The Brady Bunch: Where the Cast Ended Up After the Show

Top photo: ABC Television / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Do you remember gathering around the family television set on Friday nights to hear that catchy grid-intro tune? From the moment Mike and Carol joined their lively broods into one big suburban household, The Brady Bunch became an inseparable part of American childhoods. Though the original sitcom wrapped up its run on ABC in 1974, the cast members continued on paths filled with reinvention, reunions, and surprising second careers.

Florence Henderson (Carol Brady)

As the sunny matriarch of the household, Florence Henderson was already a seasoned stage performer when she stepped into the role of Carol Brady. After the show finished, she became a familiar presence on daytime television, game show panels, and commercials, notably serving as the long-running spokeswoman for Wesson cooking oil from 1974 to 1996.

Henderson embraced variety and hosting gigs, fronting programs like The Florence Henderson Show and Who’s Cooking with Florence Henderson on Retirement Living TV. She showed off her rhythm as a contestant on season 11 of Dancing with the Stars in 2010. Sadly, Henderson passed away from heart failure on Thanksgiving in 2016 at the age of 82.

Robert Reed (Mike Brady)

Robert Reed, who portrayed the patient, sensible architect father Mike Brady, had already gained television fame on The Defenders before moving into the suburban Los Angeles home. He brought steady warmth to the head of the dinner table throughout all five seasons. Reed passed away on May 12, 1992, at age 59.

Publicity photo of American actress, Ann B. Davis, circa 1973. — Photo: Publicity photo / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Ann B. Davis (Alice Nelson)

Playing the wisecracking, hardworking housekeeper Alice Nelson, Ann B. Davis was the glue that kept the household together. Already a two-time Emmy winner from her time on The Bob Cummings Show, Davis reprised Alice in numerous spin-offs, including The Brady Brides and the holiday favorite A Very Brady Christmas.

In 1976, Davis chose a different direction in her personal life, selling her Los Angeles home to join an Episcopal community led by Bishop William C. Frey. She later authored Alice’s Brady Bunch Cookbook in 1994, which included recipes inspired by the sitcom. Davis passed away in June 2014 at the age of 88 following a fall.

Barry Williams (Greg Brady)

Barry Williams, who charmed fans as the eldest brother Greg, took his talents directly to musical theater after the series ended. He toured in major productions of Grease, Pippin, and West Side Story, and made his Broadway debut in 1988 in the musical Romance/Romance.

Williams authored the best-selling 1992 autobiography Growing Up Brady: I Was A Teenage Greg, which explored his time on the show. In more recent years, he has made Branson, Missouri, his home base, where he performs with the musical group Barry Williams and the Traveliers. He also proved his footwork on season 32 of Dancing with the Stars in 2023.

Christopher Knight (Peter Brady)

Middle brother Peter Brady was played by Christopher Knight, who took a bold detour away from Hollywood in 1988. Labeling himself a tech enthusiast, Knight built a thriving career in the information technology sector, co-founding Visual Software and later establishing other ventures including Kidwise Learningware and Eskape Labs.

Television called him back in the mid-2000s when he appeared on reality programs such as The Surreal Life and My Fair Brady. In 2019, Knight stepped into entertainment production by co-founding Former Prodigy Media, producing the documentary feature Truelove in 2023.

The Brady Siblings Reconnect

The younger Brady children carved out their own varied lives, while always remaining connected to their television family roots. Mike Lookinland, who played the spirited youngest brother Bobby, originally worked as a child actor in commercials before joining the cast, having dyed his naturally light hair dark to match his on-screen brothers.

Maureen McCormick (Marcia), Eve Plumb (Jan), and Susan Olsen (Cindy) similarly became household names as the Brady sisters. Over the decades, the six television children frequently reunited for specials, including the massive 2018 and 2019 home restoration project on HGTV, A Very Brady Renovation, where they helped transform the real-life Studio City house into an exact replica of their classic soundstage home.

What are your favorite memories of watching the Brady family back in the day? Did you have a favorite episode or sibling? We would love to hear your thoughts and memories in the comments below!