The middle sister
OF THE ORIGINAL “BRADYS,” EVE PLUMB SEEMED THE MOST aloof on the subject. It’s not as if she rolled her eyes when asked about the beloved 1969-74 sitcom. You just sensed there were more pressing matters in her thoughts. Mind you, Plumb — remembered as “middle” sister Jan — endured my “Brady Bunch” questions with a smile, a sincere smile that was only a tad weary at the edges. I spoke with the Burbank resident (born 1958) in 1992. Q: Do you have a favorite “Brady Bunch” episode? PLUMB: I don’t even have a favorite color. Q: Do you have any theories why so many identify with Jan, the “middle” sister? PLUMB: Not really. I’m not a sociologist. Q: Did you agree with Robert Reed that the scripts were often under par? PLUMB: Well, I think they were what they were, you know? But I’m proud of him, because he always cared about the scripts and scenes.
Q: Not much documentation exists of the live singing engagements you all did as the Brady Bunch Kids, when the original “Brady” children embarked on a tour in 1972. For one thing, none of the shows were filmed. PLUMB: Thank God they weren’t. It was not great. It was like low-level Osmonds (laughs). You know, they beat us into shape to take us on the road, and we did a lot of one-nighters and county fairs. Q: But Barry Williams said that sometimes, you kids had a good night. PLUMB: Oh, yeah! It was extremely popular. Q: Where did you get the outfits you wore on that tour? Super-’70s fringeand-beads in blinding reds, oranges, greens and yellows? PLUMB: (Sarcastically) Yes, it was wonderful, wasn’t it? I can’t remember. The stuff just sort of appeared. Q: In 1976, you passed on “The Brady Bunch Variety Hour,” a show which a lot of your old “Brady” colleagues lived to regret. Are you glad you did? PLUMB: With that one, I was. With that one, I think I made the right decision. Q: In “The Brady Brides” (1981) and thereafter, your character evolved more than the other “Brady” kids. Jan became a yuppie, almost a snob. Did you have anything to do with that arc? Did you press for it? PLUMB: Nope. Uh-uh. They just wrote it that way. Q: What would you call your personal highlight of all the “Brady Bunch” spin-offs that you participated in? PLUMB: Gosh, probably (the 1990 drama series) “The Bradys,” believe it or not. It was sort of fun. I got to wear some nice clothes. Q: Though you’ve done reunions, you’ve never allowed yourself to be pigeonholed as Jan Brady. That must be important to you.
Eve Plumb in 1992. Photo by Kathy Voglesong
PLUMB: Well, imagine if people thought that, OK, you’re a writer, so you must not be able to cook.