One of the most beloved sitcoms of all time,The Brady Bunchremains in the public consciousness to this day, where even those who have never seen the show can jump in upon hearing the words that kick off its iconic theme song:“Here’s the story, of a lovely lady…“What doesn’t remain in the public consciousness… and probably for the best… are theBrady Bunch-related programs that have been released in the years since. And there are way more than you can imagine. So while “It’s a Sunshine Day,” why don’t we take a groovy gander at the Bradyverse?
‘The Brady Bunch’ Continued With One Failed Pilot, One Cartoon, and One Failed Variety Hour
WhileThe Brady Bunchwas still on the air, the Bradyverse kicked off with two projects. Well, one and another that was dead on arrival. The first was a successful venture into animation with the premiere ofThe Brady Kids, a series that centered on the six Brady children, their dog Mop Top, two pandas named Ping and Pong, and Marlon (Larry Storch), a magical Mynah bird. In addition to their wacky adventures,which included meeting Superman, the Brady kids were also a musical group, and each episode had at least one song performance. The series is notable for a couple of reasons. First, it spawned a spin-off calledMission: Magic!starring Australian rock idolRick Springfieldas himself. Secondly, it marked the very first time Wonder Woman (Jane Webb)had ever appeared in animated form. The other project was a failed attempt to launch a new series calledKelly’s Kids, with a Season 5 (yes,the infamous cousin Oliver (Robbie Rist) season) episode serving as its pilot. Basically, a couple adopt an eight-year-old boy and his two friends from the orphanage, one an African American and the other an Asian.
The first post-Brady Bunchentry is one of television’s greatest debacles:The Brady Bunch Variety Hour. Starring the original cast (exceptEvePlumb, who passed on the project and was replaced as Jan byGeri Reischi), The Brady family is approached by ABC for a new variety series, leading Mike Brady (Robert Reed) to ditch his career as an architect — you might say “It’s Time to Change” — and move the family to a beach-side home. There were your standard song-and-dance routines, sketches, and a show-within-a-show that took place in the Bradys' new home. To say it failed dramatically does an injustice to the word ‘failed.’ The show placed atnumber four on TV Guide’s list of the 50 worst television showsof all time, just one of many similar lists the show is included on. Its infamy even landed it a parody onThe SimpsonsSeason 8 episode “The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase” as"The Simpson Family Smile-Time Variety Hour”, which cleverly replaced Lisa with another actress.
There’s No Better TV-to-Film Adaptation Than ‘The Brady Bunch Movie’
It’s one groovy movie.
‘The Brady Girls Get Married’ Reunited the Original Cast
In 1981, the original cast - the last time the entire group would work together on a project - reunited for the TV filmThe Brady Girls Get Married. The film, which ended up being released in three half-hour episodes, got us up to date with where the Brady clan is now. Mike is still an architect, as is Jan. Carol (Florence Henderson) is a real estate agent, Greg (Barry Williams, who has resurfaced for thenew season ofDancing With the Stars) is a doctor, Marcia (Maureen McCormick) — unsurprisingly, perhaps — is a fashion designer, and Peter (Christopher Knight) is in the Air Force. The youngest siblings, Bobby (Mike Lookinland) and Cindy (Susan Olsen) were in college, while everyone’s favorite housekeeper Alice (Ann B. Davis) married long-time beau Sam (Allan Melvin). They all reunite for Marcia and Jan’s double wedding. The film morphed into a new series,The Brady Brides, which saw Marcia and Jan and their new husbands buying a house and living together. It was anOdd Couple-like premise, with Marcia’s slovenly hubby clashing with Jan’s uptight and conservative man. The show lasted 10 episodes before being canceled.
But the Bradys “Keep On,” and in 1988 the entire family sans one (Susan Olsen’s previous commitments led toJennifer Runyontaking on the role of Cindy) reunited for the TV movieA Very Brady Christmas. The film added dramatic elements to the standard comedy that had been associated with the Bradyverse since the beginning. Mike and Carol use their savings money to buy airline tickets for the family to come home for Christmas, only all is not festive for the Brady kids. Greg’s wife is with her family over Christmas, Peter is in a romance with his boss, Bobby dropped out of school and is now a race car driver (unbeknownst to the family), Marcia’s husband has been fired from his job while Jan is separating from her husband, Sam has left Alice for another woman, and Cindy has the much more Brady-like problem of not liking being treated like the baby of the family.
But in typicalBrady Bunchfashion, it’s Mike and Carol to the rescue. In short order, they reunite Jan and her husband, support Bobby’s NASCAR career, help Marcia’s husband get a new job, and Greg’s wife shows up to share Christmas with the Bradys. Only Christmas dinner is on hold after Mike learns that a building he designed, which was built on the cheap without his knowledge, has collapsed and trapped two security guards. Mike leaps in to help but gets trapped himself after freeing the two. Cue the Christmas miracle as Mike makes his way out of the debris when the family joins together and sings “O Come, All Ye Faithful.” With everyone back home for dinner, Alice gets her happy ending when Sam shows up dressed as Santa Claus, having seen the error of his ways. Alice takes him back, he’s invited to stay for dinner, and the film ends with a rousing chorus of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.”
The Brady Bunch Got Serious in ‘The Bradys’
The success of the Christmas film led toThe Bradys, a series in the vein ofthirtysomething, in 1990. The show, now an hour-long program, was much more dramatic than its Bradyverse kin, dealing with serious plot lines like Mike’s new political career, Bobby is left a paraplegic after an auto-racing accident, Jan and her husband adopt a Korean girl, Marcia battles alcoholism, and after her husband loses yet another job, they are forced to move in with Mike and Carol along with their two children, and Cindy, now a radio host, begins a romance with her older boss, a widower with two children. The darker take didn’t go well, and the show was canceled after only six episodes.
The Bradyswould be the last television series in the Bradyverse, but it’s like they determined that “We Can Make the World a Whole Lot Brighter” and continue to be a presence to this day. There have been countless retrospectives, guest appearances, podcasts, musicals, a film trilogy, and evenA Very Brady Renovation, an HGTV series that saw the actors behind the Brady kids renovate the real-life house, seen only in exterior shots on the show, to match the interior and the glorious 1970s decor of the original series. We simply loveThe Brady Bunch, and whether it’s simply nostalgia or a fondness for its innocence, they will continue to hold a place in our hearts. Call it much more than a hunch.
