Chris and Tracy

[howilu]

in all the years I have watched The Partridge Family, I have noticed that there has only been one episode that centered on Chris and Tracy, the episode when they ran away from home. To me, they don't get a lot of lines as well as being the center of stories as much as Shirley, Keith, Danny, Laurie and Reuben. Anyone else notice that?

[Marvo301]

Originally Posted by howilu

in all the years I have watched The Partridge Family, I have noticed that there has only been one episode that centered on Chris and Tracy, the episode when they ran away from home. To me, they don't get a lot of lines as well as being the center of stories as much as Shirley, Keith, Danny, Laurie and Reuben. Anyone else notice that?

I'm pretty sure it was a deliberate choice by the producers not to give Chris and Tracey many lines. I think they assumed the youngest cast members wouldn't be able to handle much dialogue or be good actors. In Jeremy Gelbwaks case they may have been correct but I believe Suzanne Crough and Brian Forster were far more capable actors than the producers gave them credit for.

[LittleRickyII]

Originally Posted by Marvo301

I believe Suzanne Crough and Brian Forster were far more capable actors than the producers gave them credit for.

Brian maybe, but Suzanne???

[gidgetgrape]

At least the writers didn't phase out the two characters like they did on shows like Family Matters (Judy) and Happy Days (Chuck). It so weird that they would add Ricky, when they didn't do much with Chris and Tracy though.

[caro]

At least Ricky could sing. The Tracy character couldn't keep time with the music with her tambourine. Chris character might not have been much better. I don't think the Partridge Family was too much into character development. Rueben could have had more of a life. I think a lot was lost in the show when David had his contract renewed and they had to find more for him to do. I think Danny was better at carrying the show than Keith.

[jehobden]

Originally Posted by gidgetgrape

At least the writers didn't phase out the two characters like they did on shows like Family Matters (Judy) and Happy Days (Chuck). It so weird that they would add Ricky, when they didn't do much with Chris and Tracy though.

I was surprised, but pleased, to find out that Ricky had been phased out at midseason. I couldn't stand him, as he was PF's own Cousin Oliver/Sam McKinney, though I enjoyed seeing Nita Talbot as his mom in the season premiere. According to IMDB, he appeared in 10 S4 episodes, the last of them airing in December 1973.

[um]

You must be a second or probably a third-generation fan.
Almost since the series began, it was well known that the two youngest children were essentially invisible.
They were just there to be tentatively obvious enough so that it is known that the band is made up of a few very young musicians (if you call strictly playing the tambourine being a musician).

Danny usually was the one around whom the plots centered.
He was the kid who was "Wise beyond his years" and was a thorn in the side of the band's manager Rubin , and secondly a pain to his older brother Keith and more than a handful for his mother Shirley.

I guess that the producers gave Tracy and Chris one episode to be the center of attention and that was in "Home is Where The Heart Was."

I guess for more than one kid to be outstandingly wise-cracking and trouble-making would be disorienting.

[um]

Originally Posted by caro

At least Ricky could sing. The Tracy character couldn't keep time with the music with her tambourine. Chris character might not have been much better. I don't think the Partridge Family was too much into character development. Rueben could have had more of a life. I think a lot was lost in the show when David had his contract renewed and they had to find more for him to do. I think Danny was better at carrying the show than Keith.

But didn't all the cast members have to have their contracts renewed?
I guess it is right in a sense about David being given more to do, but for that matter Danny reached a point in which it was absurd that he was so much the focus of the adventures, or misadventures or plots. He "carried" the show in a certain way, but it got to where the show "Jumped The Shark" just because of him, or his character. Danny was a cute 10 year old when the show began but as the show went into further seasons he reached his early teens and was still presented as the mischievous red-head who was wise beyond his years. He seemed too old at this point to still be treated like a pre-teen. I think when one of the episodes had Shirley finally giving Danny a spanking ( off camera) Danny must have been 13 at least, probably 14.
So his role as the one who creates problems for others or gets himself into predicaments because of his youth seemed overdone and over extended.

[Marvo301]

Originally Posted by caro

At least Ricky could sing. The Tracy character couldn't keep time with the music with her tambourine. Chris character might not have been much better. I don't think the Partridge Family was too much into character development. Rueben could have had more of a life. I think a lot was lost in the show when David had his contract renewed and they had to find more for him to do. I think Danny was better at carrying the show than Keith.

I don't think the writers of Partridge Family were as concerned about character development as they were about exploring the relationships between different characters. For example the relationship between Rueben and Danny was central to a number of episodes. Likewise the relationship between Keith and Laurie and the relationship between Keith and Danny.

[Nurse Sully]

I really think Danny carried this show most of the time. Sure both David Cassidy and Shirley Jones could sing, but Danny was a fine young comedic actor that kept the stories of that show flowing with laughs. Throw in the beauty of Susan Dey and her occasional storylines there just were not anytime for much about Chris and Tracy.

[um]

Originally Posted by caro

At least Ricky could sing. The Tracy character couldn't keep time with the music with her tambourine. Chris character might not have been much better. I don't think the Partridge Family was too much into character development. Rueben could have had more of a life. I think a lot was lost in the show when David had his contract renewed and they had to find more for him to do. I think Danny was better at carrying the show than Keith.

Back then, it seemed that the addition of Ricky was something really significant for the show, or it was advertised to be. Decades later I realize it was a sign of the show having had already become stale and an attempt was made to introduce a new character to do something about it, but it did not actually work.

Tracy did not keep time with the music, but if you look at the classical video of the Monkees (link below) singing Daydream Believer, you will see that Mickey Dolenz does not always keep time playing the tambourine either, most notably starting at about 1:45 into the song.
Of course it is not exactly the same as when the Tracy character faked playing the tambourine. Mickey made up for it with comedic timing. I also heard that the Monkees did things like mess up the music parts of the show in some ridiculous way because it was their way of protesting being kept from actually making their own music on the show.

Chris Partridge was rarely shown playing the drums except for a few notable closeups on certain songs or scenes and it always showed him doing a simple kind of drumming that almost any child can do. Sure, I am not an expert on drumming but I know that there are ways to play drums in which you have to pound out a fast and very rhythmic beat and use your wrists a lot and be able to move your arms very skillfully, articulately and rapidly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl_XQVKe6So