At what point did The Brady Bunch head for the land of no return??

The dreaded Cousin Oliver!!!

Without a doubt the dreaded Cousin Oliver!!!!!

Originally posted by Dr. Thong
At what point did The Brady Bunch head for the land of no return??


The turning point was September 26, 1969

Cousin Oliver.

None of the above. I personally thought the series could have kept going for a sixth season, possibly beyond.

The dreaded Cousin Oliver!!!

I think Oliver is a scape goat.

The show was in trouble and he was brought in to try to save it. It didn't work.

Brady Bunch failed in spite of Oliver, not because of him!

I suppose, though, that many fans will always resent the fact that Oliver had the last line on Brady Bunch!

I think Oliver is a scape goat.

The show was in trouble and he was brought in to try to save it. It didn't work.

Brady Bunch failed in spite of Oliver, not because of him!

I supposed, though, that many fans will always resent the fact that Oliver had the last line on Brady Bunch!

"Gosh, it was only a suggestion!" :)

He was also the only Brady allowed to say "sex".

Most shows, if they're lucky, have a good run of about five years. The Brady Bunch was put out of its misery before they resorted to having Mrs. Brady get pregnant, the sure sign of desperation for an aging sitcom.

Most shows, if they're lucky, have a good run of about five years. The Brady Bunch was put out of its misery before they resorted to having Mrs. Brady get pregnant, the sure sign of desperation for an aging sitcom.

I've always found it weird that they would consider making her pregnant given the fact that the six kids were all grown up. To me it's unusual for there to be such a large age difference among siblings.

I've always found it weird that they would consider making her pregnant given the fact that the six kids were all grown up. To me it's unusual for there to be such a large age difference among siblings.

Unusual, perhaps, but certainly not unheard of. My mother is 14 years older than her oldest brother and 20 years older than her sister, who is 9 days younger than my older brother. (so she became an aunt 9 days before she was born!)

I've always found it weird that they would consider making her pregnant given the fact that the six kids were all grown up. To me it's unusual for there to be such a large age difference among siblings.

Carol only gave birth to the girls, though. And having a late in life baby is not uncommon. Even that would have been more acceptable than Cousin Oliver.

I just think the show had run its course. The Brady kids were all teenagers by the end (or were all pretty close to it) - and had it gone on longer the plots would surely have been as bad, if not worse, than the ones in Season 5. I think it was just time.

I agree with the poster that said Cousin Oliver is a 'scapegoat.' While he didn't fit the show, and any of his interactions didn't bring the median age of the family back down because it was always he and the other kids getting into shenanigans, the show had outgrown its setting by the 5th season. A mixed family was much less of a novelty by then-- as if the BB even appeared to be a mixed family after the first season-- an architect solely supporting a large family with a fulltime housekeeper didn't seem plausible any more with the femimism and inflation of the mid-70's, and also by then the trend in TV comedy was the Lear shows and similar ones, that dealt directly with sexual and racial and economic issues, while the BB was more like Father Knows Best with early 70's color and styles. And add to all this the behind-the-camera stuff going on; that Reed had always despised the show and argued with Schwartz about scripts, demanding changes or refusing to do a few of them at all; that the kids were increasingly uncomfortable with their 'silly' roles and worried about how the show would affect them afterword; and certainly the declining ratings (which had never been that high) losing more to the new ethnic and trended show, Sanford and Son,... there was just nowhere to go but down for such a show by that time. But the fact that a new four-eyed, clumsy, dupable kid with a bit of identity-crisis was brought on can make for a scapegoat for the show's troubles.

Most shows, if they're lucky, have a good run of about five years. The Brady Bunch was put out of its misery before they resorted to having Mrs. Brady get pregnant, the sure sign of desperation for an aging sitcom.

Ah, but think of the drama of carol becoming a widow and then discovering that she was pregnant!

Of course, the trouble is that Brady Bunch was a sitcom, not a drama!

I've always found it weird that they would consider making her pregnant given the fact that the six kids were all grown up. To me it's unusual for there to be such a large age difference among siblings.
:lol:

I have 3 kids ages 24, 19 and 6. ;)

It is more common than you think.

My mom's oldest sister was married and had 2 kids before my mom was even born! :lol:

My mom's oldest sister was married and had 2 kids before my mom was even born! :lol:


Do you have any pictures of the kids holding their younger aunt?

My mom's oldest sister was married and had 2 kids before my mom was even born! :lol:
My boyfriend has two daughters whose ages are 24 and 29. Add our son that makes his kids 29, 24 and 6. ;)

My son has four older sisters. Two of whom each have a daughter who are OLDER than him (their uncle). :lol:

I'm sure I do, Six, why?

Sounded like a cute picture to take in that situation. Kinda like the picture of my mother and grandmother holding My older brother and aunt as newborns.

I'm not suggesting you post it on here or anything like that (it would be just as off topic as this thread is getting to be!). Might be a cool thing to put on your website if you have one.

Ah, but think of the drama of carol becoming a widow and then discovering that she was pregnant!

Of course, the trouble is that Brady Bunch was a sitcom, not a drama!

It was a drama behind the scenes. Does that count for anything?:D

Sounded like a cute picture to take in that situation. Kinda like the picture of my mother and grandmother holding My older brother and aunt as newborns.

I'm not suggesting you post it on here or anything like that (it would be just as off topic as this thread is getting to be!). Might be a cool thing to put on your website if you have one.
It is very normal for threads on this board to get off topic. That is what makes S.O. so special. :cool: