The Brady Bunch Hour | |
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Also known as | The Brady Bunch Variety Hour |
Genre | Variety |
Created by | Sid and Marty Krofft |
Based on | The Brady Bunch by Sherwood Schwartz |
Written by |
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Directed by | Art Fisher Jack Regas |
Starring | |
Ending theme | "United We Stand" performed by the Bradys |
Composer | George Wyle |
Country of origin | United States |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 9 |
Production | |
Executive producer | Sid and Marty Krofft |
Producers |
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Production location | Golden West Videotape Division |
Camera setup | Multi-camera |
Running time | 60 minutes |
Production companies |
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Original release | |
Network | ABC |
Release | November 28, 1976 – May 25, 1977 |
Related | |
The Brady Bunch Hour is an American variety show featuring skits and songs produced by Sid & Marty Krofft Productions in association with Paramount Television. It ran on ABC from November 28, 1976, to May 25, 1977.
The series starred the original cast members of The Brady Bunch , with the exception of Eve Plumb, who was replaced by Geri Reischl (popularly called "Fake Jan"). [1] The show began as a 60-minute special titled The Brady Bunch Variety Hour on November 28, 1976. The special garnered high ratings and led to eight additional 60-minute episodes which were produced and aired sporadically under the shortened title The Brady Bunch Hour from January 23 to May 25, 1977.
Later Brady Bunch revival series and TV reunion movies do not include or mention the show's events.
When the family is chosen to star in a new variety series for ABC, Mike Brady gives up his architectural career and moves his family into a beach-side home somewhere in Southern California. In addition to the Brady clan, next-door-neighbor Jack Merrill (Rip Taylor) frequently finds his way into the act and is a love interest for the Bradys' maid, Alice (her former boyfriend, Sam the Butcher, is never mentioned). Each episode features the obligatory variety show song-and-dance numbers and sketches, as well as a show-within-a-show behind-the-scenes story which takes place in the Bradys' home.
The Krofftettes and Water Follies
In 1976, ABC president Fred Silverman concocted the idea of reuniting the cast of The Brady Bunch on an episode of the Donny & Marie variety show. [2] Florence Henderson, Maureen McCormick, Mike Lookinland, and Susan Olsen were booked and when the show aired on October 8, it was a ratings success, prompting Silverman to begin developing a variety show starring the Brady family. Donny & Marie producers Sid and Marty Krofft agreed to helm the show, as their paths had crossed with the Brady Bunch stars on numerous occasions, but no one bothered to seek the approval or involvement of Paramount Pictures (the producers and then-property holders of The Brady Bunch) or Sherwood Schwartz (the series creator). [2] [3] Both parties eventually gave their approval of the new series, mainly as a way to keep interest in the original series. The variety hour was the only Brady project to not have the involvement of Schwartz during production.
Although Robert Reed's dissatisfaction with other Brady Bunch incarnations is well-known, he quickly signed on to star in the variety show. Maureen McCormick recalled: "We joked that it was the first time any of us could remember him wanting to do something Brady-related." [4] Barry Williams once wrote: "The Brady Bunch Hour was incredibly bad, but even more incredible was the fact that Robert Reed (who you'd expect would be foaming at the mouth about this mess) really enjoyed being on it." [3] When Williams asked him why, Reed said: "I've studied voice and dancing. I'm terrible at both, and it proved to be true, but when Sid and Marty met with me, they described the whole thing in very positive terms and I thought, 'What fun! This'll be a hoot!'" [3] Quipped McCormick, "He sang and danced without caring that he was lousy and the show itself was worse. His inner Dorothy had found her calling." [4]
Florence Henderson, the only cast member with real experience singing and dancing, was leery of the project but also agreed to appear, so the producers then set their sights on reuniting the Brady kids. Barry Williams was working on Broadway when he got a call from Marty Krofft, who pitched the show as "The Barry Williams Variety Hour with The Brady Bunch", [2] promising the young entertainer featured solos and elaborate dance routines. Maureen McCormick was excited at the prospect of singing and working with the Krofft brothers; and Susan Olsen loved the idea of doing Saturday Night Live -type skits. Christopher Knight had turned his back on the entertainment industry and was aware of his own singing/dancing limitations, but he agreed to do the show when he was promised that his work would be limited to the opening and closing numbers and comedy sketches. Knight later said that it did not work that way "and I learned one of life's lessons—always get it in writing!" [5] Mike Lookinland was uncomfortable dancing and had no desire to do the show, so he demanded twice the salary he was offered in hopes that the producers would be forced to recast his role. To his surprise, this resulted in an increased salary for each cast member. [2] Even then, he did not want to do the show and often skipped the rehearsals, until one day Florence Henderson found him in the parking lot and reminded him that they were all doing their job and "if his heart wasn't in it, neither should he be". [6] Ann B. Davis had left Hollywood in 1974 and was working as a volunteer in a clergy house in Denver, Colorado when the series was hurried into production. [2] Originally, no one thought to include Davis, but at the last minute the crew decided to offer her a guest-starring role, which she retained throughout all nine episodes of the series. The producers made a deal which allowed her to be on the set only a few days a week so she could commute to Denver and fulfill her responsibilities to the church.
