A Very Brady Renovation - General Discussion

[Fellaway]

5 hours ago, alexa said:

People tend to have a hard time understanding less social people, and sometimes attribute things to them that are not necessarily true of how they feel, etc. 

As a less social and reserved person, myself, I can say that it absolutely the reality less social and reserved people have to live with, and it's not fun.  My take on Eve is that she is reserved, not that she wasn't enjoying herself.  I think in this last ep you can see her enjoyment more.

[Waterston Fan]

33 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

It wasn't consistent in the original show, though. In that clip they showed where Bobby flooded the laundry room, the room was HUGE. Yet in the episodes where they show Alice's bedroom you can see the washer and dryer right outside her bedroom door in what appears to be a hallway.

Well, that's true enough. My take on it is based on the fact that out of all of them, Eve seemed the most reluctant to participate in post-Brady stuff, based on interviews I've seen and the "E-Hollywood True Story" about the show. She has at times passed on Brady projects the others were willing to do. There's also the fact that back in the first episode, the Property Brothers described how four of the original six kids met initially to discuss the project, which leads me to believe there were initially two hold-outs. 

Who do you think were the last two holdouts? I think it was Peter just because you didn't see much of him. 

[Angeltoes]

My guess is the four were Barry, Maureen, Susan and Mike.  I can see Chris and Eve thinking,"I'll wait and see if this really goes anywhere."

[catlover79]

16 hours ago, rmontro said:

I don't even think people should live there.  They would completely destroy the Brady feel to the house.  No one is going to watch that old console TV set, they'll want to put in a modern widescreen TV, and a computer, etc. etc.  It can only serve as a museum or as a house that they give tours in at certain times of the year.  It's going to cost money to maintain it, so it's interesting to see what they do with it.  If they're not going to use it, they might as well just tear it down, but that seems like a waste.  

Even giving tours would be tricky.  If someone bumps into the horse and knocks it on the floor and shatters it, then they'd have to replace it all over again.  They could cordon off sensitive areas with velvet ropes, but that kind of spoils the effect.

I totally agree!!! ☺

[iMonrey]

HGTV spent a shit-ton of money on this house, they've got to make it back somehow. It will be interesting to see what happens to it now.

[Homily]

I guess if comes down to how much they made airing this show.  I've no idea how they work that out - ad revenue I guess.  If they made enough money then it may not be as big an issue as to what comes next with the house (from the POV of HGTV I mean).  It will be interesting to see if they just write it off and move on or if they do something long term.

Edited October 11, 2019 by Homily

[iMonrey]

Well they have to pay property taxes on it for one thing and that's not going to be cheap for a multi-million dollar home. Whatever ad revenue they earned with this mini-series isn't going to cover the costs indefinitely. 

[txhorns79]

On 10/8/2019 at 12:39 AM, LittleIggy said:

I’m not watching the behind the scenes episodes. They are just milking what was a fun, nostalgic premise.

I enjoyed it.  I thought I had seen one of the Brady husbands in the crowd when they did the final house reveal, so it was nice to see they both actually were invited to be on the show.  Though it would have been nice to see Eve have a moment with her "husband," instead of both just working with Maureen.  

I also thought Eve's craft project where she took the old wallpaper from behind the mirror and framed it for the bathroom was pretty cool.   

[doodlebug]

12 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Well they have to pay property taxes on it for one thing and that's not going to be cheap for a multi-million dollar home. Whatever ad revenue they earned with this mini-series isn't going to cover the costs indefinitely. 

The house is in California where Prop 13 restricts property taxes to under 1% of the property’s value which is pretty low compared to the rest of the US.

This show has probably been HGTV’s biggest hit; it’s given them national attention.  I imagine they’ll keep the house as it is for a couple of years and use it for promotional events, etc and then, when interest has died down, quietly renovate it back into the present day and put it on the market.  They’ve slready gotten a huge return on the investment.

[rmontro]

20 hours ago, iMonrey said:

HGTV spent a shit-ton of money on this house, they've got to make it back somehow. It will be interesting to see what happens to it now.

