Hot Rod Herman was the 36th episode of the wonderful Munsters TV show. On it, Herman’s son Eddie tells his friend Sandy Baylor that his father can beat Mr. Baylor at the Mockingbird Heights drag strip. Instead, Herman ends up losing the Munsters Koach on a bet. Determined to win it back, Grandpa constructs his own roadster, the Drag-u-la, to beat ‘Leadfoot’ Baylor at his own game and win back the family’s beloved Koach.
This episode is especially excellent for a few reasons. First, it’s the only real documentation of the Lion’s Drag Strip, the most legendary drag racing strip of the 50s and 60s. It also features two of George Barris’ greatest creations – the Muster Koach and Drag-u-la. Not only that, but you get to see Herman Munster dressed like Marlon Brando in the Wild One, complete with a leather motorcycle jacket and cap! Throw in as many mid-60s pop culture references as you can in half an hour, and you have an incredible document of mid 60s cool.
And when Grandpa says,”Well, there he is, my son in law, the 150 year old teenage punk,” it might just be the first ever reference to the word “punk” on national television!
And Rob Zombie loves this episode so much that there is not a single excerpt from it on youtube that doesn’t feature his song “Dragula (Hot Rod Herman Remix),” from the Matrix. It is definitely worth watching…
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