Contrary to popular belief, Eve Plumb was originally slated to appear in the variety hour. She said in her interview from 1976: "I wanted to do the show but there was a built-in option for thirteen more shows and possibly five years". [7] Plumb agreed to appear in five of the thirteen planned episodes, but when the network demanded that it was all-or-nothing, she backed out of the project. [2] In late October 1976, producers scrambled to find a replacement and met with over 1500 hopefuls, eventually settling on Geri Reischl to fill the void. Reischl, who had extensive singing experience, auditioned several times and landed the role only one day before rehearsals began. Reischl's costars made her feel at home (Robert Reed told her it felt like she had always been a part of the Brady family, [8] and she developed a lasting friendship with Susan Olsen), but because of the recasting, Reischl was later dubbed "Fake Jan", [1] a moniker which she has openly embraced. [8]
After the pilot was shot, producers decided that they needed a regular comedian on the show, so Rip Taylor was brought aboard to portray the Bradys' realtor, moving man, next-door-neighbor, general Jack-of-all-trades and Alice's boyfriend, Mr. Jack Merrill. Like Reischl, Taylor felt welcomed by the cast—with the exception of Ann B. Davis, who barely spoke to him except when they were doing scenes. Series writer Mike Kagan commented that Rip Taylor is a "salty guy, he's got a dirty sense of humor and Ann B. Davis is a born-again Christian." [2]
The Krofftettes were a dance troupe, who also performed water ballet created by Sid and Marty Krofft as a spin-off of The Ice Vanities, which performed skating routines on their other variety endeavor, Donny & Marie . When ABC programming executive Michael Eisner asked the Kroffts to create a new show for The Brady Bunch, Sid decided that the next best thing to ice would be a gigantic swimming pool, inspired by Esther Williams movies of the 1940s and 1950s. On October 25, 1976, the Kroffts held auditions for the group with choreographer Joe Cassini in the ABC headquarters at 1313 North Vine Street in Hollywood. There, they met Charkie Phillips, a classically trained dancer from Florida and competitive swimmer with an extensive background in synchronized swimming. Phillips was selected to help Cassini choose dancers who could also handle the rigors of synchronised swimming. [2]
The series was taped on Stage 2 at KTLA Studios in Los Angeles. The first episode was taped over three days beginning Monday, November 22, completing just days before its air date that Thanksgiving Sunday.[ citation needed ] The 47,756 US gallons (180,780 L)45 by 25 feet (13.7 m × 7.6 m), 68 inches (1.7 m) deep pool arrived in sections that were bolted together and made watertight. The pool included windows along the sides of the tank to ease filming underwater. When the pool was first filled, early taping tests were unsuccessful. Assistant director Rick Locke commented that "it looked like milk". The pool was then filled with 50,000 US gallons (190,000 L; 42,000 imp gal) of Sparkletts bottled water, chlorinated and filter and pump facilities added outside the studio.
Both the swimmers and stage crew faced many challenges with the swimming pool during production. Because the pool was located next door to the ice rink for Donny & Marie on Stage 1, the Krofftettes entered and exited the water in frigid air temperatures while rehearsing for the pilot episode. This caused steam to rise out of the water. Attempts to equalize the temperature of both the water and air then turned the pool into a warm bath.
