Show Spotlight: Monster Squad

Monster Squad was created by Stanley Ralph Ross who wrote for “Batman”, made by D’Angelo Productions, and aired Saturday mornings on NBC from September 11th, 1976 to September 3rd, 1977. The basic premise of the show is a trio of classic monsters fighting colorful criminals with the help of a criminology student. It’s all laid out right there in the opening credits of the show: “My name’s Walt. I work as night watchman here at Fred’s Wax Museum to put myself through Criminology College. It used to be very lonely, until recently when I plugged in my crime computer. Suddenly, oscillating vibrations brought to life three legendary monsters; Dracula, The Werewolf, and Frankenstein.  Creatures hated and feared for centuries, now determined to make up for their past misbehaving by fighting crime wherever they find it. Together, we’re the Monster Squad!” What else did you need to know?

Monster Squad starred Henry Polic II as Dracula, Buck Kartalian as Bruce W. Wolf, Michael Lane as Frank N. Stein, and Fred Grandy as Walt. The show was very reminiscent of Batman although aimed at a much younger audience. The villains the squad would face were every bit as colorful as the rogue’s gallery of Batman and each had a pair of theme named henchmen such as Spelling Bee and Bumble Bee for Queen Bee; Twitter and Snicker for the Tickler; and Toil and Trouble for the Ultra Witch. The goofy traps set for the heroes were even bolder and more colorful than those on