Vic Mizzy, a songwriter who composed the catchy themes for the 1960s sitcoms "The Addams Family" and "Green Acres," has died at 93.

Mizzy died Saturday at his home in Bel Air, his manager Jonathan Wolfson said. He said he didn't know the cause of death.

His most famous work was the theme to "The Addams Family," a tune accented by finger snaps and opening with the cleverly quirky lyrics: "They're creepy and they're kooky, mysterious and spooky, they're altogether ooky: the Addams family."

Mizzy sang the song himself and overdubbed it three times to give the impression of multiple vocalists. He also directed the title sequence where he asked actors who played members of the Addams family to snap their fingers in a bored way.

The enduring tune is often heard during sports game to rally the home team.

"He was smart enough to demand to own the song, which was unheard of at the time. So any time you go to a Lakers game and they play that song, he made money," Wolfson said.

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Mizzy learned to play the piano as a child. In his teens, he teamed up with Irving Taylor and began writing songs and sketches for variety shows. They won a pair of radio contests and toured the East Coast vaudeville circuit. While served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, the pair wrote several hit songs, including "Three Little Sisters" and "Take It Easy."

Overview Of Vic Mizzy

Date of Birth: 9 January 1922, Brooklyn, New York, USA
Trivia: The TV studio producing "The Addams Family" didn't want to pay for singers to record Mizzy's theme song. He overdubbed himself singing it three times so that it would sound like a group of vocalists.He never had an agent and has always negotiated his own contracts. He still holds the publishing rights for his work.Every time "The Addams Family" theme is played during a major-league baseball game, Mizzy receives royalties.
 

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