tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post110062497776578384..comments2024-01-15T05:32:24.873-05:00Comments on The Jon Rowe Archives: Jonathan Rowehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04079637406589278386noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-14741493964660312492014-01-25T16:23:55.513-05:002014-01-25T16:23:55.513-05:00I don't think that that memo is very funny. Re...I don't think that that memo is very funny. Reed was right. Obviously there are different styles of a sitcom and saying "Oh, he's just taking himself too seriously"' is childish. Obviously there is an art to comedy.<br /><br />I think Family Matters is the best proof that we need actors like Reed who care about something other than a paycheck.<br /><br />That show thought it could be every type of comedy - farce, slapstick, fantasy, everything - it had no idea of the boundaries. We could start off with a normal family scene, and then descend into slapstick or fantasy at any second. Reality could be established, and then distorted. <br /><br />I thought the same thoughts Reed did when I watched those episodes of The Brady Bunch, and I wish people would be more open-minded to consider what he was trying to get across and whether he really did have a point.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06066110630299093742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-52965282545553056432012-07-24T15:42:50.824-04:002012-07-24T15:42:50.824-04:00Could Robert Reed's Brady Bunch Discontent Hav...<b>Could Robert Reed's <i>Brady Bunch</i> Discontent Have Been Due To Contemporanious Societal Oppression Of Gay Men Rather Than The Puerile Scripts of Sherwood Schwartz?</b><br /><br />From everything I've read about Robert Reed I cannot understand why he ever took the role on <i>The Brady Bunch</i>.<br /><br />He was obviously intelligent and had to know what he was committing to before signing the contract. Even if somehow he completely misjudged the quality of the show based on the pilot script; shouldn't he have been familiar with <i>Gilligan's Island</i>Sherwood Schwartz' other hit series?<br /><br />I've sometimes wondered if all the anger, frustration and energy Reed put into these lengthy, dense and intellectually scathing "memos" to Schwartz, and presumably, the other "Powers That Be" who ran <i>The Brady Bunch</i> were actually subconscious (or sub-textual) expressions of justifyable pent-up dissatisfaction and hostility at playing an unwilling, maybe even self-loathing, part in perpetuating the fiction of the "perfect family," which at that time marginalized gay men right into invisibility.<br /><br /><b>Twitter:</b> www.Twitter.com/RonKlopfanstein<br /><b>Facebook:</b> www.Facebook.com/RonKlopfanstein<br /><b>Get Glue</b> www.GetGlue.com/RonKlopfansteinRon Klopfansteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17190386319221971635noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-70988219298900681672009-07-19T15:20:04.053-04:002009-07-19T15:20:04.053-04:00...and a decade later, the producers of Diff'r......and a decade later, the producers of <i>Diff'rent Strokes</i> used the hair-color gag yet again, this time turning Kimberly (Dana Plato)'s hair green. Silly sitcom ideas never die.Danhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17724373978066396316noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-35369895344082931312008-10-16T01:20:00.000-04:002008-10-16T01:20:00.000-04:00The letters are pretty funny if you don't take Rob...The letters are pretty funny if you don't take Robert Reed's perspective into consideration. It's also easy to find it humorous more than 30 years later. Brady Bunch is now an iconic TV sitcom and a major reason it is so funny to us now is because it's very different than the TV sitcoms we watch today. We think of it as cheesy and cornball and silly but that wasn't the case when the show was being televised in 1970. Sure it was a comedy but it ground breaking at the time, it was the first network tv show that featured two single parents getting remarried and merging two families. No one had explored this type of American family before. I Robert Reed's points were totally valid. He simply wanted to make the best comedy show at the time. What makes the letters so funny is that he was absolutely right. The show became a joke instead of a comedy and it was canceled after only 4 seasons. The family was popular, that's why they have remained a part of pop culture. The show would have lasted a lot longer if the writing hadn't gotten so bad.