I heard somewhere that if the Brady Bunch was picked up for another season, the father would have been written out. If this happened then what would happen to the beggining theme song? I think if the Brady Bunch came back for a 6th season they would have changed the theme to an insturmental version with no words, and the whole grid thing would be gone. Instead they'd probably show Each Brady one at a time, and list there real name at the bottom of the screen.

:confused: It would have been really weird. I agree. It probably would not be the grid. I think even without Mike the show was
going down hill last season. When they added Oliver. Plus the cheap casting of twin Peter. Then that silly hair tonic episode. I love the Bradys but there time was up. The cast was getting to old to be cute. You know the saying if you love somebody let them go. We loved them but wejust had to let them go. I still love the show. I just don't see how it could have lasted much longer.

Your'e right, I think the show ended at a perfect time. Greg had just graduated High School, and it was time to move on. If it wasn't cancelled then, the show would have gotten too weird, much like Family Matters did after its 5th season, and would have run itself right into the ground.

They could have had Mike take a year long assignment in Tokyo. Mike could have called every week and the family could have visited him in an exciting three part episode.

i don't think i would watch it if mike was gone..

Mike could have called every week and the family could have visited him in an exciting three part episode.

I am afraid Mike would have been fired from the show. Therefore no visits or phone calls (unless it was one of the family members talking to him and not showing him on the other end of the line). They most likely would have cast another actor in his place, but that rarely works.

Originally posted by Urkel_2003
... and the whole grid thing would be gone.

I think they could still use the grid, but with Cousin Oliver in the bottom center square instead of Mike. :D

Originally posted by Urkel_2003
If it wasn't cancelled then, the show would have gotten too weird, much like Family Matters did after its 5th season, and would have run itself right into the ground.

I actually liked Family Matters throughout its run. The Brady Bunch would have worked for Season 6 on IMHO, Mike or no Mike.

CARL: "Go home, Steve!"
CARL: "Go home, go home, go home, go home, GO HOME."
STEVE: "I don't have to take this. I'm going home."

I crack up at that every time!
:D :lol: :crazy: :stooges: :roller: :rofl:

Actually, had there been a sixth season & Robert Reed was indeed fired from the show, then most likely ABC would have done the same thing they pulled on Bewitched! They would have just recast the role!
Think about it people! They replaced every one of the girls in different Brady reunion specials. Also keep in mind that Sherwood had the same problem with Tina Louise on Gilligan's Island & had no problem replacing her with 2 different actress for the three reunion films he did on that show.
More than likely they would have not killed the character of Mike Brady off as Carol had already lost one husband before she met Mike.
It only makes sense that Sherwood & ABC would have recasted the role! Also remember that Sherwood had originally wanted Gene Hackman for the Mike Brady role & got stuck with Bob Reed instead.
The Brady Bunch could have done 8 seasons like Bewitched & just like when Dick York had to leave after the fifth season on that show due to health problems and be replaced by Dick Sargent, more than likely ABC would have done the very same thing with The Brady Bunch if it came down to actually firing Bob Reed & had the show not been cancelled!

And if the role had been recast, they could have remade early episodes with the new actor, the same way "Bewitched" did with the two Darrins. How about:

1. "Second Honeymoon". Carol and Mike ground all the kids for bad behavior shortly before leaving on their second honemoon. While on the trip, they feel guilty about the punishment, so they return home in the middle of the night to take the kids with them.

2. "Is There Another Doctor in the House?". The kids all come down with the...mumps! Carol and Mike are still split on whether to use Dr. Porter or Dr. Cameron.

3. "Katchoo, Part Two". Bobby develops an allergy, and Mike is worried that he's allergic to Carol (it turns out that he's allergic to Romeo and Juliet, the rabbits).

4. "Lost Watch, Found Watch". Peter mysteriously receives a watch in the mail, and promptly loses it. The family decides to reenact the crime. It turns out Sam the Butcher sent it to Peter because he was the middle son in his family, too.

5. "Elect Brady". Jan and Peter run against each other for student council president.

6. "The Voice of Easter". Carol loses her voice right before she is scheduled to perform at Easter services. Cindy asks the Easter Bunny to give her mommy her voice back.

7. "Getting Peter Tork". Jan unwisely promises to get ex-Monkee Peter Tork to perform at a school dance. The rest of the family tries everything they can think of to help her get in touch with Peter Tork.

8. "The Achievable Fantasy". Bobby accidentally gives Greg's journal away to a charity book drive. Greg is worried that the journal will fall into the wrong hands, because in it he wrote about his crush on Lucie Arnaz. The rest of the family helps track the journal down, and Ms. Arnaz guest stars.

Hey TV Guide,

Those new episode listings are not bad!

It is more than likely had The Brady Bunch lasted another 3 years we would have also seen 3 part episodes to Europe, New York & all kinds of other adventures that were also played out on The Brady Kids cartoon.

