviously think “Herman Munster,” which was his most popular role. But have you ever wondered if there was more to him than just that friendly Frankenstein? Fred Gwynne had a life quite far from Herman Munster. He did manage to prove himself a versatile actor, but not until the later years of his career. He had bit, but notable supporting roles in blockbuster Hollywood films (i.e. Ironweed (1987), Fatal Attraction (1987), My Cousin Vinny (1992)). 

In addition to being a very gifted actor, he was also an accomplished artist and children’s book author. He used drawing as a way of escaping the depression of his father passing away when he was very young, and he continued to study art in school as he matured into an adult. He decided to become an actor, however, in college at Harvard University. Although, he began drawing again, as a way of escaping the depression of being typecast as “Herman Munster.” So, drawing is basically what kept him from ever giving up on life, despite the depressions that he suffered as a child and as an adult, and that’s what lead to him becoming a book publisher. His widow, Deborah Flater-Gwynne, was also a book publisher when they met, and that played a huge part in drawing them together as a couple. 

I recently had the good fortune of reading one of his books, which was entitled “The King Who Rained.” It told a funny story about a little girl taking everything her parents said literally which is very similar to my own, personal life. Fred Gwynne based that book on the reactions of his daughter, Madyn, to puns and unusual sights.

Whenever monsters come to life in movies, television, literature, etc., in general, we as an audience, immediately jump to the conclusion that they’re scary and we try to shut our eyes away from the horrifying sight, unless we happen to like horrific stories. But occasionally, there’s an extraordinary man who lies behind the monster, and that’s definitely true of the character of “Herman Munster,” because although Fred Gwynne was not one of Hollywood’s most prolific actors, he managed to be quite extraordinary in the entire history of storytelling. He gave the term Frankenstein’s creature an entirely new meaning by making him friendly, and he wrote books to acknowledge the beauty and the humor of children’s imaginations.