Unlike traditional synchronized swimming, the Krofftettes were expected to sit on the bottom of the pool floor in various formations. In order to accomplish this, the women had to completely exhale all of their breath so that they would sink in a state of hypoxia. The ABC network would not allow the use of goggles and any unsightly air bubble escaping from a desperate nostril was absolutely forbidden. Because the Krofftettes had double duty as dancers on stage with the Bradys during the day, swimming sequences were often relegated to late night hours. This required the women to work more than 15 consecutive hours on days they were filming.
Other hazards with the swimming pool included props weighed to the bottom, which presented unwelcome obstructions. In addition, the Kroffts decided in one production number to have gas canisters in the pool, which they ignited during filming as a special effect. The Krofftettes were also forced to smear Vaseline into their scalp so that everything would stay in place while under water. This could only be removed with a recipe of Spic and Span household cleaner along with Joy dishwashing liquid, which turned everyone's hair green. Turbans and other head pieces were then used for the remainder of the series.
The Krofftettes were the first water ballet troupe to be recorded on video tape, which presented its own set of challenges. The Kroffts experimented with an underwater camera, but relied more on large porthole windows in which cameras taped from outside of the pool itself. Cast, crew, and visitors alike were known to visit the stage and observe the young women during rehearsals through these windows, which included Chevy Chase and Paul Shaffer who were working at the studio on a television special. According to Shaffer, Chase would cut production meetings short so that everyone could go watch the Krofftettes. [9]
Apart from the first episode, the production crew were very resistant to the expense of doing multiple takes, even allowing bloopers to appear in the finished episodes rather than re-shooting the sequences. [8]
The show was intended to air every fifth week in the same slot as The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries , but was scheduled sporadically throughout the season, leading to inconsistent ratings. A promo was often shown with Reed and Henderson stating, "The Brady Bunch Variety Hour won't be seen this week, but we will be back again soon."[ citation needed ]
Ep. | Airdate | Title | Director | Writers | Guest stars | |
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1 | November 28, 1976 | The Brady Bunch Variety Hour | Art Fisher | Ronny Graham, Terry Hart, Bruce Vilanch, Steve Bluestein | Tony Randall, Donny Osmond, Marie Osmond, Patty Maloney | |
Plot: The Brady kids fear their father is not talented enough to appear on their variety show, so Bobby schemes to replace him with Tony Randall. | ||||||
Music
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Notes
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2 | January 23, 1977 | 0101 | Jack Regas | Ronny Graham, Terry Hart, Bruce Vilanch, Steve Bluestein, Mike Kagan | Lee Majors, Farrah Fawcett, Kaptain Kool and the Kongs (Michael Lembeck, Louise DuArt, Debra Clinger and Mickey McMeel) | |
Plot: When the Bradys spend their first night in their new home, they find themselves with two unexpected houseguests: Lee Majors and Farrah Fawcett. | ||||||
Music
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Notes
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3 | February 27, 1977 | 0102 | Jack Regas | Ronny Graham, Terry Hart, Bruce Vilanch, Steve Bluestein, Mike Kagan, Carl Kleinshmitt | Milton Berle, Tina Turner, Collette | |
Plot: When Bobby asks Milton Berle to appear on the show, the showman promptly runs amok. | ||||||
Music
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Notes
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4 | March 4, 1977 | 0103 | Jack Regas | Ronny Graham, Bruce Vilanch, Steve Bluestein, Mike Kagan, Carl Kleinshmitt | Vincent Price, H.R. Pufnstuf (Van Snowden), Kiki Bird (Sharon Baird) | |
Plot: When Greg decides to move out on his own, Vincent Price warns him that his new apartment is haunted. | ||||||
Music
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Notes
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5 | March 21, 1977 | 0104 | Jack Regas | Ronny Graham, Bruce Vilanch, Steve Bluestein, Mike Kagan, Carl Kleinshmitt | Charo, The Hudson Brothers | |
Plot: When his family criticizes his singing and dancing talents, Mike decides to prove he can carry a tune. But when he teams up with Charo for rehearsal, Carol becomes jealous. | ||||||
Music