I think we would have also seen the wedding of Alice & Sam & had Sherwood knew well in advance that the show would be yanked by ABC after the fifth season, I am sure we would have seen Alice & Sam tie the knot in the last season, possibly it would have been the last episode which would have been fitting as a final episode since the first episode is when Mike & Carol wed.

I also think we would have seen a cross over episode of The Brady Bunch turn up on Gilligan's Island. Although Gilligan was cancelled in 1967, the old lagoon at CBS Radford still existed & Sherwood could have easily rounded up all if not a few of the castaways to guest star on a three part episode where the Brady's get stranded on Gilligan's Island.
Can you imagine how that would have played out???

The Brady's are on a cruise ship when they suddenly get seperated on a raft and sail into the Gilligan lagoon & there is Gilligan, Skipper, Mr. Howell, Mrs. Howell, The Professor & Maryann & the rest.... (the reason I say the rest is because I am not sure if Tina Louise would have participated as Ginger.)

Anyway, the castaways are there to greet the Brady's and help them ajust to being stranded on the island. It is there that Carol relaizes her ex-dead husband, Roy Hinkley "The Professor" is alive!!!
(This plot-line was in fact written into the movie, A Very Brady Christmas.)
And in the third episode we would see the Brady's somehow get off the island with the castaways still stranded!

Interesting, huh?
I am sure Sherwood would have considered such an episode after the success of The Grand Canyon & Hawaii episodes...

Take Care

Originally posted by TV Guy
And if the role had been recast, they could have remade early episodes with the new actor, the same way "Bewitched" did with the two Darrins. How about:


CONTINUING:

9. "Jan Is The Sun": Jan is nominated for the role of Juliet in the school's "Romeo and Juliet" production. Jan handles the stardom much better than her older sister.

10. "The Treasure of Clinton Way": Cousin Oliver and Bobby are playing football and find a wallet full of cash. Right away they decide to split it seven ways. The rightful owner shows up like in the original.

That's all I could think of.

The Brady Bunch ended at just the right time.

What are your favorite Bardy Bunch episodes?
Personally mine are The Hawaii, Grand Canyon & Amusement park episodes.

Do you think we should have seen more episodes where The Brady's went on vacation?

Personally it would have been nice to see the Brady's visit New York, Washington D.C. (Oh wait they made a movie out of that) Europe, Australia & even Asia.

What do you all think???

Should we have seen more episodes with The Brady's out of the house on vacation during the 5 seasons it was on the air?

Take Care
Jack

No they would have kept the whole grid for the wholesome family show it was... they would have said Mike Brady is working in another country on an arhcitectural project, thus he's away for an extended period of time, of course Carol would answer the telephone, Sam would be more of the father figure due to Alice and the kids, etc...so Mike would written out, but in the story line of working on buildings, shopping centers out of the country...

Not really Beavis, that may have worked for just only half a season just like they did with the first Darrin "Dick York" on Bewitched where they also did the same thing saying he was away on business when Dick York missed several shows & Samantha was also seen talking to Darrin on the phone and you would not see Darrin!

But if The Brady Bunch had gone on another season or more, somewhere along the way, ABC would have replaced Robert Reed's character too. It's just the normal thing to do on televison shows.

Maybe they would have considered that if Bob Reed had died in real life while still working on the show, but you have to remember he was about to be fired by Sherwood Schwartz who had the ok by ABC & I doubt Sam the butcher would of become the father figure. That's like saying Abner Kravitz would have have taken over as father figure to Tabitha on Bewitched when Dick York was forced to leave Bewitched due to his health problems.

A similar situation also took place on The Munsters when the first Marilyn "Beverley Owen" demanded to be let out of her contract & was replaced by "Pat Priest".


Mike Brady held the Bunch together & without him there would be no show.
The show could have went on with Bob Reed, but not without the character of Mike Brady & trust me had there been a sixth, a seventh or even an eighth season & Bob Reed could not do the show, another actor would have been cast!

They replaced Maureen Mc Cormick "Marcia" the most popular Brady child when CBS brought back The Brady's as a new series in 1990. You did not see Sherwood writing her out of the script just because Maureen refused to be a part on The Brady's or a year earlier when Susan Olsen "Cindy" who could not be a part of a Very Brady Christmas because she had just gone on her real life Honeymoon & was unavailable to film the movie. Sherwood could have easily just wrote that Cindy was away at college, but again he just ended up replacing a Brady with another actor.

So maybe it's best for most fans that the Brady Bunch was cancelled in 1974, because alot of people would have not been happy with the new Mike Brady had the show gone on.
Alot of people feel the same way about Bewitched & the whole 2 Darrin's subject.
Most fans think that the Dick Sargent years on Bewitched were the worst for the series & felt the show should of ended after the fifth season & then there are others who love Dick Sargent as Darrin.

