I'm really sour on this "Brady" hour

Here's the story ... of a horrible, horrible TV show!
Let me just get this out there: I love "The Brady Bunch." Can't get enough of it! I grew watching every re-run countless times, got 'em all on DVD, even own five Barry Williams (aka "Greg Brady") autographs, including a signed copy of his book, "Growing Up Brady."

That said, I spent two hours of my life I'll never get back watching a simply terrible "Brady" product.

Filled with ill-conceived jokes, so-called "water follies," guest stars like Rip Taylor (no, seriously), cheesy song-and-dance numbers and plenty of sequins and rhinestones (like the one reflecting off Mike Brady's vest here), "The Brady Bunch Variety Hour" was a short-lived (thank God!) variety show, produced by Sid and Marty Krofft of "H.R. Pufnstuf" and "Land of the Lost" fame. I rented a DVD with two episodes of the show the other night, and I'm still trying to burn the memory from my mind.

The premise: For some reason, the Bradys have been given their own variety show — yes, Mike gave up his lucrative and successful architecture career — and they've moved into a new house. The best part? The "new" house they live in during the first episode is different than the "new" house in subsequent episodes! Oh, and Alice shows up now and then.

This variety show seemed doomed from the start, as "Jan Brady," played on the real show by Eve Plum, didn't even sign on for it. As such, the producers had to find "Fake Jan" (seen here with "Peter Brady," Christopher Knight), as she's now known. Eve, it turns out, had already inked a deal to star in a movie and couldn't commit to this show ... she was one of the lucky ones!Listening to the cast talk now, they say the show was a big mistake. As such, it lasted just nine episodes from 1976-77.

Now, I'd heard about this show for years, but to actually watch it was a whole other story. I mean, the first episode gave us both swimming and roller skating! (Another episode featured H.R. Pufnstuf, himself, signing and dancing!)

Admittedly, "The Brady Bunch" creator Sherwood Schwartz had nothing to with this abomination ... like Eve, he was also one of the lucky ones.
So, if you're strolling the aisles at your local video rental store, steer clear of this rotten tomato and stick with the original "The Brady Bunch" we all know and love.