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-33424025293966331712008-10-15T18:18:00.000-04:002008-10-15T18:18:00.000-04:00The guy was obviously very bright but not ASTUTE -...The guy was obviously very bright but not ASTUTE - you're entirely right and it's WAAAAAAY hilarious!! Puh-leeez!! It's not like "The Brady Bunch" was the TV project of a "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolfe"-type drama, nor of a long list of hilarious, ridiculous "Three Stooges" shorts. The fact that he was so upset by it all is further proof that you can be alive and unconscious at the same time. FUNNY and kooky - - !! THANK YOU !!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-17324095191095834822008-01-02T05:39:00.000-05:002008-01-02T05:39:00.000-05:00A few years ago I bought a box ofjunk at an estate...A few years ago I bought a box of<BR/>junk at an estate sale. Among the<BR/>items--100s of letters. From the<BR/>various members of the Rietz family. Thanks to the unusual spelling I was able to figure out <BR/>that this was "Robert Reed's" tree.<BR/>The letters were from his grandparents to his uncle,etc. I say the man came by his snobbery honestly. The letters are by folks<BR/>who had money and an education. The letters were written during the worst of The Great Depression. Pretty interesting stuff,even w/out<BR/>the Brady Connection. <BR/><BR/>His outrage rings true to me. Silly<BR/>as it was and is,he wasn't just<BR/>pretending to be disgusted by the<BR/>material.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-80956385755309163932008-01-01T19:27:00.000-05:002008-01-01T19:27:00.000-05:00Hey, I say good for Robert Reed. He apparently too...Hey, I say good for Robert Reed. <BR/><BR/>He apparently took his craft seriously, and I can see how, after so many years of acting in such a hack production, he decided to call it quits. <BR/><BR/>We all gotta pay the rent, and most of us work in jobs we don't love, so I can't fault him for playing Mike Brady (he wasn't gonna pay the mortgage playing Hamlet). <BR/><BR/>So despite selling out by playing uberdad in a dumb sitcom, he still tried to use his smarts and experience to raise the quality of the show.<BR/><BR/>Good for him.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-58386002792556573442007-12-31T15:40:00.000-05:002007-12-31T15:40:00.000-05:00It was not intended to be the last episode of the ...It was not intended to be the last episode of the series, it only became that because Reed refused to play his part any more.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-39031884609534668842007-12-31T14:06:00.000-05:002007-12-31T14:06:00.000-05:00That is my FAVORITE part of "Growing Up Brady." He...That is my FAVORITE part of "Growing Up Brady." He would get so upset over lines that were logically or scientifically incorrect, which you have to appreciate. The strawberry fight is also great. <BR/><BR/>However, I like that quote from Lloyd Schwartz: "Robert Reed is the kind of actor who could perform Hamlet, get booed off of the stage and then say, 'Don't blame me; I didn't write this sh*t.'"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-30613146034140574052007-12-31T09:23:00.000-05:002007-12-31T09:23:00.000-05:00The next time one of the bosses at work tells me t...The next time one of the bosses at work tells me to do something ridiculous I shall reply thusly:<BR/><BR/>"It is Batman in the operating room. I can't play it."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-58467380774263783822007-12-30T23:57:00.000-05:002007-12-30T23:57:00.000-05:00Michael,The oldest boy was Greg, not Bobby. (Bobby...Michael,<BR/><BR/><I>The oldest boy was Greg, not Bobby. (Bobby was the middle boy.)</I><BR/><BR/>The middle boy was PETER. Greg was the oldest, Bobby the youngest. Jeeziz, get it right.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-82290790035746340482007-12-30T23:00:00.000-05:002007-12-30T23:00:00.000-05:00Thanks all for checking in. Re the last question,...Thanks all for checking in. Re the last question, it is my understanding that at the time the memo was written the show had not yet been cancelled and the cast was unaware that this would be the final episode.Jonathan Rowehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04079637406589278386noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-80736839516764076622007-12-30T22:46:00.000-05:002007-12-30T22:46:00.000-05:00This memo was for the very last episode of the ser...This memo was for the very last episode of the series. What did he hope to accomplish?