Michelle Newman 0:00
Welcome to the Pop Culture Preservation Society, the podcast for people born in the big wheel generation who used their tickled deodorant bottles as microphones. Oh,
Carolyn Cochrane 0:16
we believe our Gen X childhoods gave us unforgettable songs, stories, characters, and images, and if we do not talk about them, they are going to disappear like Marshall, Will, and Holly on a routine expedition.
Kristin Nilsen 0:28
And today, we're saving amateur night, that iconic episode of the, that iconic silver platters episode of the Brady Bunch that we keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on singing in our heads forever and ever. I'm Carolyn. I'm Kristen,
Michelle Newman 0:45
and I'm Michelle, and we are your pop culture preservationists.
Kristin Nilsen 0:50
Before we begin today, we need to talk about how this episode came to be. The inspiration for our Silver Platters episode came when Carolyn serendipitously walked into a very unique shop in the little lakeside town of Wayzata, Minnesota.
Carolyn Cochrane 1:05
Yes, it is the most adorable little shop. It's called Julia Moss Designs, and I was immediately smitten when I walked through those doors. You guys, it's colorful, it's fun, and something really caught my eye that I wanted to share with you all, and that's kind of what inspired this episode. So in the back of the store, they have a whole display, and it has a title. It's called "The Next Generation of Silver." Listen to this, you guys. This is just for us. Basically, think about those silver pieces that you might have inherited, that tea set or the sugar sugar bowl and creamer set, and we're all sitting looking at it, thinking, "What do we do with it?" And then we ask the kids, "Hey, you want this really cool thing your great grandmother had?" And they're like, "Look at you like you're crazy." Well, at Julia Moss Designs, they can take these silver pieces and put them through this pretty cool, amazing process, and you get to choose a color. They like somehow paint these pieces of silver bright, fun colors. Like you can have a hot pink silver tea. Well, it's not silver anymore. You could have a hot tea set, or they could make your you know sugar bowl bright orange, and now it becomes this really cool pencil holder on your desk. It's just amazing. So I'm looking back there, and I see this platter on the wall that is maybe not teal. I can't forget what what or I forget what color it is, but I just thought, oh my gosh, how amazing! How many of us do have some kind of platter like that? It used to be silver, and then of course I can't help but think of, huh? Where else was a silver platter kind of meaningful, especially to Gen X? And I think, huh? Brainy Bunch episode, silver platter. And of course, as you know, this little ADHD mind starts clicking, and I like want to talk to the person at the store. Hey, we have this podcast, and our audience would love to know about this process because we one love the silver platters and two we have some silver platters hanging around so that kind of got a conversation started that I had to share with Kristen and Michelle about maybe we could do something fun with the people at Julia Moss Designs right Kristen
Kristin Nilsen 3:18
so we have a meeting with these people and we're so excited about doing a silver platters episode, and they were like, "Ah, brilliant!" So suffice it to say, we do start hanging out with the Julia Moss Designs people, and we are going to. This is so much fun. They have agreed to do a giveaway for our listeners. Somebody, one of you, somebody who's listening right now, is going to win a Julia Moss designs silver platter in one of these crazy '70s colors. So stay tuned because we're going to be giving you information about how to enter that giveaway, probably in this episode and actually throughout the entire month. Just keep on listening. Keep on. Keep on. Keep on. Keep on listening for information on how to enter the giveaway. I love this. Okay, you guys, let's get to the episode.
Michelle Newman 4:03
Okay, before we start, I need to make sure you guys both have your mics with the 55 foot cord in hand. Everybody ready? Is it coiled on the ground? I got my curling iron. Okay, now flip. Make sure we all flip the cords behind us so we don't trip on them. Right? Okay, good. We're gonna
Kristin Nilsen 4:18
trip on
Michelle Newman 4:19
it. Yeah, right. And you got to be
Carolyn Cochrane 4:20
able to do this. Oh man, she's flipping it back and forth. Yes,
Michelle Newman 4:25
throwing it back and forth. Yes, we love a good culture reference here at the PCPS. All right, so today we're going to be breaking down one of the most iconic and favorite Brady Bunches ever, episode 16 of season four, Amateur Night, or as I've always just called it in my head, the silver platters, alternate titles, the one where Jan messes up big time when paying for the engraving on Mike and Carol's anniversary silver platter, so they go on a talent show to try to win the money, or the one with the songs that have been living in your body's cellular data for decades, or just. This one and this is taking dialog straight from the episode. How could you be so stupid, Jan? Whatever the title, I love and have always loved this episode. What about you guys?
