Ted Cassidy Theodore Crawford Cassidy , better known as Ted Cassidy , was a very tall ( 6 ' 9 " ) , gravel - voiced actor who played Ruk in the episode and who also did voice over roles for the series . He was best known , however , for portraying the macabre butler Lurch on the television series , . Cassidy filmed his scenes between Friday and Tuesday at Desilu Stage 10 . He also recorded the voice - over for Balok ' s puppet during this period . Early life . Born in Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania , Cassidy was raised in West Virginia . He played college basketball at Stetson University in Florida and was married soon after graduation . His first career was in news radio , working for WFAA in Dallas , Texas , and he was part of the ongoing coverage of the assassination of John F . Kennedy . Career . He started working in films in 1960 , voicing the Martian in the science fiction film " The Angry Red Planet " . In 1964 , he made his television debut as Lurch on " The Addams Family " . While auditioning for the role of Lurch , which was supposed to be a non - speaking role , Cassidy ad - libbed the famous " " You rang ? " " line , which was written into the series . Cassidy also played the role of Thing ( the disembodied hand ) on " The Addams Family " , a role that was credited to " itself " . The only times Cassidy did not play Thing were in those scenes in which Lurch and Thing appeared together . For these scenes , the show ' s associate producer lent a hand by " playing " Thing . " The Addams Family " ended after only two years , but the series has achieved cult status and continues to thrive in reruns . Cassidy reprised the role of Lurch several more times , including a gag appearance in an episode of " Batman " and in voice - over for an " Addams Family " animated series in the 1970s . Cassidy ' s large size earned him roles as physically impressive characters , such as the villainous Injun Joe on the short - lived television series " The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn " , the bully Harvey Logan in the classic 1969 Western film " Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid " ( co - starring fellow TOS guest actors Jeff Corey and Don Keefer and DS9 guest actor Kenneth Mars ) , and even as Goliath in James L . Conway ' s 1978 mini - series " Greatest Heroes of the Bible " ( also featuring fellow " Trek " alumni Michael Ansara , Paul Carr , Jeff Corey , Frank Gorshin , Ed Lauter , Julie Parrish , Nehemiah Persoff , John Schuck , and Dean Stockwell ) . In the meantime , his deep bass voice was sought after for voice - over roles , such as Metallus on " Space Ghost " , the Thing on " The Fantastic Four " , and Brainiac and the Black Manta on " Challenge of the SuperFriends " , which also starred Frank Welker . In 1973 , Cassidy played Isiah in Gene Roddenberry ' s unsold pilot entitled " Genesis II " , which also featured Mariette Hartley , Majel Barrett and Percy Rodriguez . Cassidy would reprise his role in the pilot ' s 1974 re - working " Planet Earth " , in which Barrett , Diana Muldaur and Craig Hundley appeared . Those two pilots , which featured the exploits of a Rip Van Winkle / Buck Rogers - type hero named Dylan Hunt , served as the basis for Roddenberry ' s " Andromeda " , the lead character of which had the same name . Besides " Star Trek " , other shows on which Cassidy has guest - starred included " Lost in Space " ( starring Bill Mumy in an episode also guest - starring Malachi Throne ) , " The Man from U . N . C . L . E . " , " The Beverly Hillbillies " , " I Dream of Jeannie " ( two episodes in 1968 , including one with Lou Antonio and Susan Howard ) , " Tarzan " ( with Barbara Bouchet ) , " Mannix " ( with his " Little Girls " co - star Michael Strong ) , " Bonanza " ( with George D . Wallace ) , and a two - parter on " The Bionic Woman " ( with Vince Howard ) . He made his film debut opposite Julie Newmar in 1969 ' s " Mackenna ' s Gold " and also appeared in such films as 1976 ' s " Harry and Walter Go to New York " ( with Bert Remsen and Seamon Glass ) , 1977 ' s " The Last Remake of Beau Geste " ( co - starring Henry Gibson and line produced by Bernie Williams ) and 1978 ' s " Goin ' Coconuts " ( with Kenneth Mars and Marc Lawrence ) . In addition , he had a role in Susan Oliver ' s 1977 short film " Cowboysan " . Cassidy was an early auditioner for the title role of " The Incredible Hulk " television series , and wound up providing the opening voice - over narration for each episode of that show , in addition to supplying some part of the Hulk ' s roars and growls . Association with " Star Trek " . During the filming of " What Are Little Girls Made Of ? . " Cassidy – in full Ruk make - up – once participated in a gag in which he pretended to be Gene Roddenberry in order to fool a suit salesman who had come to the studio . In addition to his role as Ruk , Cassidy was also the voice of Balok ' s puppet in the show ' s first regular episode , , and voiced the Gorn captain in . While playing Injun Joe on " The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn " , Cassidy made a surprise gag visit to the " Star Trek " set during the filming of . As seen in the blooper reel , Cassidy , in Injun Joe make - up and costume , picks up William Shatner during a take on " Bread and Circuses " and carries him away . Death and legacy . Cassidy died of complications following open heart surgery in 1979 , leaving behind a long - time girlfriend and two children , Sean and Cameron , both of whom are now attorneys . Cassidy ' s final work – Filmation ' s animated sci - fi TV movie " Flash Gordon : The Greatest Adventure of All " , which also featured the voices of David Opatoshu and Vic Perrin – aired three years after his death . In the 1990s , Cassidy ' s most famous role , Lurch from " The Addams Family " , was assumed by TNG guest star Carel Struycken for the " Addams Family " feature films : " The Addams Family " in 1991 , " Addams Family Values " in 1993 , and " Addams Family Reunion " in 1998 . actor Christopher Lloyd played Uncle Fester in the first two of these films .