They can probably stream it and sell blue-rays to make more money also.  Shoot, considering the age of people who grew up with the Bradys, maybe they can make money selling VHS tapes.  

🙂

[methodwriter85]

That was so cool seeing Wally and Phillip!

I feel good knowing that there's a second bathroom. LOL.

[MarkHB]

13 hours ago, doodlebug said:

The house is in California where Prop 13 restricts property taxes to under 1% of the property’s value which is pretty low compared to the rest of the US.

Actually, it limits the annual increase in validation to 1%, but that gets reset when the property is sold. After some digging through public sources, it appears the current tax bill is over $41,000 for the year.

[Waterston Fan]

Anyone watched last night's episode. I'm glad to see that they did use some masks but I would think it would be more messier to break those walls. 

If you were to sing the theme song while they sang the home renovation theme song, you'd realize how they almost sound the same. 

That was cool for sure. I wonder if they ever tried to contact the daughter of the late Robert Reed... Unless, she hated the show also. 

[LexieLily]

The parts that stood out to me was Chris' lamentation when he and Eve went to the antique store that the antiques were younger than they were (hee) and later when Eve was in the girls' room with Maureen and Susan and she sounded amused that the HGTV people allowed them to actually work on the house and wanted their opinions, and not just using them as a photo op.

[iMonrey]

I enjoy Cedric the Entertainer as much as the next person, but the show is really stretched thin for material if it needs to include celebrity guest bits like that. No wonder it didn't make the final cut originally. Not only was it pointless but it was completely out of the blue and bizarre.

[Gregg247]

I thoroughly enjoyed this show, but wish it had been edited differently.  Rather than have a couple of rooms completely transformed in a single episode (so there's a "reveal" every week), I wish they'd just done this documentary-style (or "This Old House" style), with each week showing more progress throughout the house, as the HGTV stars and the Bradys worked away on the project.  Then the final episode could be the entire house reveal.

I think this would have kept interest throughout the entire 6 episodes, and last night's finale would have been HUGE in the ratings.  ( i know this show started off big in the ratings with Ep. 1, but after seeing the living room/staircase reveal, viewers seemed to have tuned out.)

As it was, I watched each episode, but they all kind of ran together, and so many commercials gave away how the rooms eventually looked.  It took away the "surprise" factor.

[sheetmoss]

On 10/11/2019 at 12:32 PM, iMonrey said:

HGTV spent a shit-ton of money on this house, they've got to make it back somehow. It will be interesting to see what happens to it now.

The house has appeared in HGTV Magazine and The Pioneer Woman's series;  and I believe 3 specials to follow - Brady Christmas and 2 Christmas specials for Food Network.

Also, rumor next reno'd house the Scott Bros will tackle will be the Golden Girls house.

Edited October 15, 2019 by sheetmoss

[tvisme]

On 10/7/2019 at 4:49 PM, ByaNose said:

I’ve always said that Seasons 2-4 are the best. Season 1 they are so young & it’s cringe worthy. Then Season 5 they were getting older & then there’s cousin Oliver. LOL!!!

I'm actually kind of surprised that they didn't bring in the actor who played Cousin Oliver.  I mean, they brought in the Brady husbands and Cedric the Entertainer.  I know his character wasn't well liked, but still, why NOT bring him in?

[ByaNose]

2 hours ago, tvisme said:

I'm actually kind of surprised that they didn't bring in the actor who played Cousin Oliver.  I mean, they brought in the Brady husbands and Cedric the Entertainer.  I know his character wasn't well liked, but still, why NOT bring him in?

The premise of the show was its Season 1 they are recreating. Of course, that premise went quickly out the door when they did Greg’s Season 5 attic bedroom. LOL!!! I think the only Brady who had a relationship with Robbie Rist was Susan Olsen. I can understand that. She was the youngest. The other kids were so much older by then and he was only in 6 episodes. 

[LexieLily]

6 hours ago, sheetmoss said:

The house has appeared in HGTV Magazine and The Pioneer Woman's series;  and I believe 3 specials to follow - Brady Christmas and 2 Christmas specials for Food Network.

