57 Years Ago Today, an Iconic Sitcom, Originally a Huge Flop, Premiered on TV
On September 26, 1969, audiences saw something they weren’t used to seeing on television: a blended family. A widowed architect with three sons marries a single mother with three daughters, forming The Brady Bunch . While originally focusing on the adjustments and initial awkwardness of suddenly having new siblings and parents, The Brady Bunch settled into being a cozy family sitcom, to little fanfare. In fact, one critic called the show’s overly wholesome approach “cloyingly sweet” and “embarrassing”. Despite its primetime run for five years, the show never hit the Top 30, and was quietly canceled after 117 episodes. It seemed that The Brady Bunch was doomed to be another barely remembered sitcom plugging up the syndication schedule, but the show took on a new life and earned a huge posthumous fandom. The Brady Bunch Became a Cultural Icon in Syndication The show, created by Gilligan’s Island mastermind Sherwood Schwartz, ...
