a parental nickname or his actual first name. As for his father, he was mentioned twice, once in the second animated series, and in an apparent reference to his Frankenstein's monster-like appearance, Lurch said, smiling, "He put me together." And another time in the original series where Lurch mentions his father wanted him to be a jockey (typically short and light people) instead of a butler. It was stated in Addams Family Reunion that Lurch is part Addams. This plays into his being a creation similar to Frankenstein's monster. The only definite body part that is from an Addams is his heart. Lurch's mother appears to be a physically normal, elderly woman, although she does not see anything unusual about the Addams family or their home, with the exception of Thing. In The New Addams Family episode "Morticia and the Lady's League", a woman comments to Morticia about Lurch by asking "Where did you dig him up?" Morticia responds by stating "Funny, I can't remember which cemetery it was." Lurch is also referenced as having "two left feet" which, in the context of the series, could be taken literally or as a reference to his apparent inability to dance (though he tries in the original series). In 2019 animated film, Lurch was an escaped mental patient from an abandoned haunted house (now, the Addams Mansion) and met Gomez, Morticia, and Thing whereupon they immediately hired him as their loyal butler. Influence On October 30, 1965, a song and dance based on Lurch, entitled "The Lurch", were introduced on the ABC music program Shindig!. This mirrored an earlier episode of the television series, entitled "Lurch, the Teenage Idol" (which was remade in 1999 for The New Addams Family). In it, Lurch records a song on his harpsichord and becomes a pop sensation. In real life, actor Ted Cassidy released a single of "The Lurch" and performed it on the Shindig! episode in character as Lurch (in the same instalment, Cassidy, out of character this time, also performed a ballad). During the 2018–2019 NBA season, analyst and former player Shaquille O'Neal began using Lurch's catchphrase "You Rang" to refer to Philadelphia 76ers backup center Boban Marjanovic, due to a perceived physical resemblance between Marjanovic and Lurch. Adaptations Live-action TV series Lurch appears in The Addams Family, portrayed by Ted Cassidy. He is physically imposing and plays a harpsichord that was originally in