Carolyn Cochrane 5:13
Oh, among my favorites, this is right up there with the very few times that the Christmas episode would be on. I mean, this lives there in my heart. It is so special. Well, really, any of the musical ones, but this one I think was our first introduction to the fact that these six kiddos can sing.
Michelle Newman 5:30
Yeah, they can. I love how you said this one lives there. This does. I do feel like so many of the Brady Bunch episodes live in us, but I think this one hasn't moved since 1972 or whatever. Sure,
Kristin Nilsen 5:43
I read. I read a blog. I'm sorry, I can't remember what the name of the blog was, but it was a blog that reviewed the episode, and it said, "This is a quote from the blog. I much prefer seeing the Bradys as a blended suburban family instead of a singing group, but occasionally it was fun." And I'm sorry, but the 70s does not agree with you. We're not even. We're not even the same species. This person and me. We're not like when you turned on the Brady Bunch after school and you saw Jan in the department store trying to pay her 85 cents for the silver platter, and you were like, it was like winning the lottery watching Jan, watching him hand over that silver platter. And I feel like this episode was elusive. I don't know if it was because I pined for it so badly, or if it really was elusive. Which, but if it was really elusive, that would explain why it was so hard for us to find to watch for research. Like you, where all the places you can watch the Brady Bunch, this episode would be missing, even on the official channels like Paramount Plus, where they house the Brady Bunch. This episode was missing, and we had to end up watching it on a Russian website.
Carolyn Cochrane 6:48
Yeah, I think we watched a pirated version, and I had to watch it two different times because it only let me watch 15 minutes of it, and then it stopped. And then it cut off. Yeah, yeah. So then the next day, I I pushed play again, and it let me watch the last 15 minutes. So I did end up being able to see the entire episode. And let's just talk about that, you guys. Again, who screwed, out the wazoo? I do know that it's the episode where she has to, you know, get the extra money. I mean, I know the plot, but I forgot those little elements of the episode that I knew the next line, like, and I knew what she was going to be wearing, and I knew what Bobby and Cindy were going to say at the in the bank officer's office. And you know, I forgot though, like I forgot that whole segment of the episode. I remember that Bobby and Cindy once went to a bank, but I didn't remember it was that episode that they were going to get a loan. And listeners, I know you're having hoo screwdude moments right now because you can picture that banker,
Michelle Newman 7:44
Kristen. To your point, I thought about that too, about how my sister and I every single day after school for years and years would watch the Brady Bunch, and when this episode came on, it was like it was like Christmas morning. It was like like maybe if my sister had run up the stairs or was like, I'm not going to watch it today. I'd be screaming, "It's the summer planners! It's the summer planners!" And because we did not have access to it, like much like what you just heard, we don't today. But oh my gosh, it was yeah, it was so exciting when it came on, and obviously we watched it enough. It got cycled enough that we all we know this episode by heart. We know these songs by heart, and not just the songs by heart. We know the choreography. We know the choreography. And I
Kristin Nilsen 8:29
think it's notable too that these that the Silver Platters episode, the Silver Platters themselves are not the Brady Kids. The Silver Platters. Yeah, the actual. Yeah, very specifically the Silver Platters. They are important enough to be included to have an entry in the Rocklopedia Fake Bandica, which is a reference source full of pretend musical acts. And so they describe the silver platters and who they are. And then at the bottom, there's a C also. It says C also Johnny Bravo and the Banana Convention. The Banana Convention was the band that Greg joined in season one, and then got peer pressured into smoking.
Michelle Newman 9:08
Oh my god, man! So good.
Carolyn Cochrane 9:10
I I just love that.
Michelle Newman 9:12
Okay, let's get into this fabulous episode, shall we? Okay. So in the opening scene, we see Jan in the housewares department of the local department store, you guys. I hope she didn't ride her bike there because she wasn't wearing her glasses. We all know what happens when she doesn't wear her glasses. Well, she might have put them
Carolyn Cochrane 9:29
in her purse, her pocketbook. Oh, you know, she had like a real, like almost pocket book thing that she puts on. Yes,
Michelle Newman 9:36
yeah. And I feel like already right out of the gate, we need to stop to discuss the fabulousness of this set that they've created.
