What's going on with the father? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

LiLGhost76 · 11-12-2003, 05:41 PM

I heard the man that played the father didn't even want to be part of the show or something..whats up with this?

Mijada · 11-12-2003, 08:44 PM

I've heard that too. Robert Reed was more of a dramatic actor and didn't want to do a sitcom. He wanted to quit in the first season but for some reason or other he stuck it out. He would often butt heads with the creators of the show. The kids on the show liked him though and have said that he treated them very well.

Mr. Television · 11-12-2003, 08:46 PM

It proves what a great actor Robert Reed was.

Vegas Girl · 11-12-2003, 11:12 PM

Robert Reed looked very natural, like he wasn't even acting.
He always had a lot of expression, without overacting.
He could stand there tying his tie and sound like he was
having a genuine conversation.

Dilly · 11-13-2003, 12:46 AM

...And so handsome! Mrs. Brady sure was lucky.

Tweety · 11-16-2003, 07:32 PM

It's very true that Reed did not want to do the Brady Bunch...he was a great dramatic actor (I believe he won a couple of Emmy's for his role in "The Defenders" crime series). He thought, especially after shooting the pilot episode (in which he and Carol get married) that the Brady Bunch was at least as silly, if not sillier, than Gilligan's Island (another Sherwood Schwarz show).

That he did such a great job playing Mike is a testament to his amazing acting talent...he was as natural a father actor as I've ever seen, in any series...and, although he didn't like doing the show itself, he loved the kids, and Florence, very much...he even took all of the kids to England during one summer, so that they could experience the great theaters of London...and he gave each of the kids movie cameras, so that they could record the trip... Mike Lookinland was so fascinated with cameras, and what you could do with them, that it inspired him to stay in show biz (behind the scenes) long after the Brady Bunch went off the air, mostly as a cameraman....

And, all during the run of the series, Reed would have arguments with Schwarz and the writers about the plots...Reed would have liked some things to be a little more realistic....one funny example I've read about was in the scene in which Carol and Alice are both making strawberry jam, and Mike was supposed to walk into the kitchen and say "Gee, it smells like strawberry heaven in here". When Reed saw that line, he blew his stack and walked off the stage...the reason? because when strawberries cook, they have no odor...so how could it smell like strawberry heaven?

The line, after it was re-written, came out as "Hey, I do believe I've died and gone to strawberry heaven".

Reed wanted the plots and scripts to be realistic, right down to the last detail...he wasn't comfortable with the occassional stretching of the facts which can sometimes happen in sitcoms...

Anyway, Reed was a great acting talent...he and Hugh Beaumont would get my vote as the best "father" actors in TV history (for sitcoms, anyway)...

Vegas Girl · 11-16-2003, 08:01 PM

That's probably why they had the episode with Bobby interested in taking pictures, because he really did like to do that.

Robert Reed was a great actor. I do catch unrealistic things and mistakes that he was probably arguing with the producer about.

Zoneboy · 11-17-2003, 01:05 AM

I have to agree that Robert Reed was perfect as Mike Brady. I also sometimes wonder how the show would have fared if Gene Hackman had played the role as originally intended.

richheart · 11-19-2003, 12:03 AM

The "strawberry" thing was a little too picky, I think. It might be perfectly natural for a man to say "It smells like strawberry heaven," if he sees his wife making strawberry cake and it smells good.

richheart · 11-19-2003, 12:05 AM

Or, in other words, he was probably just trying to impress people with his knowledge of strawberries, and he did it by making a big scene about rewriting the line.

Belair · 03-04-2005, 06:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dilly

...And so handsome! Mrs. Brady sure was lucky.

Oh YESSSS.
When i was young and watched the show i was crazy about Greg,but as i got older,it was Mike that took my fancy.He was a very good looking man,too bad he was gay.

PracTz · 04-02-2005, 08:48 PM

What's a bit ironic is that even though it's now known the Reed disliked the role itself and the show's scripts, he did form a genuine bond with his onscreen kids and tried to guide them paternally! I mean, he even paid for all six of them to accompany himself and his parents on a transatlantic cruise to London to show them where he'd honed his craft!

T-Greg · 04-04-2005, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LiLGhost76

I heard the man that played the father didn't even want to be part of the show or something..whats up with this?

You need to watch the E! True Hollywood Story about the Brady Bunch or try to find "Brady Bunch: The Final Days" (TV movie). These will explain it.

TripperFan · 04-04-2005, 11:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dilly

...And so handsome! Mrs. Brady sure was lucky.

Sorry - not really, turned out that Mr. Brady preferred other Mr. Brady's if ya know what I mean!

TripperFan · 04-04-2005, 11:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PracTz

What's a bit ironic is that even though it's now known the Reed disliked the role itself and the show's scripts, he did form a genuine bond with his onscreen kids and tried to guide them paternally! I mean, he even paid for all six of them to accompany himself and his parents on a transatlantic cruise to London to show them where he'd honed his craft!

Yeah that's what I always found ironic, but could be part of the reason he decided to stay on - it was the closest he was ever going to have to a "family" so it filled a void in itself for him.

