There’s sage advice that says never mess with a winning formula. In the world of television, this is the equivalent of cursing someone and wishing hellfire and brimstone on their family — but in the executive world, they love nothing more than to tweak and change something, even when the show is a smash hit and everything works well. It turns out “The Addams Family” television series wasn’t immune to this phenomenon either, as revealed by John Astin to The A.V. Club.
The actor gushed about working with producer and series creator David Levy and head writer Nat Perrin, explaining how there was a natural artistic synergy between all parties and how it developed into a friendly working relationship. However, the production company decided it wanted to replace Levy and Perrin, so Astin and Caroyln Jones intervened to get their old crew back.
“At one point, they replaced David and Nat, and they hired somebody else to direct and write,” Astin said, “but Carolyn and I got together and said, ‘You know, this isn’t what we signed up for,’ and we went to Filmways, the producers, and said, ‘You’ve got to get David and Nat back.’ And they did.”
