A lot of happy favorites were showcased on the show, including all of the Brady kids, even the annoying cousin.

So, I thought about what the Brady Bunch represented. Being a Step-Father, I appreciated the blending that family did. The parents maintained equality regardless of who was who’s biological child. Trying to balance the “my kids vs your kids” life can be trying, and is often one of the hardest things blended families do. They even debunked some myths of evil step mothers and the like. The show despite its cloying sweetness was really unique.

The parents slept together, made mistakes and corrected them and genuinely loved their children.

The kids had normal problems and generally showed a somewhat more normal suburban life then many other shows. The did stupid things. They got upset over trivial things. They were competitive and still defended each other.

It was completely devoid of politics, and social issues dealing only with a perfect suburbian vision of family issues, even if it was in a unrealistic and comedic way. Unrequited love, growing pains, jealousy and depression, all had their day there, but no Vietnam, no Watergate and certainly no drugs.

Now I grant that during its 5 year run, the show, which premiered in 1969, had some of the tackiest clothes and smarmiest plots around, but despite that it remains a syndication favorite. Translated to numerous foreign languages, and still shown daily today, it spawned music records, a TV variety show, a TV movie, a 35th anniversary reunion special, a cartoon series, 3 spoof movies, and more.

In a way, a lot of us grew up with them. They were hopelessly “square” and out of touch, but we loved them.

But then I thought about the 1995 movie they made. One of the plot factors was to keep the Brady family socially and mentally in the 70’s while living in the 90’s. Talk about being out of touch and wired.