But in the case of The Brady Bunch, things just happened for a reason & maybe it's good that it did, because that time off from when the original series was cancelled had softened Sherwood & Lloyd Schwartz up that they were able to forgive Bob Reed & work with him again in The Brady Bunch Hour, The Brady Girls Get Married, A Very Brady Christmas & The Brady's even though all the Brady books out there say that Bob still continued at times to be a royal pain to work with. But that was Bob!

Rest In Peace now Robert Reed the first & only "Mike Brady" on the original Brady Bunch show...

Sherwood Schwartz has actually said in several books that Mike would have been killed off in a helicopter accident, and the show would have then focused on the kids trying to fix up their mother with a new man.

I don't think anyone here can say definitely what would have happened. IMO, if the show had gone on for a sixth season, it would have been because the ratings were good and ABC would have insisted that Robert Reed stay (i.e. no Reed, no renewal).

You know, I just realized that Sherwood said Mike would have been killed in the accident in the 1990s drama "The Bradys" if it had been renewed. For the original show, he said that Mike would have been sent away on an extended business trip.

TV Guide Guy, you are right about Mike being killed off on The Brady's, because that may have worked on that series as it was now a drama in the 90's & they were used to tragedy on that series with Bobby's car crash & all. However on the original ABC show what Sherwood would have wanted & what ABC would have wanted were 2 different things!
You have to remember that back then writing something like that about a father being away on a trip or being killed was taboo. Today they could get away with that like what ABC has to deal with on 8 Simple Rules after John Ritter's passing.

But you did say one thing about no Bob Reed, No Brady Bunch.
But the fact of the matter is it would have been no Mike Brady, no Brady Bunch!
They could have not gone on with this show had there been no Mike Brady.

Sherwood would have never gotten the OK by ABC to rewrite the whole theme song to introduce a new man in Carol's life!
That would just be so ridiculous and more money wasted than simply finding a new actor to take over Mike's role!
The whole show is about a man named Brady with three boys of his own!
ABC would have not stood for this and I assure you the viewers would have not accepted a new man in the house or a new theme song.
Everything would have then become too complicated.
It would have just been easier to recast the Mike Brady role with another actor.

Again, sure they could have written him out of a few shows like they did with the first Darrin on Bewitched, but how long do you think that would have lasted?
Sooner or later they would have to bring Mike back home!
The Brady Bunch was a family show that was not about to deal with death in 1974. Subjects like that were seen on the other show "All In The Family."

On Dallas, the producers wrote Miss Ellie "Barbara Bel Geddess" off on an extended vacation, but they soon realized that they needed her back in the house & when they could not get Barbara to come back to the series, they recasted the role with "Donna Reed" as the new Miss Ellie.
Of course, Donna was fired off the series after one season to bring back Barbara, but the point being here agian is that when you have a hit show, you don't try to change it or move it in a different direction unless you are really down in the ratings, you just do what you can & recasting a role is the most practical thing to do on TV without doing any other major damage to the show itself.
Soap operas recast roles everyday on daytime TV.
In fact, I recall Robert Reed taking over another actor's role on the soap opera "The Doctors" back in the early 80's.
So you see, it's not an uncommon thing to take place on TV. Even the original Mike Brady did his share of taking over the part!

Sure there would have been alot of network meetings with Sherwood but it really is safe to say that had there been a sixth season, Robert Reed would not come back after what went down with him on the last episode & how he felt about the show in the 5 years he worked on it. Bob made it clear that he hated the show & wanted off! And Sherwood and his son Lloyd wanted him off the show too & would have gladly written him off the show.
ABC executives would have insisted that the part be recast, the same thing they did to William Asher when they made him recast a new Darrin on Bewitched.
The reality of TV is, it's all about money & ratings & the network always has the final say...

Take Care

As I mentioned above, Sherwood Schwartz said he would have had Mike go away on an extended business trip. I believe that ABC would have forced him to keep Robert Reed. But ultimately, there's no way of knowing -- networks have done various things in the past when it comes to dealing with difficult stars.

TV Guide guy, I agree with you!
Although Sherwood & Lloyd Schwartz would have tried to write Bob Reed off the show had there been a sixth season & I am sure Bob would have not wanted to come back anyway since there was too much friction between him & the producers, I agree that ABC would have forced Sherwood to make peace & keep Bob on the show & that recasting the role would have been the last solution.

But had there really been a sixth season & Bob did not make it back, there would only be so many episodes that the viewers could handle of Mike's absence. So one way or the other, Mike Brady would have came back home with Bob Reed playing him or another actor...

