the brady bunch

There are a lot of TV show set designs that I love, but I've never really given any thought to how put them together exactly. I used to assume they just drew up plans and/or blueprints with the measurements and all that and then the set designers and the rest of the crew would build the sets. I never once thought they were done this way.

On The Set has pictures of the original dioramas (those little models you might have built for a class back in school, though I never did) made for various shows over the years. These things are great! Check out the Price is Right set above. The site even has more dioramas from the show, from different angles.

Guest stars can be good and guest stars can be not-so-good, but this one sounds like a winner to me. EW's Michael Ausiello has an exclusive report that Florence Henderson will be on Samantha Who?

And if you think Christina Applegate kind of looks like she could be related to Florence, you're not alone. The Brady Bunch veteran has been cast as Samantha Newly's grandmother, Jean Smart's mama. And if that's not blonde goodness and potential hilarity for you, TVGuide.com has another exclusive; Christine Ebersole will play Sammy's aunt. In the very same storyline!

You mean Bea Arthur wasn't already in the TV Academy Hall of Fame before today? Well, actually, that was Bea's choice. In a very Maude-like way, she had turned them down. "I said, `So sorry, very nice of you, but I can't possibly accept. There are so many talented people in the business,'" Arthur recalled.

However, she's had a chance to think it over and when asked again, she agreed to become a Hall of Famer, just like Lucille Ball, Johnny Carson and Bill Cosby.

As I wrote previously, the TV Academy Hall of Fame will expand to include Bea Arthur, Merv Griffin, Larry Gelbart (M*A*S*H), Sherwood Schwartz (Gilligan's Island, The Brady Bunch), and ABC executives Thomas Murphy and Daniel B. Burke. On December 9 in Beverly Hills, the awards will be presented.

You can't stop those Wayans brothers when it comes to doing anything for a laugh. Apparently, one of their long time dreams has been a big screen remake of a 1960's sitcom.

They've been working on a script since 2004, but they are saying now that The Munsters movie is nearly ready to roll. I know, I know, how many times have we seen beloved TV series turned into horrible features? For every good one -- The Brady Bunch -- there's a lemon like Leave It to Beaver. The Wayans Brothers clearly believe that they have the goods to make The Munsters like the former rather than the latter.

However, I have to worry about how well they know the material when Shawn Wayans says, "Their characters are still who they were in the '50s. It's just in modern day." Umm, excuse me -- the '50s? The Munsters premiered in 1964 and ran till 1966; it was set in present day. Didn't the Wayanses notice that?

Maureen McCormick a.k.a. the Original Marcia Brady is releasing her very own tell-all book, Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice, which hits stores tomorrow. It seems that celebrity created for her the usual spiral of drugs and sex and sex-for-drugs as it does for so many other child stars.

I find it interesting how her story contrasts the book released by Barry "Greg Brady" Williams, which I have read. Williams basically described some awkward situations for himself and some marijuana use but never did he describe any of the Brady kids sinking so low. I recall his last line of the book saying that there "wasn't a bad banana in the Bunch".

I wonder if this inconsistency is going to cause conflict between the two Brady ex-child stars (and former boyfriend and girlfriend). It could lead to an episode of Celebrity Boxing. Christopher Knight can be the guest referee, if he can drag himself away from Trivial Pursuit.

One of the highlights of this year's primetime Emmys is going to be musical. That's right, I'm psychic. I've looked into the future and can tell you without equivocation that Josh Groban singing a medley of TV themes from 60 years of programs will stop the show.

On September 21, the night ABC broadcasts the big anniversary of the Primetime Emmys, producer Ken Ehrlich has tapped balladeer Groban for a four-minute medley of TV themes. The mind reels with the possibilities of how many memorable melodies he can fit into 240 seconds.

Some choices seem obvious: Cheers (where everybody knows your name), The Jeffersons (movin' on up to the big time), The Beverly Hillbillies (black gold, Texas T), The Flintstones (they're a modern stone-aged family).

Like I said, the possibilities are vast, and the promise of a something hilarious is sure fire.

This was inevitable, really. Ex-Brady Bunch star and current reality show favorite Christopher Knight is going to host a new syndicated version of the board game Trivial Pursuit.

I have to agree with Rich Heldenfels when he says this press release for the show is rather odd. It's way too long, the type of bio you get when someone is trying to look more important, more well-rounded than they are. Not that Knight hasn't been around a while, but a list of the TV shows he's done would be enough, instead of saying weird things like "once and forever a Brady!" and "Christopher's successful endeavors beyond showbiz exist in peaceful subordination to his portrayal of Peter and his arguably estimable contribution to American pop culture." Wha? And when talking about the show TV Road Trip, why is the word "host" in quotes?

Anyway, maybe they'll have celebrity contestants on at some point. Maybe Peter's mom can be on the show. It bows on September 22.

