Joe Pesci (on the late Fred Gwynne): It takes somebody who's very serious to pull off a character like 'Herman Munster.' It's not simple to play the goof. Fred was not Herman. He was an intelligent, quiet gentleman.
Though called Slim, Fred's character in On the Waterfront answers to the name Malden Sekulovich when called to testify in front of the crime commission. Malden Sekulovich was the real name of On the Waterfront co-star Karl Malden. Director Elia Kazan threw this bit into the film as an inside joke.
Fred supplied the voice overs for the tv commercials for Hyundai in the early 1990's.
Fred made his movie debut, unbilled, as one of Johnny Friendly's gang of thugs who menace Marlon Brando in Elia Kazan's classic On the Waterfront (1954).
Fred also worked as a professional singer.
Fred was married twice. First to Jean Foxie Reynard from 1952-1980, then to Deb Gwynne from 1981until his death on July 2, 1993.
Herman Munster, Fred's character on The Munsters (1964), was ranked #19 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" in the June, 2004 issue.
Between 1975 and 1982, Fred appeared in 79 episodes of The CBS Radio Mystery Theater.
Fred performed in Harvard's famous drag troupe Hasty Pudding Theatricals from 1949-51.
Fred made his first stage appearance at Groton with the student production of Shakespeare's Henry V.
Fred was born in to a wealthy family, his father was a highly successful stockbroker.
Fred was 6'5" tall, but wore boots with 4" lifts on them when playing the part of "Herman Munster."
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