The Men Of The Brady Bunch

The Men Of The Brady Bunch

(CBS)  The Early Show's Retro Reunion reunites the male members of TV's grooviest family, The Brady Bunch, a sitcom that exploded into a cultural phenomenon.

Barry Williams played oldest son, Greg Brady. Christopher Knight was Peter Brady. Mike Lookinland, played youngest son Bobby. And Robbie Rist who joined the cast in the final season, was cousin Oliver.


Show In Brief:

Friday nights on ABC
1/2-hour sitcom First Telecast on ABC: 1969
Last Telecast on ABC: 1974
Episodes Produced on ABC: 117

Whether you admit your appreciation of the show, or claim higher art as your calling (but then secretly watch the reruns late at night), The Brady Bunch is somehow ingrained in your television consciousness.


The Story:

The show focused on a family constructed from the remnants of two previous families. Widower Mike had three sons: Greg, Peter, and Bobby. Widowed mom Carol brought three daughters into the mix: Marcia, Jan and Cindy. They were also blessed with a wise, super-efficient, and zany housekeeper, Alice. Sam the Butcher, the eventual beau for Alice, popped up on occasion. The reconfigured family settled down in a four-bedroom, two-bathroom house in the San Fernando Valley for five seasons' worth of comedic misadventures and heartwarming morals.

The show's plot lines were always simple, which was a big gripe with the critics. Typical episodes included "Kitty Carry-All is Missing," in which Cindy accuses Bobby of stealing her favorite doll after it goes missing, and "Sorry Right Number," in which Mike installs a pay phone to cut down on the kid's phone bills.

Despite the simplicity of the episodes' stories, they often had a surprisingly strong emotional undercurrent. In particular, Jan's inner turmoil over being a middle-child made for some memorable moments. Two unforgettable examples were "The Not-So-Ugly Duckling," in which Jan created an imaginary boyfriend to save face when Marcia won the affections of the real boy she wanted, and "Will The Real Jan Brady Please Stand Up?," in which Jan buys an outrageous wig for a party because she doesn't feel glamorous enough.

The other kids had their moments of emotional and social crisis, as well. The always pretty and popular Marcia suffered a memorable blow to her ego in "The Subject Was Noses" when she was accidentally given a broken nose by a wayward football pass right before a big date.

However, the show never tackled a problem so big that it couldn't be solved by Mike, Carol or Alice by the end of the half-hour.

As the ratings began to lag, the show introduced a new kid: Cousin Oliver. He came to visit while his parents were on a trip and proceeded to reveal himself as an unintentionally-mischievous 'jinx.' His episodes had some of the daffiest plotting in the series' history, especially "Top Secret," in which Bobby and Oliver become convinced that Mike and Sam are involved in a spy plot. Oliver's addition did turn out to be a genuine jinx, because five episodes and one enormous pie fight later, The Brady Bunch was cancelled.

Despite spending five successful seasons perched consistently in the Top 25, The Brady Bunch was never the biggest show on television during its initial run. After its cancellation, the show immediately ascended to re-run heaven and has played continuously ever since. After maintaining a hallowed presence on daytime television for over a quarter century, the show has become downright mythic in stature. Although some non-believers still marvel at the Bradys' continued popularity, they are clearly in the minority. Like Lucy and Star Trek before them, The Brady Bunch are here to stay.

The Brady Bunch inspired a number of spin-offs over the years. The first was The Brady Kids, an animated series that ran on Saturday mornings from 1972 to 1974. Another prime-time series arrived in the form of The Brady Bunch Variety Hour, a surreal mixture of domestic comedy and variety show that was produced by Sid and Marty Krofft

There were two additional prime-time series: The first was The Brady Brides, a sitcom from 1981 that was an outgrowth of a special called The Brady Girls Get Married. The second was The Bradys, a short-lived 1990 stab at transforming the show into a serious drama. A stand-alone television film called A Very Brady Christmas was made in 1988.

The original series was also successfully transformed into a feature-film series with a new cast. The Brady Bunch Movie was released in 1995 and followed the next year by A Very Brady Sequel

So you might as well just go ahead and admit it: You're susceptible to the Brady charm. With all of these incarnations, with the show's endless, endless syndication...why fight it? Instead of battling a pop culture behemoth, take a deep breath, let that opening theme song wash over you, and start prepping for the next watercooler discussion or cocktail party debate. Because believe us, which Brady vacation adventure was the most exciting, or whether Greg truly deserved that attic bedroom...forget global warming, these are the topics that are going to be debated for years to come.


The Cast:

Michael Paul 'Mike' Brady — Robert Reed
Carol Ann Brady — Florence Henderson
Greg Brady — Barry Williams
Marcia Brady — Maureen McCormick
Peter Brady — Christopher Knight
Jan Brady — Eve Plumb
Bobby Brady — Mike Lookinland
Cindy Brady — Susan Olsen
Alice Nelson — Ann B. Davis
Cousin Oliver (1974) — Robbie Rist
Sam Franklin — Allan Melvin


Where Are They Now?

Actor Robert Reed who played Brady Dad, "Mike" died in 1992 from AIDS at age 59. The cast was very close to him and still morn his death. It was revealed after his death that he was gay.

Barry Williams (Greg Brady): Just finished the Broadway national tour of "The Sound of Music." This summer he will join the cast of "S-Club Seven" on the ABC family channel. He also continues to tour with the Monkees. This Sunday, he'll be appearing at the Westbury Music Fair at 7pm.

Christopher Knight (Peter Brady): Has a TV special called TV Road Trip.

Mike Lookinland (Bobby Brady): Not acting anymore. He was the first assistant cameraman on "The Promised Land.

Robbie Rist (Cousin Oliver): He is on tour with his band The Andersons and also does tons of voice over work.