Also, rumor next reno'd house the Scott Bros will tackle will be the Golden Girls house.

Are all six kids going to come back to the House for Christmas? LOL.

Re: Golden Girls. I've never watched it so I have no idea if it's an iconic house. Aren't all of them except Betty White (knock on wood!) dead?

[Fellaway]

Robbie Rist...  Now that's a name I haven't heard for, well, decades.  I hopped over to IMDb to check up on him and discovered he's kept himself pretty busy with acting gigs over the years, though I can't recall seeing him in anything since he was a kid.  I found this in the trivia section:

Quote

In a radio interview, he quashed rumors of a romantic encounter with his Brady Bunch co-star Susan Olsen. He was 9 years old at the time he was cast in the role of Cousin Oliver and she was 12. But he did claim that Susan treated him rather rough on the set and he even claimed that she hit him in the chin with the seat end of the onset seesaw.

I really enjoyed this little series, even though there was a fair amount of redundancy, and I agree with @Gregg247 that revealing the whole renovation at the end of the series would've worked better.  I never really counted The Brady Bunch as one of my favorite shows, but revisiting here sure brought back a boatload of nostalgia for me for a bygone era.  And the house...  Even as a kid, I thought it was the real star of the show.

[MarkHB]

16 hours ago, sheetmoss said:

Also, rumor next reno'd house the Scott Bros will tackle will be the Golden Girls house.

Unless there was a real one they used as a model, that will be hard: the exterior they used on the show was a facade at Disney-MGM Studios in Florida, right next to the Empty Nest facade, and has been torn down.

ETA: Apparently there is a real house in Brentwood.

[alexa]

19 hours ago, LexieLily said:

The parts that stood out to me was Chris' lamentation when he and Eve went to the antique store that the antiques were younger than they were (hee) and later when Eve was in the girls' room with Maureen and Susan and she sounded amused that the HGTV people allowed them to actually work on the house and wanted their opinions, and not just using them as a photo op.

I think that episode also showed how much Eve enjoyed it/how much it meant to her.... so for those thinking she wasn't really into it, I think she expressed her interest many times during this expanded episode.  Seeing the reveal again, and the extra interviews, I could see how much this affected all of them to see this house recreated.  I am still amazed when I see what they have done.

[rmontro]

21 hours ago, Gregg247 said:

 I wish they'd just done this documentary-style (or "This Old House" style), with each week showing more progress throughout the house, as the HGTV stars and the Bradys worked away on the project. 

I'm not so sure that would work, because I think that this show is a bit of an illlusion.  Meaning that I wonder just how many days the Bradys were actually there?  My impression is that they brought them all in for a day or two to do demo, another day for the reveal, and maybe bringing a few of them in individually or in pairs for the various rooms and shopping trips.  In other words, I'm thinking they were only brought in long enough to get the filming done, and the rest was done by the construction crew.

19 hours ago, sheetmoss said:

The house has appeared in HGTV Magazine and The Pioneer Woman's series;  and I believe 3 specials to follow - Brady Christmas and 2 Christmas specials for Food Network.

Also, rumor next reno'd house the Scott Bros will tackle will be the Golden Girls house.

I'm already looking forward to the Christmas specials lol. 

The Golden Girls was a good show, but I don't think their house was as iconic as the Brady house, for whatever reason.  I also don't think it would carry the same emotional punch because the Bradys are so tied to people's childhood memories.

2 hours ago, alexa said:

I think that episode also showed how much Eve enjoyed it/how much it meant to her.... so for those thinking she wasn't really into it, I think she expressed her interest many times during this expanded episode.  Seeing the reveal again, and the extra interviews, I could see how much this affected all of them to see this house recreated.

 I agree, I never got the impression Eve wasn't into it.  I know she wanted to get away from being associated with the Brady Bunch when she was younger.  But that was a bit like after the Beatles broke up, they wanted to move on from it.  But as they got older and there was more distance, they grew to appreciate what they had done and embraced their legacy more.

I felt silly a few times getting emotional watching this, after all it's just a silly TV show.  But watching the Brady actors also showing emotions over reliving their past kind of mitigated that.

