TV got kind of weird in the fall of 1964

In the fall of 1964, the Frankenstein monster became family man Herman Munster…and Count Dracula became “Grandpa.”  “The Munsters” hit CBS the same September that ABC brought us another unusual family, “The Addams Family.” 
 
The rush to put wacky characters on weekly TV may have started in ’63, with the success of “My Favorite Martian.”  The producers of that show came back the next year with “My Living Doll.”  That comedy was about a top-secret government invention…a beautiful girl robot named Rhoda, played by Julie Newmar.  The show didn’t last long, which was good for Newmar, who was then free to play Catwoman on ABC’s “Batman.”  
 
Samantha Stephens turned herself into a cat on the opening credits of “Bewitched”…the biggest new hit of the ’64 season, #2 in the ratings only behind “Bonanza.”  At number 3…”Gomer Pyle, USMC,” as Jim Nabors took Gomer from Mayberry to the Marines.
 
And Saturday nights on CBS, just after Jackie Gleason, “Gilligan’s Island” began a 3-year tour in prime-time…on the tube in 1964, yesterday in La Crosse.