Please note: That Tina Louise "Ginger" on Gilligan's Island was just as difficult as Bob Reed on her show & she too had made up her mind not to renew her contract after the third season was over. She felt trapped in her contract for three seasons & Sherwood had already decided to replace her!
In fact he already had the script for it, now whether CBS would agree to it is another thing.
So maybe it was a good thing that Gilligan's Island was cancelled too!
2 years earlier, when Beverley Owen "Marilyn Munster" wanted out of her contract on The Munsters, CBS allowed it only if the producers could find another actress to take over the role.
Pat Priest was quickly cast as "Marilyn #2."
So much for TV history...

Take Care

As I said above, there is no way to tell what would have happened -- networks have both replaced lead actors ("Bewitched") and written out lead characters ("Valerie") in the past. So any speculation on your or my part is just that -- speculation.

TV Guy,

Valerie was on NBC in the 80's!
A show more advanced to write in the death of the mother on a sitcom
They had no choice to bring in Sandy Duncan & change the show's title.
Valerie Harper was the star of that show & her name was used!
NBC fired Valerie and for fear of lawsuit, they had no choice but to create a whole new show.
In that case, you could not recast another actress as Valerie!
That would be a slap in the face to Valerie & a big insult to her & the viewers.
Valerie was Valerie.


The Brady Bunch was not called Robert or The Robert Reed show.
The Brady Bunch was a group show, and like they replaced Marcia, Jan & Cindy in the other Brady projects, I am quite sure back then ABC would have just replaced Mike with another actor as they did on Bewitched with Darrin, Mrs. Kravitz, Louise Tate & Frank Stephens all principal characters on Bewitched!

TV History shows that the ABC Network had no problem replacing well known actor's roles on their hit shows...

BEWITCHED
Darrin: Dick York
Darrin: Dick Sargent

Mrs. Kravitz: Alice Pearce
Mrs. Kravitz: Sandra Gould

Louise Tate: Irene Vernon
Louise Tate: Kasey Rogers

Frank Stephens: Robert F. Simon
Frank Stephens: Roy Roberts

BATMAN
Mr. Freeze: George Sanders
Mr. Freeze: Otto Preminger
Mr. Freeze: Eli Wallach

Catwoman: Julie Newmar
Catwoman: Eartha Kitt

The Riddler: Frank Gorshin
The Riddler: John Astin

DYNASTY
Fallon Carrington: Pamela Sue Martin
Fallon Carrington: Emma Samms

Steven Carrington: Al Corley
Steven Carrington: Jack Coleman

Amanda Carrington: Catherine Oxenberg
Amanda Carrington: Karen Cellini

ROSEANNE
Becky Conner: Lecy Goranson
Becky Connor: Sarah Chalke

Again it's safe to say that ABC would have replaced Robert Reed had there been a sixth season & he was not available to come back!
ABC's history clearly shows that you don't mess with a hit show & write off principal characters!
You simply replace them with another actor.
At least on their network.

Take Care

As I said, that's your opinion, but there is no way you or I can know how Paramount and ABC would have handled the Robert Reed situation. Recasts have been done in the past, but so have character replacements (as well as killing off characters). Your speculation of a recast is just that -- speculation.

TV Guy, wake up & smell the Brady strawberries!

If each of the girls have all been played by different actors, what makes you think the father could not be replaced???

Did you see Sherwood writing or killing one of the Brady girls off just because each of them at one time could not be a part of The Brady Bunch???

My God, they replaced Maureen Mc Cormick "Marcia" The most popular Brady on the whole show!
If they can replace Maureen, I doubt very seriously that Shrewood or any of the networks would have had a problem recasting the Mike Brady Role!

The Show is called The Brady Bunch, not 8 Simple Rules To Dating My Teenage Daughter!
A show back then in 1974 on ABC would not write into the script that the father was away on an extended business trip or that he passed away.
Not on a hit show where the title & theme song said it all!

Where as John Ritter was the star of 8 Simple Rules & his name did come first in the credits before everyone else, Robert Reed's name came after Florence Henderson as did both Darrin's on Bewitched after Elizabeth Montgomery & again, both Darrin's & Robert Reed were not the BIG NAME STARS of their shows!

Maybe today in 2003, ABC can pull that off about the father passing away or being away because we have come a long way in reality set in TV Sitcoms, but again in those days, everything on the Brady Bunch was resolved in a half hour & Mike being absent for more than one show would have been totally not Brady!
The group of nine chracters is what made the show!
You don't make Carol a widow after she has already been a widow & you don't send the head of the household off on an extended business trip & leave a single mother & housekeeper to raise six kids!
And no, another father figure would have not replaced Mike while he was away because then ABC would have had to rewrite the whole theme song & that would have been a slap in our faces telling us that the last 5 years were nothing more than a BIG JOKE!

Like I stated before, it's safe to say that had their been a sixth season of The Brady Bunch & Robert Reed was not available to play Mike Brady, someone else would have...

CASE CLOSED!

COURT IS NOW ADJOURNED!