Edited October 16, 2019 by rmontro

[iMonrey]

Quote

Also, rumor next reno'd house the Scott Bros will tackle will be the Golden Girls house.

They really ought to quit while they're ahead because they're never going to get that much of a return on their investments. Remodeling the Brady House was fun but they have utterly destroyed the floor plan trying to recreate an interior studio set, and the same will be true of any "house" they try to do that to. By necessity sets are laid out horizontally for the studio audience (and/or cameras) whereas the front facade of the house spreads wider from left to right rather than longer from front to back as the interior would suggest. This is why they had to increase the depth of the Brady House by 100% to create the kitchen, family room and upstairs. They'd have to do that pretty much anywhere to make a house "long" enough. It looks OK on TV but it's a weird layout nobody would ever want to buy.

[sheetmoss]

If they do tackle  the Golden Girl's house, that reno may be more simpler because it's a ranch--, the only caveat would be is there enough land if an expansion was needed?

[ByaNose]

2 hours ago, sheetmoss said:

If they do tackle  the Golden Girl's house, that reno may be more simpler because it's a ranch--, the only caveat would be is there enough land if an expansion was needed?

The whole appeal of the Brady renovation was that it was a unique house. Whereas The Golden Girls house was just a ranch. Nothing against ranch houses but still..........Also, it was a 2 set house. The living room and kitchen. On occasion, the lanai was shown. I agree that HGTV wouldn’t get their return on investment on money or ratings with another renovation. The Bradys was just lightening in a bottle. Vintage 1969. LOL!!! 50 years.....who would have thunk it? I’m 55 and remember it well. 

[Koalagirl]

More Brady Bunch to come!  
https://www.hgtv.com/shows/a-very-brady-renovation/articles/a-very-brady-renovation-holiday-edition

[Mittengirl]

I can’t really think of another TV house that this type of show would work with.  It would have to be a show set almost entirely in the home.   That eliminates shows like Friends and Frasier.  Older shows like Leave it to Beaver or The Waltons had sets that were accurate for the time period, but they were set in times when people just didn’t have as much stuff as people do now.  Especially the Waltons, as a family of the depression era.  What other shows have multiple rooms/sets that you can immediately picture, in detail, in your mind?

[MarkHB]

3 hours ago, Mittengirl said:

That eliminates shows like Friends and Frasier.

That gave me a perfect idea: the original Cheers on Beacon St. in Boston! (If you've been there, you'll know I'm being sarcastic... That would truly be impossible.)

[rmontro]

11 hours ago, Mittengirl said:

I can’t really think of another TV house that this type of show would work with.  It would have to be a show set almost entirely in the home. 

I was talking about the Munsters house earlier, I just remembered the entire original run was in black and white, which might make recreating it a problem. 

One of my favorite shows ever is The Dick Van Dyke Show, and it had some iconic rooms, but I don't really have a desire to see it recreated.  It was mostly the living room, kitchen, and bedroom, just like the I Love Lucy apartment.  Maybe what they should do is create a museum or amusement park where people can go to see different classic TV places, like the Ricardos apartment, Kramdens apartment, etc etc.  That would be really cool IMO, I would take a trip to see that.  Not sure if the economical return would be worth the investment though.

[txhorns79]

On 10/15/2019 at 1:03 PM, LexieLily said:

The parts that stood out to me was Chris' lamentation when he and Eve went to the antique store that the antiques were younger than they were (hee) and later when Eve was in the girls' room with Maureen and Susan and she sounded amused that the HGTV people allowed them to actually work on the house and wanted their opinions, and not just using them as a photo op.

I really liked Eve throughout this process.  She seemed very down to earth and practical, and was kind of like someone's cool grandmother who could do a whole house renovation herself, while also baking delicious cookies for everyone. 

3 minutes ago, rmontro said:

I was talking about the Munsters house earlier, I just remembered the entire original run was in black and white, which might make recreating it a problem.

I think you'd need a show that had the kind of staying power of The Brady Bunch, and very few shows, even shows that were massive hits during their run, actually meet that standard.     

