Robert Reed - Wikipedia

Thank you my friend Maj Marty Hogan for making us aware that October 19 is the anniversary of the birth of American actor Robert Reed who was born as John Robert Rietz Jr. who "portrayed Kenneth Preston on the legal drama The Defenders, alongside E. G. Marshall. He is best known as the father Mike Brady, opposite Florence Henderson's Carol Brady, on the ABC sitcom The Brady Bunch, which aired from 1969 to 1974."
He came out of the closet late in his life although he revealed his sexual orientation to close friends like Florence Henderson.
Rest in peace Robert Reed.

1. Background from abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=132724&page=1
" The Real 'Mike Brady' By ABC NEWS Nov. 6
— On screen, he was the quintessential dad.
But the man who played Mike Brady on The Brady Bunch, Robert Reed, had a real life that was not as picture perfect. Reed kept it a secret that he was gay until he died in 1992. While the cause of his death was cancer, his death certificate indicated that he was also infected with HIV.
“Here he was, the perfect father of this wonderful little family, a perfect husband,” says Florence Henderson, who played his TV wife, Carol Brady. “He was an unhappy person … I think had Bob not been forced to live this double life, I think it would have dissipated a lot of that anger and frustration.”
Henderson says she knew of Reed’s secret, as did others on the set. But no one brought it up with Reed.
“I never challenged him,” says Henderson. “I had a lot of compassion for him because I knew how he was suffering.”
Barry Williams, who played Greg Brady, was friends with Reed for decades, but they never discussed his sexuality.
“Robert didn’t want to go there,” says Williams. “I don’t think he talked about it with anyone. I just don’t think it was a discussion. Period.”
While homosexuality has been more visible recently on network TV with shows like Ellen and Will & Grace, when The Brady Bunch first aired in 1968, Reed’s sexuality would not have been well received. Network TV executives, for example, didn’t even want to make Carol Brady’s character a divorcee, so she played a widow instead. Off network television too, Reed’s sexuality might have been controversial, particularly for a public that was tuning in to watch the perfect TV family dealing with issues like growing up, responsibility and trust.
“It probably would have caused the demise of the show,” says Williams. “I think it would have hurt his career tremendously.”
“I don’t think The Brady Bunch could have existed at that time with the public knowing that Robert Reed was gay,” says Henderson. “I just don’t think they would have bought it.”

From Shakespeare to Sitcom
Though The Brady Bunch, which was taped for six years, turned into a huge success, spawning reruns that are still aired internationally, numerous TV specials and feature films, Reed was not proud of the show.
Reed had moved to Los Angeles to work for Paramount in the TV version of Barefoot in the Park. When that didn’t work out, the studio offered Reed a part in The Brady Bunch. Though Reed thought the show would never make it, he took the job, partly for the money. He was shocked when The Brady Bunch became an instant Friday night hit on ABC.
Because Reed had spent two years studying Shakespeare in England, explains Sherwood Schwartz, creator of The Brady Bunch, “television, in general was beneath him. And situation comedy was beneath television, in his opinion.”
Schwartz, who had also produced Gilligan’s Island, loaded every Brady script with gags and pratfalls. Reed, who wanted a more realistic show, often clashed with the show’s creator.
“He wound up on a show that he didn’t want to do in the first place, and it became more and more difficult for him” says Schwartz. Referring to Reed’s more serious acting style and preference for a different kind of family comedy, Schwartz adds, “His idea of a show was based on the Encyclopedia Brittanica.”
But, says Schwartz, “He was a good actor. So whatever he chose to do after arguing and fussing and so forth, he would do well.”
Williams, who considered Reed a mentor adds, “He felt in some ways that the show was beneath his abilities.”
Before Reed died, he was doing work more along the lines of what he had envisioned himself doing: teaching Shakespeare at UCLA. “It was the happiest he ever was,” says Henderson. “He just loved it.”

