I haven't done a post related to a back door pilot in sometime or the Brady Bunch, which is also odd, so let's do it!
I remember this episode of The Brady Bunch watching it (reruns) as a kid and being confused as to where the Bradys went. Being a kid and not knowing everything (what?) and not knowing a) this was reruns and b) what a backdoor pilot was, this episode got to me. I came here to watch "The Brady Bunch" where are they?
This backdoor pilot is from season 5 which would also happen to be the final season of the series. Season 5 is genuinely kind of odd it kind of becomes. There's an episode where Greg steals a goat and the parents think that he's hiding a girl in his room which is the goat, but woah. There's an episode where Greg gets Peter to dress up as a some other guy named "Phil Packer" and it's gets weird. Though I do like there's a random episode where they go to Cincinnati, not often do you get shows just going to Cincinnati as a plot line. I will add that I love "Never Too Young" (that's also my Bobby's my favorite kid Brady bias)
This is the season they really don't know what to do with Cindy, they want to keep her "the youngest one in curls" but she's not that young anymore and they didn't want to write older plots for her as much because they did it Jan before so... uhhh I don't know. They also added Cousin Oliver, who really can't be blamed for "ruining the show" the show was dying, he came in January 25, 1974, the series finale aired on March 8th so really at this point the network was like "ehhh, who cares we're not going to continue this" but you know reasons.
Oh yeah our episode is from January 4, 1974, it's called "Kelly's Kids" . You can also tell maybe that Sherwood Schwartz, the creator, was also looking to find another show make, feeling that this show was on the way out.
You what be interesting? The Bradys have neighbors but we see them so why not make up a neighbor couple and see where that goes. (The pitch meeting for "The Ropers") This back door pilot starts with telling you that Ken Barry and Brooke Bundy are in this episode.
Ken Barry, oddly, had experience in taking over a show after the main actor leaves and becoming it's own show. He was featured in episodes The Andy Griffith Show as a widowed father named Sam Jones to then take up the leading role in the spin-off called "Mayberry R.F.D" where he plays a single widowed father with a young son. (So the viewers wouldn't be scared that Andy left or something,) That show was purged during CBS' we need TV shows to be hip modern and no more rural... era. In this Brady Bunch episode he plays a man maned Ken Kelly.
Brooke Bundy was doing roles in different shows since the 1960's she was in alot of shows like "The Donna Reed Show" , "My Three Sons" , "Wagon Train", etc.. if "Kelly's Kids" had become a series, it would have been her first starring TV show role. She played Kathy Kelly. (They need to calm down)
The episode starts by tricking the Brady Bunch viewers into thinking it's a normal episode, like that episode where Mike's Grandpa ends up marrying Carol's Grandma. Then it goes to the family room and Carol and Mike are talking to Kathy and Ken. Ken is talking about they are adopting a child.
So we noticed you have 6, can we have one?/ Copyright Paramount
The Brady Bunch was a unique show at the time, there wasn't really anything about a blended family in a show. We don't get it much it much now in TV. The idea of a show about a family with adopted son is very different to what TV was doing at the time... interesting for the concept.
The adopted child is named Matt, who is played by Tood Lookinland, this kid is the younger brother of Mike Lookinland who is Bobby Brady. (fun) Like his brother, he also was doing some acting and he would even appear in a an American adaptation series of the Swedish movie "The New Land" later in 1974.
Like I said, the episode baits with Brady's and switches to show us Matt Kelly now being introduced to his family and we are in their house. The laugh track needs to calm down. Anyway, you know what a spinoff needs there's a woman named Mrs. Payne (obvious name is obvious) her job is to be annoying. She comes in and says "uh you have kids, ew" even more "eww, adopted child, I don't have children, eww boys ,eww children" This is also Molly Dodd's second time playing in the show and she's a good actress, and she's good here playing this woman we aren't supposed to like or something. Laugh track tells me I'm supposed to laugh.
ha ha ha? / Copyright Paramount
Kathy was talking to Carol on the phone, and that's for us to remember this is supposed to be "The Brady Bunch" she is worried that Matt is lonely so her idea is to get another kid. Matt's been with them for... 1 day... and she's worried he's lonely. What? This is kind of forcing things, they barely showed Matt being lonely or whatever. The next day, they decide to go to the adoption orphan house whatever it is , and they ask for a 2nd kid. (can we do that?)
They are interested in two good friends of Matt named Dwyane and Steve. To add a little more to this, Dwyane is African American and Steve is Asian. Back to how much speed running is going on here. the Kellys are thinking up something the original idea was to adopt one more kid, on the 2nd day they just adopted one, but you know speed running, but now as they talk to the Bradys because they are trying to remind me that this is in fact, the Brady Bunch.
Anyway, the Kellys decide the logical choice is to adopt both Dwayne and Steve. We're 9 minutes in and about 2 days of stuff and they've too fast. (I wouldn't trust this couple they do things too on the fast lane, they need to calm down and think)
On the next "Mama's Family" / Copyright Paramount
It skips to a few days later, where the parents tell Matt they are adopting Dwayne and Steve too which at this speed will be tomorrow. There's a camera shot that if you told me the "Rosanne" intro was inspired by it , it'd make sense. PILLOW FIGHT action. I will cut out here to say that yeah, the pacing is wow, but I can see how this was a back door pilot and pitch to a network that this could be an idea for a new series that could be made and fine tuned. I can see they are speed running stuff to make sure we get the gist of the concept.
The prying neighbor shows up again, and she's might be a bigot and gets the door closed on her face. The show mentions Archie Bunker, so "All in the Family" exists in the Brady Bunch world (Ok then) Sitcom convince timing time is ...now... So Dwayne and Steve get up from bed when Kelly adults are talking to over hear them talking about the annoying neighbor. They leave just before they hear the rest, thanks for playing the misunderstanding sitcom convince time! (you win nothing!)
The two boys decide to write a letter to leave the Kellys and Matt wakes up and tells him they're leaving. Matt decides he'll leave too and they end up in "HEY IT'S BRADY BUNCH" and they are in the Brady yard and sleeping in the backyard where Greg finds them.
Hey! Wake up! This is my bed! /Copyright Paramount
Anyway the Bradys called the Kellys and they come to get the kids and we get the smoltzy Brady Bunch ending. Which is keeping in with the show. Alice is confused at the end. Which is perfect. The episode ends with the Kellys visiting the Brady's and some laughing at the end.
This was a back door pilot that didn't end up being a sitcom or a series (with a note later) and yeah. I do think this was pitched before it was made into an episode and maybe they thought if they made the episode viewers would be interested and I don't know demand ABC to make it. The idea is a concept that wasn't seen on TV before and goes off the Brady Bunch's idea of showing different kinds of families. Even the idea of adopting older kids is put in there too. Probably would have been interesting if they had developed it bit more and gave it room to breathe. It's not the worst Brady Bunch episode, it's not even a bad season 5 episode, so there's that.
Like I said, whilst there was no series with this cast and Kelly name there would be one way later. Ken Barry did fine, "Mama's Family" is a fun series. Schwartz with Michael Jacobs and Al Burton did end up creating a series called "Together We Stand" where Elliott Gould, and Dee Wallace as a couple named the Randalls decide have an adopted daughter and a biological son, the social worker decides to give them two more children an Asian American boy and African American girl because that's what social workers do just give away children? I will say it's bold they killed the father off later and have the Mom deal with this large family on her own and rebrand the show.
That's it for now , tune in next time, when we find a few kids in a free to good home box and put them in a sitcom to see how they react. (this is really stupid why did we go with this?)
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