It was with sadness i saw in a recent issue of Traverse magazine, that television actor and movie host Don Melvoin had died in 2002. A fixture of Northern Michigan television, Melvoin, who was "Deputy Don" on his childrens TV show in the 50's, also acted in TV westerns, The Night Gallery, and Somewhere In Time. But he's probably best remembered for portraying Count Zappula at 11:30 Saturday night for many years. For the many Detroiters who read this blog, think Sir Graves Ghastly or Count Scary, but lamer and more low tech. His faithful terrier, Lover, played "Igor" on the show.
Like a lot of horror hosts of the pre-cable days, Melvoin performed other duties at the station. i'm pretty sure for a time in the late 70's, he hosted a more mundane daytime movie show, like Rita Bell or Bill Kennedy, and still played The Count on Saturday night. Less anarchic than The Ghoul, he was still a jolt of fun in the 2-3 channel tedium of 70's and 80's TV. E-Gor's Chamber of TV Horror Hosts interviewed Eric Pearson, one of Count Zappula's directors.
When we finished the show at one in the morning or so, the Count was usually pretty tired and would drive home before changing out of his costume and makeup. Don drove a large Jeep Cherokee-type vehicle with dark, tinted windows, and one night he was pulled over by a police officer. He waited until the officer was next to the driver's window before he hit the button to roll the window down. When he became visible he flicked his tongue like a cobra and said "Good Evening" in his best vampire voice, and the officer "nearly crapped his pants," according to Don.
i certainly hope "Igor" was wearing his tiny cape! The old school horror hosts were corny and often boring, and the movies usually sucked and were chopped to ribbons, but we waited all week for them. Now cable offers many channels, and local stations fill their dead slots with infomercials. Count Scary's "That's scary!" notwithstanding, Count Zappula is the guy who most resembled Joe Flaherty's "Count Floyd" on SCTV.
I'm sad to hear of his passing. His blooper on the special hosted by Elvira was one of the funniest moments of my youth. I hope the growling skull has been buried. The prop, I mean!
Posted by: Ben Dickson | February 21, 2007 at 09:49 PM
My sister and I would get up to watch Count Zappula every Saturday. My sister sent him a fan letter, and I remember her joy when she not only received a response with an authographed photo of the Count and Igor, but her letter was read during the show as well. He is definitely a fond memory of my childhood.
Posted by: Shiloh Holt | May 08, 2007 at 01:37 PM
Yes, and we just lost another horror host with the passing of Lawson Deming.
Posted by: jjuana Moore-Overmyer | May 10, 2007 at 10:07 AM
Don was a huge part of my childhood. My grandfather and he were old war buddies so my sister, brother and I frequented on the Deputy Don show. I'm surprised there isn't more footage available of his shows online. He really was a character.
Posted by: Emily | May 15, 2008 at 10:27 PM
Thank you all from my family. Grandpa would have loved the adulation he loved making people happy, especially little kids.
Ken Melvoin-Berg
Posted by: Ken Melvoin-Berg | January 07, 2009 at 01:25 AM
I used to work with Don when I began my broadcast career at WOOD, Grand Rapids. Later when I was working in Indianapolis for the Time-Life stations there, he brought the Don Melvoin Show to the Avco station there. I remember Don used to love to play golf and was quite good at it as I recall. One night at WOOD he told me he wanted to play in the Bing Crosby Pro-celebrity tournament. Someone had given him Bing Crosby's home phone number He called Bing and got an invitation to play in it. I was with him when he placed the phone call. He was truly "one of a kind". George L. Davis, Virginia Beach
Posted by: George L. Davis | May 11, 2010 at 05:53 PM
I was a HUGE fan of Count Zappula as a kid and that was the highlight of my Saturday nights, watching the cheesy horror flicks and watching to see what would happen next on the show. Isn't there anywhere to get broadcasts of the show? Would love to show them to my kids...
Posted by: Kathryn Rogers | May 29, 2010 at 08:55 PM
I grew up watching Count Zappula... it was my Saturday night religion. And you are correct about him hosting another movie show. This was on Sunday afternoons, "Don Melvoin's Hollywood Theater". The normal fare would include Tarzan, Charlie Chan, Shirly Temple, Abbot and Costello, and the Tarzan-inspired Bomba - the Jungle Boy. Super cheezy, but super fun. In northern Michigan, Don Melvoin was a veritable rock-star. Bleh bleh!!
Posted by: Jim | December 04, 2014 at 09:27 AM