A Real-Life Family
Though Reed may have been unhappy working on The Brady Bunch, he never left the show. Perhaps, speculate his former co-workers, he was too attached to his TV family to move on.
“They were a family. They became a family,” says Schwartz of the cast. “They became very attached to each other … Even Bob Reed, who was a personal pain to me, loved the kids and they loved him.”
“Essentially,” says Christopher Knight, who played the middle brother Peter, Reed “fell in love with us as a surrogate father.”
Reed’s final TV performance was in 1990. Reed was fighting cancer, and everyone agreed he looked sick.
“He was very brave, he was very courageous,” says Henderson. “And he asked me if I would call all the kids and tell them. And it was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever had to do.”
After he died at the age of 59, the world finally learned the secret Reed had struggled with his whole life. While the American public may have been surprised, his TV family was not, and they remember him fondly.
“Bob remains to this day my shining example of how an adult should be with kids,” says Susan Olsen, who played the youngest daughter, Cindy. “There was this unconditional, fatherly love that he had for us that we were always aware of.”
“He was the picture of what I wanted to become as a person in his sort of strength,” says Knight.
“I think he was a very brave man, very courageous,” says Henderson. “He faced his death with such courage and dignity. We should all be able to do that.”

2. Robert Reed Biography from imdb.com/name/nm0001658/bio
Overview | Mini Bio | Spouse | Trade Mark (2) | Trivia (46) | Personal Quotes (21)
Overview
Born October 19, 1932 in Highland Park, Illinois, USA
Died May 12, 1992 in Pasadena, California, USA (colon lymphoma and complications of AIDS)
Birth Name John Robert Rietz Jr.
Height 6' 3" (1.91 m)

Mini Bio
Robert Reed was born on October 19, 1932 in Highland Park, Illinois, USA as John Robert Rietz Jr. He was an actor, known for The Brady Bunch (1969), The Brady Bunch Variety Hour (1976) and Bloodlust! (1961). He was married to Marilyn Rosenberger. He died on May 12, 1992 in Pasadena, California, USA.
Spouse Marilyn Rosenberger (14 July 1954 - 10 July 1959) ( divorced) ( 1 child)

Trade Mark (2)
1. His Shakespearean personality
2. Best known as patriarch Mike Brady on The Brady Bunch (1969)