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6 | March 28, 1977 | 0105 | Jack Regas | Ronny Graham, Bruce Vilanch, Steve Bluestein, Mike Kagan, Carl Kleinshmitt | Edgar Bergen, Charlie McCarthy, Rich Little, Melanie Safka and Van Snowden | |
Plot: Rich Little develops amnesia and believes he is one of the Brady children. | ||||||
Music
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7 | April 4, 1977 | 0106 | Jack Regas | Ronny Graham, Bruce Vilanch, Steve Bluestein, Mike Kagan, Carl Kleinshmitt | Robert Hegyes, Redd Foxx, Ohio Players, Sharon Baird | |
Plot: Marcia announces her engagement to Winston Beaumont (Robert Hegyes), a carefree hippie. Meanwhile, Redd Foxx lurks around the set in preparation for his upcoming variety show, The Redd Foxx Comedy Hour. | ||||||
Music
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Notes
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8 | April 25, 1977 | 0107 | Jack Regas | Ronny Graham, Bruce Vilanch, Steve Bluestein, Mike Kagan, Carl Kleinshmitt | Fred Berry, Haywood Nelson, Ernest Lee Thomas, Danielle Spencer, Rick Dees, Patty Maloney, Mike Kagan, Bruce Vilanch | |
Plot: When the Brady Kids announce that they have invited the kids from What's Happening!! to appear on their variety show, their parents inform them that a last-minute addition to the show is not possible. | ||||||
Music
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9 | May 25, 1977 | 0108 | Jack Regas | Ronny Graham, Bruce Vilanch, Steve Bluestein, Mike Kagan, Carl Kleinshmitt | Paul Williams, Lynn Anderson | |
Plot: When Paul Williams arrives to rehearse for the show, he confesses his love for Carol. Meanwhile, Jan swoons over guest star Lynn Anderson. | ||||||
Music
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Notes
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The first and fourth episodes were released on VHS [22] [23] and DVD [24] in the United States in 2000 by Rhino Entertainment.
The Brady Bunch is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz that aired from September 26, 1969, to March 8, 1974, on ABC. The series revolves around a large blended family of six children, with three boys and three girls. After its cancellation in 1974, the series debuted in syndication in September 1975. Though it was never a ratings hit or a critical success during its original run, the program has since become a popular syndicated staple, especially among children and teenage viewers.
Sid Krofft and Marty Krofft, known as The Krofft Brothers and born as Cydus and Moshopopoulos Yolas, were a Canadian sibling team of television creators, writers and puppeteers. Through their production company, Sid & Marty Krofft Pictures, they made numerous children's television and variety show programs in the U.S., particularly in the 1970s, including H.R. Pufnstuf, Land of the Lost, and Sigmund and the Sea Monsters. Their fantasy programs often featured large-headed puppets, high-concept plots, and extensive use of low-budget special effects.
H.R. Pufnstuf is an American children's television series created by Sid and Marty Krofft. It was the first independent live-action, life-sized-puppet program, following on from their work with Hanna-Barbera's program The Banana Splits Adventure Hour. The seventeen episodes were originally broadcast Saturday from September 6, 1969, to December 27, 1969. The broadcasts were successful enough that NBC kept it on the schedule as reruns until September 4, 1971. The show was shot at Paramount Studios and its opening was shot at Big Bear Lake, California. Reruns of the show returned on ABC Saturday morning from September 2, 1972, to September 8, 1973, and on Sunday mornings in some markets from September 16, 1973, to September 8, 1974. It was syndicated by itself from September 1974 to June 1978 and in a package with six other Krofft series under the banner Krofft Superstars from 1978 to 1985. Reruns of the show were featured on TV Land in 1999 as part of its Super Retrovision Saturdaze Saturday morning-related overnight prime programming block and in the summer of 2004 as part of its TV Land Kitschen weekend late-night prime programming block, and it was later shown on MeTV from 2014 until 2016.
The Bugaloos is an American children's television series, produced by brothers Sid and Marty Krofft, that aired on NBC on Saturday mornings from 1970 to 1972. Reruns of the show aired in daily syndication from 1978 to 1985 as part of the "Krofft Superstars" package with six other Krofft series. The show features a musical group composed of four British teenagers in insect-themed outfits, constantly beset by the evil machinations of the talent-challenged Benita Bizarre, played by comedian Martha Raye.