11-12-2003, 05:41 PM	#1
LiLGhost76 Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Oct 12, 2003 Posts: 55	What's going on with the father? I heard the man that played the father didn't even want to be part of the show or something..whats up with this?

11-12-2003, 08:46 PM	#3
Mr. Television 22 Years at Sitcoms Online Forum Icon Join Date: Jun 06, 2003 Location: Somewhere you're Not Posts: 62,128	It proves what a great actor Robert Reed was.
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11-17-2003, 01:05 AM	#8
Zoneboy RIP, I'LL NEVER FORGET YOU :( Moderator Forum Superstar Join Date: Jul 13, 2003 Location: AT HOME WISHING ALL THIS WAS JUST A DREAM AND THAT I'LL WAKE UP FROM THIS NIGHTMARE. Posts: 34,349	I have to agree that Robert Reed was perfect as Mike Brady. I also sometimes wonder how the show would have fared if Gene Hackman had played the role as originally intended.
	__________________ 'Twas The Night Before Christmas And All Through The Full House Not A Creature Was Stirring, Not Even Mighty Mouse. All My Children We're Nestled All Snug In Their Beds While Visions Of Sugarbakers Danced In Their Heads.

11-12-2003, 08:44 PM	#2
Mijada Spencers mom Forum 4000 Club Member Join Date: Dec 02, 2001 Location: eastern US Posts: 4,093	I've heard that too. Robert Reed was more of a dramatic actor and didn't want to do a sitcom. He wanted to quit in the first season but for some reason or other he stuck it out. He would often butt heads with the creators of the show. The kids on the show liked him though and have said that he treated them very well.

11-12-2003, 11:12 PM	#4
Vegas Girl Member Senior Member Join Date: Oct 10, 2003 Posts: 1,339	Robert Reed looked very natural, like he wasn't even acting. He always had a lot of expression, without overacting. He could stand there tying his tie and sound like he was having a genuine conversation.

11-13-2003, 12:46 AM	#5
Dilly Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Nov 03, 2003 Location: California Posts: 133	...And so handsome! Mrs. Brady sure was lucky.

11-16-2003, 07:32 PM	#6
Tweety Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Jan 18, 2002 Location: Florida Posts: 6,804	It's very true that Reed did not want to do the Brady Bunch...he was a great dramatic actor (I believe he won a couple of Emmy's for his role in "The Defenders" crime series). He thought, especially after shooting the pilot episode (in which he and Carol get married) that the Brady Bunch was at least as silly, if not sillier, than Gilligan's Island (another Sherwood Schwarz show). That he did such a great job playing Mike is a testament to his amazing acting talent...he was as natural a father actor as I've ever seen, in any series...and, although he didn't like doing the show itself, he loved the kids, and Florence, very much...he even took all of the kids to England during one summer, so that they could experience the great theaters of London...and he gave each of the kids movie cameras, so that they could record the trip... Mike Lookinland was so fascinated with cameras, and what you could do with them, that it inspired him to stay in show biz (behind the scenes) long after the Brady Bunch went off the air, mostly as a cameraman.... And, all during the run of the series, Reed would have arguments with Schwarz and the writers about the plots...Reed would have liked some things to be a little more realistic....one funny example I've read about was in the scene in which Carol and Alice are both making strawberry jam, and Mike was supposed to walk into the kitchen and say "Gee, it smells like strawberry heaven in here". When Reed saw that line, he blew his stack and walked off the stage...the reason? because when strawberries cook, they have no odor...so how could it smell like strawberry heaven? The line, after it was re-written, came out as "Hey, I do believe I've died and gone to strawberry heaven". Reed wanted the plots and scripts to be realistic, right down to the last detail...he wasn't comfortable with the occassional stretching of the facts which can sometimes happen in sitcoms... Anyway, Reed was a great acting talent...he and Hugh Beaumont would get my vote as the best "father" actors in TV history (for sitcoms, anyway)...

11-16-2003, 08:01 PM	#7
Vegas Girl Member Senior Member Join Date: Oct 10, 2003 Posts: 1,339	That's probably why they had the episode with Bobby interested in taking pictures, because he really did like to do that. Robert Reed was a great actor. I do catch unrealistic things and mistakes that he was probably arguing with the producer about.

11-19-2003, 12:03 AM	#9
richheart Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Sep 25, 2002 Posts: 205	The "strawberry" thing was a little too picky, I think. It might be perfectly natural for a man to say "It smells like strawberry heaven," if he sees his wife making strawberry cake and it smells good.

11-19-2003, 12:05 AM	#10
richheart Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Sep 25, 2002 Posts: 205	Or, in other words, he was probably just trying to impress people with his knowledge of strawberries, and he did it by making a big scene about rewriting the line.

04-02-2005, 08:48 PM	#12
PracTz Member Senior Member Join Date: Jul 14, 2002 Location: United States of America [Happily Living in the 20th Century] Posts: 2,711	What's a bit ironic is that even though it's now known the Reed disliked the role itself and the show's scripts, he did form a genuine bond with his onscreen kids and tried to guide them paternally! I mean, he even paid for all six of them to accompany himself and his parents on a transatlantic cruise to London to show them where he'd honed his craft!