Lurch
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- "Lurch" is also the nickname of former South Sydney and Manly rugby league prop John O'Neill. See John O'Neill (rugby league footballer)
Lurch tries to help around the house like any other butler, though occasionally he botches things up due to his great size and strength. He is very slow-paced and seems to be in a constant state of exasperation with the family. In spite of this, he has an almost uncommon loyalty to the Addams family, beyond that of the common employee/employer relationship and is there at a moment's notice when summoned. Gomez or Morticia can summon him with an ever-present bell pull (in the form of a hangman's noose). When pulled, it produces a loud gong noise that shakes the house, to which Lurch instantly responds with the line, "You rang?". Originally, in the the TV series, Lurch had no lines. However, Ted Cassidy ad-libbed the line "you rang?" on one occasion and got a wave of laughter from the studio audience, which led to Lurch getting more dialogue. In the films, however, Lurch was totally mute.
Lurch is often seen playing the harpsichord with a great degree of skill. Interestingly, the scenes in the original television series with Lurch playing the harpsichord were actually of Ted Cassidy (the actor who played Lurch) playing a harpsichord, rather than an audio track.
Aside from a headless Marie Antoinette doll, Lurch is Wednesday's best friend. He seems to have a paternal affection for both Wednesday and Pugsley, and although his job title is limited to butler, he seems to be a "jack of all trades" when it comes to them, doing everything from taking them to school to making them lunch to even keeping an eye on them around the house. The family, for their part, treats him like one of their own.
In the original television series, Lurch was played by Ted Cassidy, who also voiced the character in the first animated series, as well as the episode of The New Scooby-Doo Movies cartoon that preceded it. In the second animated series, Lurch was voiced by Jim Cummings. Carel Struycken played Lurch in the films.
Much of Lurch's history, including his first name, ("Lurch" was revealed during the original TV series to be a surname, as there was a "Mother Lurch" who appeared in one episode), and the nature of his relationship to any other Addamses was originally unknown. It was stated in Addams Family Reunion that Lurch is part-Addams. This plays into his being a Frankenstein's monster-like creation. The only definite body part that is from an Addams is his heart.
On October 30, 1965 a "Lurch dance" song and dance were introduced on an ABC music program [link].
Trivia
- Lurch, sporting a bushy beard, appeared with Morticia in the very first Addams Family cartoon in The New Yorker magazine
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