Carolyn Cochrane 9:44
The
Michelle Newman 9:44
entire back wall is painted in large horizontal stripes, and they're red and orange and yellow and purple. And there are these this giant signage. Make sure you know where she is because it says. Silverware in like the coolest font, and then you can see going through the door. That's where you're going to go to find the furniture because it's giant. And they really, I just feel like they knocked it out of the park with this set. And you know, it probably was the size of you know a very small bedroom.
Kristin Nilsen 10:19
It was like a bathroom, yeah, and didn't
Michelle Newman 10:21
cost them much at all. But didn't you guys feel like just instantly so happy when you saw that joy?
Kristin Nilsen 10:27
It's joy on a wall. That wall alone is sort of the inspiration for my Greg Brady attic. So I renovated my attic during the pandemic because suddenly everybody needed more space, and literally that I'm trying to draw stripes. I'm trying to get those colors. I'm trying to just like download the Brady's into my attic, and that's where I now podcast from. I'm sitting in that attic right now, and if you look behind me, you can see a Brady-inspired wall that just fell down. Like half of it just fell to the floor, literally five minutes. But that's
Michelle Newman 10:59
also very probably very Brady set. Probably those that big sign that says silverware probably clunked. No, it fell down.
Kristin Nilsen 11:06
Yeah, yeah.
Michelle Newman 11:07
It was also held up with what are those Velcro dots or sticky dots? No, they're sticky
Kristin Nilsen 11:11
dots. They're just sticky dots. Yeah, it's a really groovy. Those. It's a really groovy. It is very groovy.
Michelle Newman 11:18
It's so groovy. Felt. Well,
Kristin Nilsen 11:19
so that's what I was trying to say. It's felt on my wall, stripey.
Michelle Newman 11:23
Got it. Okay, so Jan's there at the department store at the housewares department that sells silverware to pay for the engraving on the silver platter that the kids all bought, Mike and Carol, for their upcoming wedding anniversary. And she very, you know, she very deliberately counts out the 85 cents, all the coins, and the salesman Alfred, or as we'll later come to call him Alfie, he tells her, "Oh no, the bill is for $56.23. It was 85 cents a letter, not 85 cents for all six names." Jan, how could you be so stupid? Dingling.
Kristin Nilsen 12:00
Can we talk about Alfred for a minute? Alfred is such a character. So, okay, just for a little bit of reference, when I was in fifth grade, I made a puppet out of papier mache, and the hair that I put on my puppet is the exact same hair that Alfred has, which is essentially like an isosceles triangle made out of steel wool, and it's he has these giant sideburns, and he has a comb over that starts at the top of his ear and goes all the way across. It's very it's very Gene Wilder actually, but more triangular and more steel wool. Yeah, and he's a very dignified fellow. You know how people in the '70s would oftentimes speak with this strange accent that came from nowhere, even though they're living in Los Angeles, and we know he's not British. That's Alfred, because he works in the silverware department. But at the same time, all of that is like sullied when he has the giant steel wool triangle, and he also has the fattest paisley tie you've ever seen, and he has three mood rings on one hand. Oh my rings, the rings.
Michelle Newman 13:03
I feel like he's also the photographer
Speaker 1 13:08
in in the
Michelle Newman 13:09
season three episode where yes, where she crashes the bike into the anniversary portrait. Oh, he's just so funny. I love him. Yeah, so the Jan, how could you be so stupid? Is exactly what Marsha asks her later. Hands on hips too, and very sassy and very like bitchy, pretty much right smirking even like yeah. How do you? And then she keeps her hands on her hips, and she's like, "Now we don't have a gift for Mom and Dad's anniversary." And Jan so earnestly is like, "But we still have a week to raise the money, and this, my friends, is called the setup. Yeah, and this is going to set up the entire rest of the episode. A lot of exposition there. Yeah, how are we going to raise money? Well, so first they decide. We know who who might have some money. Alice. They're going to ask Alice for the money, but they overhear Alice asking her friend for a loan because anniversary present she had to buy Mike and Carol insurance premium that's just suddenly come come due and payday is not for another two weeks which begs the question how much do you think Alice got paid every two weeks when she says and payday's not for two weeks. I was like, well, just like blow me down because I never, for one second, ever even imagined or considered
Kristin Nilsen 14:30
Mike and Carol writing out Alice a check. Right, right. Like she's just part of the family. Yeah, she's their. They pay that woman. Uh huh. Yeah. How much do you think? And she gets room and board. Remember that. So she's probably not getting paid that much. Yeah, and
Carolyn Cochrane 14:44
she has to pay her insurance premium, which I'm guessing is health insurance because she doesn't drive, as far as I know. So it can't be car insurance unless it's life insurance. Otherwise, she's having to pay her own health insurance. Yeah,
Kristin Nilsen 14:55
but
Carolyn Cochrane 14:56
I know. So I don't know how much she would have gotten. I
Michelle Newman 14:59
don't know. I have no idea. Who knows? Well, speaking of loans and premiums, after asking Mike and Carol what people do when they need an awful lot of money, Mike tells Bobby and Cindy they usually ask for a loan at the bank. So we just cut immediately to Bobby and Cindy sitting in the bank officer, manager, loan officer, whoever he is, his office again. How did they get there? Who let them in?
