Al Lewis

Also Known As: Albert Lewis

Biography: An American character actor best known for his role as Count Dracula lookalike "Grandpa", opposite Fred Gwynne's and Yvonne De Carlo's characters on the CBS television series The Munsters from 1964 to 1966 and its subsequent film versions. Later in life, he was also a restaurant owner, political candidate, and radio broadcaster. His acting career begins the well-documented portion of his life. He worked in burlesque and vaudeville theaters, then on Broadway in the dramas The Night Circus (1958) and One More River (1960) and as the character Moe Shtarker in the musical comedy Do Re Mi (1962). His earliest television work includes appearances on the Beverly Garland crime drama Decoy and The Phil Silvers Show. From 1959–63, he appeared in four episodes of Naked City. Lewis' first well-known television role was as Officer Leo Schnauser on the NBC sitcom Car 54, Where Are You? from 1961–63, also starring Fred Gwynne (Lewis reprised the role in the 1994 movie of the same name). In the series, Lewis first played Al Spencer the Auto Body Man in two early first-season episodes before landing the more familiar role of Officer Schnauser. But he is best remembered as "Grandpa" on The Munsters, which ran on CBS from 1964–66. In 1967, Lewis played the part of Zalto the wizard in the Lost in Space episode, Rocket to Earth. His first role in a movie was as Machine Gun Manny in Pretty Boy Floyd (1960). He had small roles in The World of Henry Orient (1964), They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969), They Might Be Giants (1971). He appeared as Hanging Judge Harrison in Used Cars (1980) and had a minor role in Married to the Mob (1988). His last film role was in Night Terror (2002). Lewis was a recurring guest on The Howard Stern Show. In 1987, during a "Howard Stern Freedom Rally" against the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that was broadcast live, Lewis repeatedly shouted "F*** the FCC!" until Stern was able to take the microphone away from him. Stern and the station were not punished for Lewis' comments. Unlike some actors, Lewis did not mind being typecast. He enjoyed acting out his "Grandpa" character—in the original costume—and got a surprising amount of mileage from such a short-lived role. "Why not?" he said. "It pays the bills." In 1991, he appeared as Grandpa Munster in an episode of Hi Honey, I'm Home on ABC. In 1991, he appeared in a low-budget New Zealand family movie called Grampire (My Grandpa Is a Vampire in the U.S. version), wearing much the same costume as he did in The Munsters. From 1987–89, Lewis hosted Super Scary Saturday on TBS in his Grandpa Munster outfit. This would later be parodied in Gremlins 2: The New Batch with the character of "Grandpa Fred" (Robert Prosky). [Biography from Wikipedia]

Department: Acting

Place of Birth: New York City, New York, USA

Birthday: April 30, 1923

Deathday: February 03, 2006

Adult: No

Gender: Male

Popularity:

1.95%

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Known For:

Ring of Passion
The Munsters' Revenge
The Night Strangler
Goodbye, America
The Mini-Munsters
They Shoot Horses, Don't They?
Munster, Go Home!
Porn Star: The Legend of Ron Jeremy
My Grandpa Is a Vampire
Comic Cabby
Married to the Mob
They Might Be Giants
The World of Henry Orient
Car 54, Where Are You?
Here Come the Munsters
Midnight Blue, Vol. 3: Celebrities Edition
Fast Money
Death Wish
Auto-Tune the Munsters: A Rock Opera
Save the Dog!
Fright House
Used Cars
Coney Island
White House Madness
Howard Stern's U.S. Open Sores
Black Starlet
Grampa's Silly Scaries
Grampa’s Monster Movies
Grampa's More Silly Scaries
Grampa's Sci-Fi Hits
South Beach Academy
Ramones: Raw
Pretty Boy Floyd
Midnight Blue: Vol. 5: Porn King
Bum Rap
The Boatniks
Lust of the Vampire
Porn King: The Trials Of Al Goldstein
Marineland Carnival: The Munsters Visit Marineland
Al Lewis in the Flesh
Coonskin
Night Terror
Grampa Presents Carnival Of Souls
The Munsters: America's First Family of Fright
The Munsters - Family Portrait
Al Lewis: Forever Grandpa