Trivia (46)
1. Attended Northwestern University (Evanston, Illinois).
2. Transferred to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, England, UK.
3. In one of his last interviews, he revealed that he actually detested The Brady Bunch(1969) and that his role as Mike Brady embarrassed him.
4. He kept his illness from the rest of the The Brady Bunch (1969) cast for years. He finally contacted Florence Henderson days before his death and requested that she inform the rest of the cast of his condition.
5. Only cast member of The Brady Bunch (1969) to miss two episodes. The first was The Brady Bunch: Goodbye, Alice, Hello (1972). He was written out of the second one, The Brady Bunch: The Hair-Brained Scheme (1974), because he strongly disapproved of the script, which had Greg's hair turning orange because of a cheap hair tonic.
6. Became something of a surrogate father to the children of The Brady Bunch (1969), taking them on trips on weekends and during the series' summer hiatus. For their part, the now-adult actors continue to speak of Reed affectionately.
7. Frequently walked off the set of The Brady Bunch (1969), due to arguments with series creator/producer Sherwood Schwartz. In addition, he sent voluminous memos to Schwartz, detailing his unhappiness with the writing and directing on the show. Schwartz put up with this only because Reed's instincts usually turned out to be right. (Reed would eventually direct a handful of episodes himself.)
8. His Shakespearean background included roles in "Romeo and Juliet" and "A Midsummer Night's Dream" as part of an off-Broadway company called "The Shakespearewrights." Toward the end of his life he taught a course in Shakespearean acting at UCLA.
9. Lived outside of the Beverly Hills scene in Pasadena.
10. An only child, he attended high school in Muskogee, Oklahoma, where, at age 17, he wrote and produced for local radio stations and sometimes worked as an announcer.
11. Met wife Marilyn Rosenberg while both were college students and drama majors at Northwestern University.The marriage lasted only 5 years, producing a daughter, Karen Rietz.
12. Replaced Robert Redford on Broadway in Neil Simon's "Barefoot in the Park."
13. Member of Beta Theta Pi Fraternity.
14. Mike Brady, Reed's character on The Brady Bunch (1969), was ranked #14 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" [20 June 2004 issue].
15. When he became ill, the fact that he'd had a stage name allowed him some privacy in his treatment. Prescriptions were filled under his real name Rietz, and the media never took notice.
16. Close friend of Anne Haney.
17. In 1985 he sold the house on South Arroyo St. in Pasadena, California, and bought a Spanish-style house on Stoneridge Ave.
18. He grew up with his parents on a farm where they raised cattle and turkeys.
19. Was very happy when The Brady Bunch (1969) was canceled because of low ratings.
20. His father, John Rietz Sr., died in 1975.
21. His The Brady Bunch (1969) co-star Susan Olsen became friends with his real-life daughter, Karen Rietz, who made a guest appearance on one episode, when she was in the 9th grade. Despite her friendship with Reed's daughter, there was no father and daughter connection until Karen became an adult.
22. During hiatus, his The Brady Bunch (1969) co-star, Barry Williams, was introduced by Reed's teacher, Lee Strasberg, for poetry at London's Royal Academy.
23. Graduated from Central High School in Muskogee, Oklahoma, in 1950.
24. He was the producers' second choice for the role of Mike Brady on The Brady Bunch(1969), after Gene Hackman was rejected.
25. Always said yes to a reunion movie or special for The Brady Bunch (1969).
26. A year before his death, he was a college teacher.
27. Confided in Florence Henderson, about his feud with his own mother, just several months before his death.
28. Had purchased a home in Pasadena, California, after the cancellation of The Brady Bunch(1969), in 1974. He moved his parents under his wing, when they left Oklahoma.
29. He was good friends with: Florence Henderson, George Maharis, Anne Haney, Penny Fuller, E.G. Marshall and Bonnie Hellman.
30. Was a Shakespearean, Broadway actor.
31. Was invited to join the group of fellow students from East Pennsylvania, where it was under the direction of Alvina Krause, who was his acting coach.
32. Moved to Muskogee, Oklahoma, with his family, when he was 14.
33. His father, John Sr., was a government worker and his mother Helen was a housewife.
34. His mother and daughter both refused to attend his memorial.
35. He had 9 hobbies: animals, fishing, photography, traveling, Shakespearean poetry, swimming, collecting clothes, dining and gardening.
36. Remained good friends with Barry Williams and Susan Olsen, among other cast members, during and after The Brady Bunch (1969).
37. The epitaph on his tombstone reads: "Good Night, Sweet Prince." This is taken from the final line of William Shakespeare's "Hamlet".
38. His The Brady Bunch (1969) co-star Maureen McCormick, who played his daughter Marcia, once confessed in an interview that she had a crush on him in real-life.
39. Attended fifth and sixth grades at Woodrow Wilson Elementary School in Shawnee, Oklahoma, in 1942 and 1943.
40. His mother, Helen Rietz, died in 2002.
41. Father of Karen Rietz, born October 1, 1956 in Chicago, Illinois.
42. Acting mentor and friends of Susan Olsen and Barry Williams.
43. Acting mentor was E.G. Marshall.
44. Frequently complained about the difficulty of the scripts of The Brady Bunch (1969).
45. He was known to be a very private person.
46. He has played the same character (Bobby Brady) in five different series: "The Brady Bunch" (1969)_, The Brady Bunch Variety Hour (1976), The Love Boat (1977), Day by Day (1988) and The Bradys (1990).