Kristin Nilsen 15:23
Right. We
Michelle Newman 15:24
don't know. Did they take the bus? I'm guessing they took the bus. Did Greg drive them in the convertible? They
Kristin Nilsen 15:29
ride their banana seat bikes over there. Yeah. To the bank.
Michelle Newman 15:32
Who? And then when they walked in and said, "Excuse me, we need to see the bank officer," they were like, "Sure, kids, this way." Anyway. Yeah. So they're sitting and also listening as he's ending a very important call. Anyway, we get a lesson on loans and collateral, and he ultimately just says no, denies their loan, which is kind of rude. Gives them a coin collection box with the little coins that roll down and fall into the little, you know, each little cigar dime
Kristin Nilsen 15:58
each. Yeah, he also has the funny accent, like "Oh, children! I will give you each one dime." I was getting very much.
Michelle Newman 16:07
I was getting the mr. Banks from Banks. Yes, like tuppence.
Speaker 2 16:14
Yes, there's a tuppence
Michelle Newman 16:16
for each of you, and he sends them on their way.
Kristin Nilsen 16:18
Okay, here is an interesting tip that we got from the Brady Bros podcast episode when they were talking about this episode, why do they go into a bank officer? That's not super realistic. That these children get a get a meeting with a bank loan officer. More realistic would be that they walk into a bank and they go up to a teller and they tell her their their drama and ask it to see somebody, but as Greg Brady or Barry Williams points out, that would be a very expensive set to build. To suddenly build a bank with like bank tellers and windows and lots of people and extras and stuff like that. Instead, if you just have you just need a little corner of the set with a desk and two chairs and one guy, that's a lot cheaper. So that's how they got in to see a bank officer.
Michelle Newman 17:03
Yes, yes, it's it's brilliant actually if you think about it. So now we're back at the house and we learned that Greg has tried collecting on a $5 loan he'd given a friend. Marcia's tried to sell her watch for $10, but Jan, y'all, Jan is going to right her wrong and save the day because she signed them up for an amateur talent contest, and the first prize is $100. Now let's go back to 1973. $100 was nothing to sneeze at. Yeah, that was just
Kristin Nilsen 17:37
$1,000. That's at least, and all they need is $56.13.
Michelle Newman 17:42
That's right. So they were going to have money left over to I don't know. By they could argue if they were going to buy a canoe or they got a sewing machine. What are they going to buy? Okay, I have a little aside here. The show that she's she's got gotten them an audition for is called the Pete Stern Amateur Hour. So why riddle me this? Why isn't this episode called Amateur Hour instead of Amateur Night?
Kristin Nilsen 18:04
Why? There's no no place in the episode do they say Amateur Night. There there's nothing in the logo for the TV show that says Amateur Night. Nothing nowhere.
Michelle Newman 18:13
And again, it should have been called the Silver Platters, but maybe the actual Silver Platters had a had beef with that. Okay. Well, anyway, Greg is skeptical. What can they possibly do in a talent contest? Well, Jan says we can sing a little, we can dance a little, and Bobby and Cindy can be cute and charming. So they get the audition. The phone rings, and of course, luckily Jan's there to answer it right away. And Alice didn't answer it or someone because there would have been questions. They get the audition, and those crazy kids immediately start choreographing and rehearsing in the carport. And I think these next few scenes that come rapid fire are so so cute.
Kristin Nilsen 18:50
These are so cute.