[via TV Tattle]

Of course, by "Mrs. Brady" I mean the woman with Wessonality, Florence Henderson, and by "son" I mean her TV son Christopher Knight, who played pork chops and applesauce-lovin middle kid Peter on The Brady Bunch.

Henderson was speaking at a press conference at the Television Critics Association tour for a new Hallmark Channel movie when she mentioned that she thinks that VH-1 pressured Knight into getting married to America's Next Top Model's Adrianne Curry so they could create buzz and more reality show goodness.

Robbie Rist is one of the most well-known child stars there is. Oddly enough it's not because he got arrested or starred in a reality show about his crazy marriage. He is well-known for his body of work.

Robbie has worked on some of the most popular shows on television including The Brady Bunch, Mary Tyler Moore, Galactica 1980, The Bionic Woman and, of course, the immortal Kidd Video, just to name a few.

Each year, the Emmys honor the best in current TV. They also recognize the all-time greats. This year Bea Arthur, Larry Gelbart, Merv Griffin, Daniel Burke, Tom Murphy and Sherwood Schwartz will be entering the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Hall of Fame. Grand choices, in my opinion, with only a minor quibble which I'll mention later.

According to ATAS chairman and CEO John Shaffner , "The Hall of Fame is a special recognition for those who have made significant contributions and have left an indelible mark on the television business." As Maude in the 1970's and Dorothy on The Golden Girls in the 1980's (into the '90s) Beatrice Arthur, made her mark. She was more effective on TV than she was in the theater, and she was a dynamo on stage.

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There are six human beings on this planet who will be forever linked by one experience: growing up on the set of The Brady Bunch. But, of the six actors who played the Brady kids during the show's 1969-74 run, none has embraced the role as consistently and enthusiastically as Barry Williams, who played Greg. Over the years, Williams has been involved in every reunion show (including the ill-fated "dramatic" show The Bradys in 1990) and has never shied away from discussing the show during interviews. He even wrote a book about the experience, 1992's Growing Up Brady: I Was a Teenage Greg, where he recounted stories like his crush on co-star Maureen McCormick, his "date" with his TV mom, Florence Henderson, and Robert Reed's constant arguments with the producers. The book was made into a TV movie in 2000.

Now, at 53, Williams has a blog, called The Greg Brady Project, which debuted in December. There, Williams tells stories about his experiences as an actor over the last 40-plus years while a series of co-writers wax nostalgic about the past, and not necessarily about The Brady Bunch. I spoke to Williams by phone earlier this month. We talked about the blog, why he's embraced his Greg Brady past more than his co-stars, and what he thinks of some of those co-stars' new projects. The interview is after the jump.
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If you've read any of the 200 books written about The Brady Bunch or seen any of the TV movies or "behind the scenes" exposes, you know that Robert Reed wasn't a big fan of the show's scripts. In fact, he had battles with the producers on the show many times and even refused to be in a couple of episodes because of the plot and/or his arguments with the people in charge of the show.

And it wasn't just verbal arguments. Reed actually took the time to send memos to the producers explaining why a certain plot point/line/scene didn't make sense. Reed was a veteran TV (The Defenders) and stage actor and often referred to Shakespeare in his memos. This site has one of the memos, and after the jump is the full text of the memo (it's about the classic episode where Greg's hair turns green because of some shampoo Bobby sold him).

I got a great question this week from a fan named Alan...

"My wife swears this show existed in the early to mid 80s. Here's what she remembers... Animated kids who were once live action kids but somehow became animated. They played in a rock band. The theme song to the show was, "Owner of a Lonely Heart," by Yes.* It is not "The Brady Bunch Kids."

*This fact seems the most suspect to me as there is no mention of this song being used as a theme song to anything. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks."

As I was watching all my favorite holiday specials this season, it became clear to me that there's a desperate need for some new offerings. Then I started thinking that if weekly shows can spinoff characters then why can't specials? With that in mind, here are my ideas for spinoffs to make your holidays more festive.

Out of the Box
Nobody wants a Charlie in the Box...except Charlie. After years of being not being delivered by Santa Claus, Charlie from the island of misfit toys decides it's time to make a change. Determined to find himself and discover what he was really made for, Charlie travels the country living on the road and meeting adventures head on. After living the life of Kerouac, Charlie returns to share his wisdom with the jelly squirting gun, ostrich riding cowboy and the doll with the unnamed condition.

What's happening on other blogs via the interweb.

• Gloria Reuben is returning to ER, and so is Noah Wyle.
• CBS is getting heat for having Rita Braver interview Lynne Cheney.
• Seth Green is going to guest star on two episodes of Grey's Anatomy.
• I first saw this on Jimmy Kimmel Live: the Star Wars trumpet girl!
• What's with the odd promos for the new TBS series Frank TV?
• Jaime Weinman analyzes The Brady Bunch as much as I do, heh.
• Check out Buddy TV's television quiz.