Barbara Colyton (aka Estelle Barbara Barb), acquired some of the rights to her husband
Charles Addams'
Addams Family cartoons, after their divorce in the mid’60s. In 1977, Colyton approached David Levy who created the
1960s TV series about utilizing the characters on TV. After unsuccessfully pitching the revival to all three television networks, Levy successfully sold the pitch to producer
Charles Fries who through his contract with
NBC would produce a
TV movie. Upon securing the rights, Fries believed they had secured all rights to
The Addams Family but a week and a half before production was slated to begin they learned that certain elements developed for the TV series belong to series rights holder
Filmways and were not part of the rights under control by Colyton and Levy.
Blossom Rock, who had originally portrayed Grandmama, was ill at the time of the production (she died in January 1978, nearly three months after this special aired), causing her role to be given to
Jane Rose.
Margaret Hamilton, who had portrayed Mother Frump, declined to appear in the film; her role was played by
Elvia Allman. Character actors
Parley Baer and
Vito Scotti, who both had recurring roles in the original series, also appeared in the film, but as different characters than those they had portrayed originally. The film was shot over the course of 12 days and often needed to work around
John Astin's schedule as he was also shooting
Operation Petticoat at the time. The house in which the movie was shot had previously been used to shoot
Ben. ==Home media==