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-31636412754704753082007-12-30T22:32:00.000-05:002007-12-30T22:32:00.000-05:00Reed was in an ABC movie of the week called "Pray ...Reed was in an ABC movie of the week called "Pray for the Wildcats". Reed, Andy Griffth, Marjoe Gortner and the epitome of high drama: William Shatner. This group of corporate executives take a motorcycle trip into Baja. <BR/><BR/>If Reed had this much trouble with The Brady Bunch, it seems incredible to me that he would be in this wet dog of a movie.BobbyEarlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03840122329860774991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-52304186661602953472007-12-30T20:43:00.000-05:002007-12-30T20:43:00.000-05:00Michael: Bobby did invest in the hair tonic. It wa...Michael: Bobby did invest in the hair tonic. It was Greg who used it, but Bobby invested, so Reed's phrasing is right on.Gael Fashingbauer Cooperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10720729203329325754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-26566942983696534612007-12-30T20:12:00.000-05:002007-12-30T20:12:00.000-05:00Reed was so NOT a jerk! I love the Brady Bunch, m...Reed was so NOT a jerk! I love the Brady Bunch, mostly because of Mike Brady. I definitely find this memo hilarious, but also totally cool!! Reed knew that the show meant something to its audience and he intelligently fought for the show to be not lame, which it was in the ridiculous episodes he references. Thanks for the posting, I love it!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-85944098450237263572007-12-30T19:22:00.000-05:002007-12-30T19:22:00.000-05:00Bobby was the youngest son, Greg the oldest, and P...Bobby was the youngest son, Greg the oldest, and PETER was the middle boyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-46841734511821203642007-12-30T17:49:00.000-05:002007-12-30T17:49:00.000-05:00Producers are NEVER grateful for input- particular...Producers are NEVER grateful for input- particularly from actors.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-36665994965721581092007-12-30T17:23:00.000-05:002007-12-30T17:23:00.000-05:00The oldest boy was Greg, not Bobby. (Bobby was the...The oldest boy was Greg, not Bobby. (Bobby was the middle boy.)I would very seriously consider the fact that Robert Reed would not have made a mistake like that in an internal production communication. That said, I think that if in fact Mr. Reed paid that much attention to story arc and continuity, that the producers would be very grateful for his input.mikemuscarohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03207461368015235530noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-47237253333336965112007-12-30T13:38:00.000-05:002007-12-30T13:38:00.000-05:00awesome find! What a fun show it was. Too bad Robe...awesome find! What a fun show it was. Too bad Robert Reed took it so seriously. If he was that much a dick about every script then maybe he should have worked elsewhere.Staffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02028318054709267453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-1149465067568142772006-06-04T19:51:00.000-04:002006-06-04T19:51:00.000-04:00Poor Reed. He so seemed to enjoy his role on the B...Poor Reed. He so seemed to enjoy his role on the Brady Bunch, as saccharine and juvenile as the program was. If Reed's spirit is tuned, we all empathize. Under-achievement, LCD, improbability, and television (in general, with some notable, albeit few, exceptions) are numbing. If only blogging had been an option, Robert, we might have really enjoyed your unintended wit. At least you left us missives. Call it pre-blogging.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-1149358613353507392006-06-03T14:16:00.000-04:002006-06-03T14:16:00.000-04:00My Pleasure!My Pleasure!Jonathan Rowehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04079637406589278386noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6564473.post-1149354655019342222006-06-03T13:10:00.000-04:002006-06-03T13:10:00.000-04:00Jon,Thanks so much for the laugh. I'm on the boar...Jon,<BR/>Thanks so much for the laugh. I'm on the board of the Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian Theatre Festival opening in a couple of weeks. The pressures are tremendous and this piece just gave a big laugh to many of our actors and crews at a time when we really needed it.<BR/>PJAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com