The dad on the "Brady Bunch" was an architect right? Then why.....?

Question

did his kids always fight for the restroom? This one has always puzzled me! Just wanted to see if you could help me out here a little!

Answer 1

lol They were rich enough to afford a housekeeper, why not a couple more bathrooms? lol

A literal answer is that to put the Bradys in a practical setting there would be less opportunity for little arguments between siblings, less opportunity to create tension with the kids and create those oh so "true to live" moments to connect with audiences.

Answer 2

They ONLY ever showed the ONE upstairs BATHROOM and the Parents Bathroom off their bedroom.

It connected between the girls and boys bedrooms. With an entrance from the hallway.


[5.2] Why was there only one bathroom for six kids?

And eventually, six _teenage_ kids at that! Maybe Mike wasn't such a good architect afterall.

Speaking of restrooms, a common question is: how many bathrooms were there in that house? Let's see, there was...

-- The ever-popular kids' restroom,

-- The bathroom in the parents' bedroom (we saw Mike go back there once to get some after-shave off the shelf for Greg's hot date),

-- The powder room (?) behind the stairs. Although the door was always there, we didn't learn what it was for until "A Very Brady Xmas."

Note: In The BB Movie, a neighbor character stated that there was only one bathroom for nine people. Given the evidence listed above, perhaps we should assume he was just being sarcastic. That character also said he "...never did see a toilet" (see question 5.x)
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[5.3] What restroom facilities were there for Alice?

Speculation on the Net says that Alice had her own bathroom as well; otherwise, in order to take a shower she'd have to go upstairs and either compete for the already overcrowded kids' bathroom, or use the one in Mike and Carol's bedroom (not a likely situation for the help to use the owners' facilities). But either way, we never did see a commode for Alice.

Here are two more possibilities:

-- The powder room located behind the stairs was actually a full-bath with a shower and/or bathtub. It was used primarily by Alice, though others might have had permission to use it in times of desperation (ie: when late for a date and fourth in line for the regular kids' bathroom).

-- That extra full-bath had a separate entrance which led directly from Alice's bedroom. This is not as far-fetched as it sounds, since Alice's room was located off the laundry room, which would be in just the right proximity to the bathroom behind the stairs. This is also consistent with the architectural style: every other bedroom in the house had direct access to a bathroom. (except when Greg lived in the attic, of course.)

Evidence for the latter theory was actually provided in The BB Movie!

It is in the scene where we see Alice emerge from the main-level bathroom while donning recreational garments. Since we knew that she and Sam were in her bedroom at the time, there must have been a direct connection between

Alice's room and that restroom.
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[5.4] Why wasn't there a toilet in the kids' bathroom?

The best explanation is this: the Brady Bunch, as well as all TV of the time, was supposed to portray an immaculate image of the family.

Despite the fact that having a toilet obviuosly does not make one "immoral", a commode would still serve as a reminder that the Brady kids are, well, human. Think about it, how many other TV shows had toilets in them back then? Or even bathrooms?

This leads to one other question: How did the Brady kids answer calls to nature? Sorry, I don't know the answer to this one either. Maybe they used an outhouse out behind the carport. :)

But actually, there was a toilet in there -- we just couldnt see it. In "My Brother's Keeper", Bobby yells to Peter "The bathroom's on _my_ side of no-mans land!!" He then walks into the john off-camera, and we hear a toilet flush. But this was a later episode, after Archie Bunker had made TV flushing popular.

Answer 3

Unless he's one of the hotshot architects in a world very full of architects the most he'd may would be the equivalent of $40,000 a year NOW, so back then not much. It would be very unlikely that he'd have the budget for expanding his house with having to clothe, feed, and entertain 6 kids and pay for a maid/chef (Alice) as well.

Answer 4

The house had 3 bathrooms, the kids adjoining bathroom, the master bath for Mike and Carol. If you watched A Very Brady Christmas it was revealed that there was one downstairs behind the stairs. Which one did Alice use?

Answer 5

If you watch the Brady Christmas Special that was made in either 1988 or 1989 there is a 2nd bathroom downstairs. Peter and Bobby send the 2 nephews to use it but accidently send them into the den.

Answer 6

Lol you are definitely a deep thinker. Good question. I could never figure out why americans in general not think about bathrooms in a high priority fashion. You know how hard it is to sell a house with one bathroom?

Answer 7

You have to remember that this show was created in the late 60's. Back then, houses weren't built with additioanal bathrooms. This would explain why there was no extra bathroom.

Answer 8

Now that you mention it.....it sure seems like they would have enough money for renovations-they could afford a trip to Hawaii that included the maid?! LOL- I wonder how that all worked on the Partridge Family bus?

Answer 9

There was probably not enough room in the house since they all moved in after it was built. Plus, if they had their own bathrooms, where would all the story lines come from?

Answer 10

THAT is an excellent question! Where was the parents bathroom? I don't remember that. Is there a bathroom downstairs for that matter?

Things that make you go "hmmmm..."