Trivia: The son of a Wall Street broker, towering (6'5") actor Fred Gwynne was born sucking on the proverbial silver spoon. Gwynne attended the prestigious Groton prep school, where he made his acting bow in a student production of Henry V. He then attended Harvard, where he studying drawing with artist R.S. Merryman and was active in dramatics and as a staffer of the Harvard Crimson. Upon graduation, Gwynne played Shakespeare with the Cambridge repertory before heading to New York City. He appeared in such Broadway plays as Mrs. McThing and was cast in a bit role in the Oscar-winning film On the Waterfront, but for many years his principal source of income was as a book illustrator and commercial artist (his first published work was titled The Best in Show). In 1961, Gwynne was co-starring in the Broadway musical Irma La Douce when TV producer/writer Nat Hiken, who'd cast Gwynne in a handful of guest roles on the 1950s sitcom Sgt. Bilko, hired the actor to play NYPD officer Francis Muldoon on the weekly comedy Car 54, Where are You? A year after the series' cancellation, Gwynne was starred in his most famous TV role: bolt-necked, soft-hearted Herman Munster in The Munsters (1964-66). Afterwards, Gwynne distanced himself from television for the most part. In the 1970s and 1980s, he distinguished himself on Broadway in powerful dramatic roles, often playing autocratic Southerners (e.g. Big Daddy in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and an elderly Klansman in Texas Trilogy). Fred Gwynne also returned to films during this period, playing key roles in such major productions as The Cotton Club (1984) and Shadows and Fog (1992); he died of pancreatic cancer shortly after completing his critically acclaimed role of the judge in My Cousin Vinny (1993).

Trivia: Born Peggy Yvonne Middleton, Yvonne De Carlo began studying dance in childhood, and in her teens appeared in nightclubs and on-stage. She debuted onscreen in 1942, going on to a number of secondary roles. Finally she was cast in the title role of Salome -- Where She Danced (1945) and played leads in The Song of Scheherazade and Slave Girl (both 1947), after which she was typecast as an Arabian Nights-type temptress in harem attire; she also appeared frequently in Westerns, and occasionally showed talent in comedies. De Carlo was a co-star of the '60s TV sitcom The Munsters. In 1971 she appeared on Broadway in the musical Follies. She married and divorced stuntman and actor Robert Morgan. She continued appearing in occasional films through the '90s and authored Yvonne: An Autobiography (1987). De Carlo died of unspecified causes at age 84 on January 8, 2007.

Trivia: There is more to character actor Al Lewis than meets the eye. Best known to baby boomers for playing the roles of Officer Schnauzer in Car 54 Where Are You? and Grandpa in The Munsters, he holds a doctorate in child psychology from Columbia University, has penned two children's books, produced a kid-oriented home video, and once hosted a series of Saturday morning television shows on WTBS. He has also been a circus performer, a school teacher, and a vaudevillian. Lewis became an actor after earning his degree, teaching, and writing his books. He studied with the Paul Mann Actor's Workshop in New York. On television, he first appeared in "Trouble-In-Law" on The U.S. Steel Hour (1959). The following year, Lewis appeared in the feature film Naked City and then was cast opposite Fred Gwynne in Car 54, Where Are You? The show ran until 1963 and within a year, he was playing the vampiric Grandpa against Gwynne's Frankenstein, Herman Munster. Though The Munsters lasted two years, it has developed a cult following and has re-aired endlessly in syndication and spawned a feature-length sequel, Munster Go Home (1964), and a made-for-TV reunion movie, Munster's Revenge (1981). In 1994, he reprised his role as Schnauzer for the TV-movie version of Car 54 Where Are You? Lewis has gone on to continue making occasional guest appearances on television and a sporadic movie career. In addition to his other endeavors, Lewis has been a high school basketball scout and the owner of a restaurant in New York.

Trivia: After getting out of reform school, he took up boxing at age 12; one of his early coaches was future screen star George Raft. He won the New York State heavyweight amateur title, then turned professional; for four years in the early '30s he held the light-heavyweight world championship. Damon Runyon, then a sportswriter, nicknamed him "Slapsie" on account of the slapping style of his punches. In the mid '30s he began appearing as a Runyonesque comedic character actor in Hollywood films, and was fairly busy onscreen for about a decade; after 1945 his film work was intermittent. He usually played dim-witted, punchdrunk characters with a tendency toward malapropisms.

Trivia: Avery was a versatile American character actor onscreen from 1956, beginning with The Harder They Fall.

Trivia: Bald-domed, prominently chinned American character actor Joe Devlin was seen in bits in major films, and as a less-costly Jack Oakie type in minor pictures. Devlin usually played two-bit crooks and sarcastic tradesmen in his 1940s appearances. The actor's uncanny resemblance to Benito Mussolini resulted in numerous "shock of recognition" cameos during the war years, as well as full-fledged Mussolini imitations in two Hal Roach "streamliners," The Devil With Hitler (1942) and That Nazty Nuisance (1943). In 1950, Joe Devlin was cast as Sam Catchem in a TV series based on Chester Gould's comic-strip cop Dick Tracy.

Trivia: First acting gig was a Kellogg's commercial in 1960. Formed a band called Eddie and the Monsters, who released a single in 1983, recalling his role as Eddie (who looked like a wolf boy) on the 1964-66 sitcom, The Munsters. "Whatever Happened to Eddie?" was followed, in 2007, by another song, "It's Only Halloween." Took part in a motorcycling event in Carthage, NY, in 2010 to benefit the blind. Has frequently appeared at Halloween events in his Eddie Munster costume.

Trivia: American actor Vince Williams had a brief but promising career that was cut short by cancer. He is best known for his appearances on the soap operas The Guiding Light, where he played Hampton Speakes, and Another World as Dustin Carter. Before becoming an actor, Williams earned a B.A. from Northwestern State University of Louisiana and studied pre-law at Southern University in Baton Rouge. While in college, Williams attended a few speech and drama courses and decided to become a professional actor. On Broadway, he appeared opposite Billy Dee Williams and James Earl Jones in Fences. In addition to acting, Williams was also involved with music and just before he died, was in the process of recording an album with his "Afrazz" (a blend of Haitian, African, and Latin music) band, Company of One.