Well I thought the pop-up Brady pilot episode would solve this mystery, but all they said was that it was a photo of an actress who had tried out for the part of Carol. Does anybody know this mystery woman?

I had read in the past that some people thought this photo was of Mike Lookinland's mother.

Re: "... but all they said was that it was a photo of an actress who had tried out for the part of Carol. Does anybody know this mystery woman? "

TJ - I (unfortunately) missed the honeymoon pop up episode...but I may be able to shed SOME light (maybe not enough) on this...

When auditions were held for the BBunch, there were actually two sets of 3 girls (one blond set and one dark haired set) and two sets of 3 boys (again, one set with blond hair and one with dark hair) who were "picked" for the roles of the kids...however, as to which kids would finally be cast in the parts, it would depend on who the parents turned out to be...

When Robert Reed won the part of Mike, the dark haired boys got the parts (Greg, Peter, Bobby) and when Florence Henderson took the role of Carol, the three blond girls were selected to play Marcia, Jan and Cindy.

It's possible that the woman in the picture was the lady who would have been the "dark" haired Carol...but that's only speculation on my part...I hadn't heard the "Mike Lookinland's Mother" theory, but that's very possible, too...

I'm surprised the pop up episode didn't elaborate...that would have been a great subject to explain, particularly since an entire scene was devoted to Bobby's treatment of the picture...

Interestingly, Joyce Bulifant (sp) actually won the part of Carol, and was even told that she had the part...but when Florence Henderson became available (Flo had been performing on Broadway at the time), Bulifant lost the part...

And, one other note...Gene Hackman tried out for the part of Mike, but didn't get it...Also, Jeffrey Hunter (Capt Christopher Pike from the pilot episode of Star Trek) also tried out for the part, but as it turned out, Hunter died during what would have been the first season of the BBunch.

I thought the kids all did a great job on this show, particulary considering that they were basically picked on looks alone.

Add me to the list of folks who want to know the name of Mrs Brady numero uno! If this one question isn't the hardest Brady trivia question out there, I don't know what is!

I've successfully stumped every so-called Brady trivia expert on the web with this one - it appears NOBODY knows who she is!

Even Florence Henderson has no clue as to who it is. At her website (http://www.flohome.com), a poster asked her that very question:

Nancy asked Flo: On the pilot episode of "The Brady Bunch", Bobby and Mike Brady were holding a picture of Bobby's mother. Can you please tell me the name of the person that was photographed for that picture and also if she has any connections with the producers, writers, actors, etc. from the show, and if yes, how?

Flo: You know, she probably had a conncection with someone on the production staff, but I have absolutely no idea who it was.

Perhaps someone here can take a crack at asking Barry Williams at his website (http://www.barrywilliams.com) this very question - maybe he has an idea who it was. Barry appears to be the type of guy that would try to go out of his way to answer a tough question like this one.

Is there any way to contact Sherwood Schwartz and find out from the man himself - surely he wouldn't have forgotten by now, would he?

Perhaps contacting the authors of all those great Brady books and websites would be just the incentive to get this question exposed and answered. Surely, it's a question that hasn't received much attention at all - so all we have to do is draw up a little attention towards it and the rest should fall into place.

PLEASE post any findings as this one bugs me as well. I, too, was very disappointed during the Pop-Up Brady pilot episode when the best they could come up with was she was one of the women considered for the role of Carol. Somebody has to know! Is there a way to get her out of the closet and identify herself? Anyway possible - this is one I simply have to find out.

Thanks for reading and hope we all get an answer soon!

Also, Jeffrey Hunter (Capt Christopher Pike from the pilot episode of Star Trek) also tried out for the part, but as it turned out, Hunter died during what would have been the first season of the BBunch.



Jeffrey Hunter literally begged Sherwood Schwartz for the part but was told he was too handsome, Schwartz wanted more of an ordinary looking guy for the part. We'll never know what he would have thought of how Brady Bunch turned out since he died on May 27 1969 before it first aired.

Imagine, dying at 42 from a stroke!

Well I thought the pop-up Brady pilot episode would solve this mystery, but all they said was that it was a photo of an actress who had tried out for the part of Carol. Does anybody know this mystery woman?

I had read in the past that some people thought this photo was of Mike Lookinland's mother.

I remember someone once saying that it was just a printed paper picture included with the frame.

I'm pretty sure they were joking, not even the Brady's were that corny!

I remember someone once saying that it was just a printed paper picture included with the frame.

I'm pretty sure they were joking, not even the Brady's were that corny!

Now that I think about it, I suspect that this picture was just something found in the prop department, and nobody knew at the time who she was.