Pink Lady is an American variety show that aired for five weeks on NBC in 1980, starring the Japanese musical duo of the same name. The show is also referred to by the title Pink Lady and Jeff, referring to co-star Jeff Altman. The show was riddled with complications, including a dispute over the name: agents for the starring parties were never able to settle on one, and the show was advertised both ways during its run. Other difficulties included scriptwriting disagreements, guest star booking mishaps, taping and touring conflicts, and the inability of Mie and Kei, the members of Pink Lady, to understand or speak English.
Billy Barty was an American actor and activist. In adult life, he stood 3 ft 9 in (1.14 m) tall, due to cartilage–hair hypoplasia dwarfism. Because of his short stature, he was often cast in films opposite taller performers for comic effect. He specialized in outspoken or wisecracking characters. During the 1950s, he became a television actor, appearing regularly in the Spike Jones ensemble. In the early 1970s, he appeared often in a variety of roles in children's TV programs produced by Sid and Marty Krofft. As an activist for people with dwarfism, he founded the Little People of America organization in 1957.
The Brady Kids is an American animated television series and a spin-off based on the ABC live-action sitcom The Brady Bunch, produced by Filmation in association with Paramount Television. It aired on ABC from September 9, 1972, to October 6, 1973, and also spun off another Filmation series, Mission: Magic!, starring Rick Springfield.
The Bradys is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on CBS from February 9 to March 9, 1990. The series is a sequel and continuation of the original 1969–1974 sitcom The Brady Bunch, focusing on its main characters as adults, and was the second such continuation after the 1981 sitcom The Brady Brides.
Eve Aline Plumb is an American actress, singer and painter. She is best known for portraying the middle daughter Jan Brady on the ABC sitcom The Brady Bunch.
Maureen Denise McCormick is an American actress. She portrayed Marcia Brady on the ABC television sitcom The Brady Bunch, which ran from 1969 to 1974, and reprised the role in several of the numerous Brady Bunch spin-offs and films, including The Brady Kids, The Brady Bunch Hour, The Brady Brides and A Very Brady Christmas (1988). McCormick has appeared in The Amanda Show as Moody's mom in the Moody's Point segment. McCormick also appeared in The Idolmaker (1980) as well as a wide range of other supporting film roles. In the 1980s and 1990s, she ventured into stage acting, appearing in a variety of different roles and productions such as Wendy Darling in Peter Pan and Betty Rizzo in Grease.
Susan Marie Olsen is an American actress and former radio hostess. Olsen is known for her role as Cindy Brady, the youngest Brady child in the sitcom The Brady Bunch for the full run of the show, from 1969 to 1974.
Geri Reischl is an American actress and singer. She was a child actress in the 1970s, most notably as Jan Brady on the variety show The Brady Bunch Hour, and appeared in various television commercials.
Michael Paul Lookinland is an American actor and cameraman. He is best known for his role as the youngest brother, Bobby Brady, on the ABC sitcom The Brady Bunch from 1969 to 1974, and all of its sequels and spinoffs.
The Krofft Supershow is a Saturday morning children's variety show, produced by Sid and Marty Krofft. It aired for two seasons from September 11, 1976, to September 2, 1978, on ABC.
Susan Buckner was an American actress, dancer and beauty pageant winner.
The World of Sid & Marty Krofft at the Hollywood Bowl is a live show at the Hollywood Bowl on July 29, 1973 that was filmed and aired as a television special, produced by Sid and Marty Krofft. It originally aired in syndication on Thanksgiving weekend, November 24, 1973. Although shot at the Hollywood Bowl in front of a live audience, the special also used a laugh track, like other Krofft shows, for sweetening.
Love to Love You Bradys: The Bizarre Story of The Brady Bunch Variety Hour is a 2009 coffee table book written by The Brady Bunch actress Susan Olsen with co-authors Ted Nichelson and Lisa Sutton, about the 1976–77 spin-off TV variety show The Brady Bunch Hour. The book's release also coincided with the 40th anniversary of the debut of The Brady Bunch.
Robyn Blythe is an American former dancer and actress active in the 1970s and 1980s, best known for her featured role in Alice Cooper's film Welcome to my Nightmare (1976) and as a member of The Krofftettes synchronized swimming troupe on TV's The Brady Bunch Hour (1976–77).
Ted Knight was one celebrity who bailed on the Bradys at the last second and was replaced by Vincent Price.
Dore was struggling to book anyone and even had musical guests canceling, so at one point she was forced to bring in H.R. Pufnstuf to fill the void when nobody else would.