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, txhorns79 said:

I really liked Eve throughout this process.  She seemed very down to earth and practical, and was kind of like someone's cool grandmother who could do a whole house renovation herself, while also baking delicious cookies for everyone. 

I think you'd need a show that had the kind of staying power of The Brady Bunch, and very few shows, even shows that were massive hits during their run, actually meet that standard.     

What worked for the Brady Bunch is that they not only had a decent run of 5 seasons, but they've lived on forever in reruns so multiple generations of fans are familiar with the house.  The fact that the majority of episodes took place in the house itself was also a factor.  I cannot think of a show that has had that sort of staying power in syndication where the house was featured so heavily.

[suzeecat]

HGTV sunk millions into this project, not to mention all the time and labor.  I loved the effort and enjoyed the results but I can't be the only one wondering - what happens to the house NOW?!?!  Has there been any news to that effect?

[alexa]

7 hours ago, suzeecat said:

HGTV sunk millions into this project, not to mention all the time and labor.  I loved the effort and enjoyed the results but I can't be the only one wondering - what happens to the house NOW?!?!  Has there been any news to that effect?

We have already been talking about it throughout the discussion here.  For now they are keeping it and using it for some specials.  After that, not sure.  

[Sarah 103]

For anyone who wondered what was next, here is the short term answer. It's a holiday special. 

https://www.today.com/video/-brady-bunch-cast-will-reunite-for-hgtv-holiday-special-71469125630

[MarkHB]

I think, too, that great room was so distinctive that it made a great centerpiece for the project. Plus the fact that all the kids are still with us and were able and willing to appear.

[Sarah 103]

9 hours ago, MarkHB said:

Plus the fact that all the kids are still with us and were able and willing to appear.

That was something that surprised my mother about this project (that all six were still alive and able to participate). I reminded her that none of them were part of what we call the crash and burn society. She pointed that it was 50 years ago. In 50 years we could have lost cast members to cancer, other diseases, or accidents. As awesome and insane as this project was, if it's the last time all six are alive and working together, I'm okay with that. Having said that, I hope they're all still alive and able to participate in whatever crazy celebration/special happens in 10 years when The Brady Bunch turns 60. 

[rmontro]

3 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

That was something that surprised my mother about this project (that all six were still alive and able to participate). I reminded her that none of them were part of what we call the crash and burn society. She pointed that it was 50 years ago. In 50 years we could have lost cast members to cancer, other diseases, or accidents. As awesome and insane as this project was, if it's the last time all six are alive and working together, I'm okay with that. 

I'm pretty sure they're all going to be in the Christmas special.  But it is great that they're all still around - and that none of them "crashed and burned".  Child actors, from that era especially, were known for growing up seriously maladjusted, or worse.  From what I'm aware of, they seem to have avoided any major problems.  

[CruiseDiva]

13 hours ago, rmontro said:

 Child actors, from that era especially, were known for growing up seriously maladjusted, or worse.  From what I'm aware of, they seem to have avoided any major problems.  

Maureen McCormick revealed in her book that she was seriously hooked on drugs. It's good to see that she's turned her life around.

[ByaNose]

I watched the latest BTS Brady Renovation and I still think the front door is totally wrong. That blue is sooooo off the mark. I stand by my decision. LOL!!!! Today’s real Brady episode was the UFO one. They showed the front door when the captain of the police showed up. It wasn’t anywhere near the blue the renovation has done. Granted, the UFO episode was Season 5 but still.........

[iMonrey]

Quote

More Brady Bunch to come!  
https://www.hgtv.com/shows/a-very-brady-renovation/articles/a-very-brady-renovation-holiday-edition

Wow they're really going to squeeze every last dime out of this thing aren't they. Guess I can't say as I blame them given the money they poured into it.

[LexieLily]

On 10/17/2019 at 11:51 PM, Sarah 103 said:

For anyone who wondered what was next, here is the short term answer. It's a holiday special. 

https://www.today.com/video/-brady-bunch-cast-will-reunite-for-hgtv-holiday-special-71469125630

It's too bad the Food Network representative for this project is Ree Drummond. 

