The Brady Bunch Variety Hour

E!(Entertainment Television) had the balls to show just one episode of this series and to me enough was enough! The TV family that won't go away starred in three sitcoms,a quasi-stomach turning drama,a cartoon, a TV-movie and spawn two feature length films based on this series(which starred Shelley Long and Gary Cole),and just when you thought it was all they wrote,they come with at the time one of the most stupidical dumbfounded variety series to ever grace TV during the late 70's(second banana to ONLY Donny and Marie's variety show of the late 70's as well as the Brady's counterparts The Partridge's which had a even bigger sinker of a variety show themselves---all within the last decade of the 1970's).

This was the most dumbfounding of them all:a hour long variety show featuring the original cast(with the exception of Eve Plumb-always the smart one and the ONLY Brady with brains not to do this--was replaced by newcomer Geri Reischi)in character---courtesy of executive producer Sherwood Schwartz who was the creator of the original show as well as this variety series along with other producers Sid and Marty Krofft.

It seems the kids would go into some routine dance numbers and from there it was a laugh riot since NONE of them had any musical talent(with the exception of actress Florence Henderson of course who was a Broadway star),but it seems that architect dad Mike had reluctantly given up blueprints to join his family in a musical endeavor-which explained actor Robert Reed's profound lack of song and dance talent. So what was the kids' excuse? Who knows. Nobody was buying it since America had enough of the clan and it was off the air that same year. Good writtens.

This has to have been the worst television series ever (at least until "The Brady's" came along). When this show was announced, I thought it was just going to be a simple reunion show with the actors playing themselves then going into various sketches involving their characters. Instead they stay in character throughout the show. Rip Taylor was about the only funny thing on the show. Also, the other thing that was strange about this show was the fact that Eve Plumb (Jan) was the only one that didn't reprise her role (she was off doing more serious roles including starring in the acclaimed Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway). Instead, it was poor Geri Reischl to play the role of television's most famous middle daughter. It looks as if Plumb made the right choice and Reischl is nowhere to be found.

Playing this video in an endless loop at Guantanomo would have 'em all talking! So Awful, it's fantastic! Where do I begin? What does an indoor swimming pool, dancing girls, disco songs, HR Pufnstuff, horrible and I mean horrible outfits, and the Brady Bunch have in common? Nothing! And yet they managed to cram all of this into one variety hour - no small feat! The singing - and there's lots of it - is atrocious. Greg Brady ala Elvis, the fat years, Ma Brady, and even Marcia, all have solo numbers that are spell-binding...I mean nauseating.

The one gem here is if you're a Marsha fan (all of mankind), then you get to see those pretty blue eyes, and I mean pretty. Wow! Dreamy ! The tip-off that this was a disaster in the making is that it was produced by Sid and Marty Kroft - of Sigmund and the Sea Monsters, HR Puf N Stuff fame. It looks like they used some of the leftover props and ugly costumes.

The interview with Bobby and Cindy was interesting, but too long. Unscripted, they tended to ramble on. And the shocker was when Bobby actually said what every male with a pulse has ever thought: that everyone wanted to DO Marsha. I thought that was bizarre and also rude, since Cindy was sitting right there. I got the impression he was lamenting about not getting that opportunity.

It really is indescribable how bad/good this is. It represents the absolute worst in 70's television, yet at the same time, is strangely good to see a time when corny, over done productions were on TV, and not the graphic, sexual filth that is the norm today. Truly, a classic train wreck to watch!

All I can say is Damn awful, but funny to look at , at least once. I'd like to know what the production meetings were like for this one.

Personally I think Greg Should have actually broke from the group as "Johnny Bravo". It would have been bigger than Ziggy Stardust.

The Bradys (for some reason) get a TV variety show to do. The episodes consist of them and guest stars "singing" and "dancing" and doing "comedy". Also every single fashion mistake of the 1970s (and there were LOTS of them) are worn at one time or another in this show. I'm not proud to admit that I saw every single episode of this when it aired but, even at the age of 15, I realized it was terrible but I couldn't stop watching. It was just SO wretched with abysmal comedy (even worse than the original "Brady Bunch" show) and variety acts that had my jaw dropping! Eve Plumb (Jan) had the brains NOT to do this show but the rest of the original cast was there. There were a few (very few) good moments here and there. They could all (more or less) sing and Barry Williams and Florence Henderson were very good on their own but this show was just a train wreck from beginning to end. It boggles the mind to think that ANYONE thought this could work. Even Williams in his book "Growing Up Brady" said it was the worst TV show ever. Well he's wrong. "The Brady Brides" was even WORSE! A 1 all the way.