Personal Quotes (21)
1. [on his professional name, which was chosen for him] I can't stand the name "Reed". It always reminds me of vanilla or tapioca pudding.
2. The Brady Bunch (1969) will remain popular until it's an anachronism. Then it'll fall into Our Gang status.
3. I was young, brash, so-called classically trained and well educated.
4. Every television actor says the same thing when you ask him why he's doing theater: to work up the juices. But the basic reason is the script. In television, the scripts aren't very good.
5. [In 1986] You have to have a fairly healthy sense of humor. You can't just go out on stage and be funny. You have to work at it.
6. [on his feelings about The Brady Bunch (1969)] It was just as inconsequential as can be, to the degree that it serves as a baby-sitter, I'm glad we did it. But I do not want it on my tombstone.
7. [In 1992] So many of us on these shows, create ersatz families, and it's very difficult to do, not so much for the adults because we're grown actors. But for the kids, that's another story and to make an ensemble group of kids and adults, and make it seem as they live together. And if we accomplish that, we're very pleased.
8. [In 1992] I knew when I saw it [the script for The Brady Bunch (1969)] we were off to Gilligan's Island (1964).
9. [Just before his death] In children's theater, you show the ideal. The very idea is to aspire to it.
10. [In 1988, about accepting the role as Mike Brady on The Brady Bunch (1969)] Sherwood [producer Sherwood Schwartz] gave me the plot that sounded wonderful. He put together statistics of broken families, so I said, "It was going to be comedic, but not, no it's going to be life-like". But then, I got the script of it, and it was one gag after another, and I thought, "I don't think this has much of a chance, but they tell me, you can either do this or Mission: Impossible (1966)." Anyway, I did this.
11. Before I was reading science fiction, I read [Ernest Hemingway]. "A Farewell to Arms" was my first adult novel that said not everything ends well. It was one of those times where reading has meant a great deal to me, in terms of my development.
12. [about his dates who wound up fixing meals] I don't myself cook for two reasons. I don't know how, and I have no intention of learning.
13. [In 1971] Any actor who changes wardrobes all day long as part of his job is on an ego trip if he enjoys getting dressed up on his own time. That's why you find me in jeans and sneakers.
14. [In 1981] If I had my druthers, I don't know that I'd do a whole lot more TV. But one does not always have one's choice.
15. [Why he didn't complain about working on television] It takes a better actor. In movies, you have the best producers, best directors, lot of time . . . in TV, it's six or seven shows and no help at all to make drivel look good.
16. I'm not an expert in this field - anymore than I was a slave owner in Roots (1977) or the father of six children in The Brady Bunch (1969). But despite my lack of expertise in the area, I find it an intriguing social phenomenon and one worthy of study. Did you know there were 2 million runaways last year?
17. [In 1978] We're dealing with a social problem of enormous dimensions, not little kids who say, "All right, if you won't let me do such-and-such, I'll run away".
18. [In 1983] The networks are run by very bright people in most cases, but people who are totally outside the realm of theatre. They come from business and advertising and banking, and even lumber.
19. [on why older, more familiar actors are not getting much work] The latest at home [in the United States] is for the networks to go for new faces. Most known actors are getting too expensive.
20. That was what got me The Defenders (1961) job. There were literally hundreds of young actors around, and the reason the producers looked at that particular film was because they were looking for a young lawyer, and they knew that there was a young actor playing a lawyer in it. Obviously, they couldn't see everyone. So that was my lucky break.
21. [Regarding the fights he had on The Brady Bunch (1969) about better scripts] We fought over the scripts. Always over the scripts. The producer, Sherwood Schwartz, had done Gilligan's Island (1964) . . . Just gag lines. That was what "The Brady Bunch" would have been if I hadn't protested.

Robert Reed A&E Biography
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YY2c6aO2LgE

FYI COL Mikel J. Burroughs LTC Orlando Illi Maj Bill Smith, Ph.D. Maj William W. "Bill" Price CPT Jack Durish Capt Tom Brown CMSgt (Join to see) MSG Andrew White SFC William Farrell SGT (Join to see) Sgt Albert Castro SSG David Andrews Sgt Randy Wilber Sgt John H. SGT Charles H. Hawes SGT Mark Halmrast PO1 William "Chip" Nagel CPT Gabe SnellLTC Greg Henning

Great actor!

Great actor and shows that he played in.