[ByaNose]

3 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Wow they're really going to squeeze every last dime out of this thing aren't they. Guess I can't say as I blame them given the money they poured into it.

It looks very festive & the red really pops. I hope the “kids” were well compensated. I’m assuming they were because they all did it. You know HGTV made a lot of $$$$$$ with commercials and such. I’m guessing the Christmas part will be (should be) the last squeeze of the lemon.......right???

[rmontro]

4 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Wow they're really going to squeeze every last dime out of this thing aren't they. Guess I can't say as I blame them given the money they poured into it.

My latest guess is that HGTV is going to end up selling the house.  Maybe not right away, but eventually.  I really hope that it ends up being preserved somehow.  Maybe the city could declare it an historical landmark, or maybe an entrepreneur would have some idea to turn a profit from it.

[MarkHB]

5 hours ago, rmontro said:

My latest guess is that HGTV is going to end up selling the house.  Maybe not right away, but eventually.  I really hope that it ends up being preserved somehow.  Maybe the city could declare it an historical landmark, or maybe an entrepreneur would have some idea to turn a profit from it.

It occurred to me that the whole reason the purchase price was so expensive was that they were bidding against Lance Bass. How much would he be willing to put up now that it IS the Brady house?.

[rmontro]

10 hours ago, MarkHB said:

It occurred to me that the whole reason the purchase price was so expensive was that they were bidding against Lance Bass. How much would he be willing to put up now that it IS the Brady house?.

Despite the comments about the current layout being impractical to live in, is there any doubt that HGTV has increased the overall value of the house?

[MarkHB]

16 minutes ago, rmontro said:

Despite the comments about the current layout being impractical to live in, is there any doubt that HGTV has increased the overall value of the house?

I haven't seen the last few episodes (gotten through the kitchen/family room/backyard), but I think to the only real livability question is the angle of the kitchen to the great room, plus (since I know some hate it, particularly in my family) the steps down into the living room.  Come to think of it, speaking of the original set design, WHY all the steps?  Or, more specifically, if the front of the house is higher relative to the main living floor... why go UP and then back DOWN into Mike's den which is in the front to the right of the door (as seen from the street?

[Shermie]

Quote

What worked for the Brady Bunch is that they not only had a decent run of 5 seasons, but they've lived on forever in reruns so multiple generations of fans are familiar with the house.  The fact that the majority of episodes took place in the house itself was also a factor.  I cannot think of a show that has had that sort of staying power in syndication where the house was featured so heavily.

This. Not many tv houses are that recognizable. Before this series, I bet most BB fans could describe the colour and layout of most of the rooms, whereas not so much with most other family sitcoms. What colour was the Seavers'' or Partridge's couch? What iconic item hung on the wall in the Petrie's or Keaton's home? And so on.

Some shows have distinctive rooms; most Friends fans know the colour of Monica's apartment and can describe the painting above the tv. The Golden Girls house was very '90s Miami with the rattan furniture and the dusty rose and the palm trees. But that's only one room. The BB house was distinctive in its entirety.

As for the future, I've said it before. They should sell tickets and offer tours to the public. I would love to go there when I get to California some day (waiting for the Orange Menace to be gone before I set foot in America again). I'm sure many people would, and having tour guides would help with the problem of the public touching/taking/breaking stuff. Museums are filled with breakable and valuable stuff and they manage. I'm sure there are lots of BB fans who would make great tour guides.

The zoning/parking issues are easily solved. In the first episode, they showed the mayor saying how they would do everything possible to make the project work.

[suebee12]

I agree the Brady house being a big part of the show and it is certainly memorable with all of the 70s colors. But I can remember two homes clearly all of these years later. BUT one has to be of a certain age...OLD because even tho' they have had reruns, they have never been rerun like the Brady's! The first home was actually an apartment....The Ricardo's! Almost all the action in I Love Lucy was set in that apartment. Of course, we don't know the colors but we remember the rooms...at least I do! The second was that famous home in Springfield...Father Knows Best! I can remember their house quite clearly and most of the story lines take place at home! All of these years later I am thankful for YouTube because I can watch these shows!!!!