Michelle Newman 18:51
First, Mike walks out on his way to work, and this we know because suit and briefcase. And they're in the garage, and they're doing the choreography that we're going to come to see later. I mean, it's very recognizable what they're doing. It looks a little
Kristin Nilsen 19:03
bit like they're playing Lemon Twist. Like they just are. But they're doing they're doing
Michelle Newman 19:07
some of the the choreography. And Mike asks what they're doing, and I just love. They all just pause, like they freeze, like they were on like you know freeze dance, and then all of a sudden they're fixing a bike. Yes, they're fixing a bike, and they all run over to the bike, and then cut immediately. Out comes Carolyn to prune some flowers, and this we know because gardening shears and basket and gloves and big gloves, giant gloves. Yep. And when they see her like standing, watching them quizzically, they all just stop, freeze again, and then calisthenics, jumping Jackson, Cindy doing the touching toes thing with her hand, windmills, windmills, windmills, windmills, windmills. Yeah, and she kind of shakes her head like those crazy kids walks off. Then this is my favorite one. Along comes Alice, ready to hang laundry. And this we know because laundry basket full of laundry and a clothesline that is tied to the top of the swing set. I had never noticed that before because I had to go back. And think, where is she going with that? There's just a rope tied to the top of the swing set from the fence, and she bends all the way down. Alice gets all the way down on her hands and knees, and she peers under the carport and she sees their feet, you know, doing all the choreography. And she hollers, "Hey, what are you kids doing in there?" And all you see are their feet all just screech to a stop for a really good long pause. Like they did a good comedic pause there, and Greg yells out, "Cleaning the garage!" And we just see their feet all scramble for brooms, and they're brooming. And there's a rink. Someone has a golf club. Yes, they're all pretending to like furiously clean, clean, clean. And this is the best. Like this
Kristin Nilsen 20:40
view under you know there's like 12 inches between the wall of the carport down to the ground and that's what Alice is looking at, and when they're doing their lemon twist with their feet and their feet are swinging swinging, that is the best view of bell bottoms you have ever seen. It's just like it's like 12 12 legs of bell bottoms. And then did you hear in the Alice part when they're scrambling like cleaning the garage, cleaning the garage. Did you hear Marsha say, "Come on, Chris"
Carolyn Cochrane 21:05
? Yep, that's our fun little. I only discovered that from doing my research, but yeah, then I went back and listened, and sure enough, she does
Kristin Nilsen 21:14
listen really, really hard. I had to watch it twice. Such
Michelle Newman 21:17
a great yeah. I know I've got to go back to the Russian website. It is not
Kristin Nilsen 21:21
obvious at all. You really have to know it's there, and you have to be listening for it. She says, "Come on, Chris." One little thing
Michelle Newman 21:27
that I noticed that I thought was probably they were goofing, and it got and it got left in is let's go back just a little bit to the scene in the den when Jen Jen Jan says we got the audition at the you know she gets the phone call. We're in. We got the audition. And they, you know, 30 seconds before they were very skeptical of Jan. Yes. What are we going to do? And Bobby and Cindy are going to be cute and you know charming, whatever. And they're like, we don't want to be that. Well, now when she says, that's it. We're in. We have the audition. They all are like, I'm imagining the director shouted. Everybody act very excited because they're all like woo. If you watch, and it's a split second. If you watch Bobby and Peter, they are hilarious. They turn to each other and they're like looking like they're gonna hug. And Christopher Knight is like, like he's jumping so almost like I'm gonna overdo this. Like the director, maybe that was take three because the director was like, "You guys have to do that again." When I say get excited, I mean get excited, and it's all believing
Kristin Nilsen 22:31
you right now, kids.
Speaker 3 22:32
Yes,
Kristin Nilsen 22:32
yeah.
Michelle Newman 22:33
What it looks like to me is Christopher Knight just like is like, well, fine. Then I'm gonna just go ham on this, you know? Yeah, right. Because it's almost ridiculous, and it's so quick. But I thought it was really cute because he grabs his hands on like Mike Lichtenland's hands. It was really cute. Okay, this brings us now to their big audition day. They're at the studio again. Good gosh, if I could own that logo that says the Pete Stern Amateur Hour, whatever, I would hang that over my mantle. Like,
Carolyn Cochrane 23:04
is that somewhere in the world of sets or props, or did that end up in a big, you know, dump somewhere? There is a
Michelle Newman 23:10
museum. Next time you guys were all in LA, we have to go to. It's all like, and it's not a very big museum, but it's all like the forgotten set pieces from a lot of these '70s TV shows, like Laverne and Shirley and Happy Days and stuff. What if it's hanging there? Anyway, that's we need to put this on our list. Yeah,
Carolyn Cochrane 23:27
you need it right above your. I know, right? The
Kristin Nilsen 23:29
place where my wall fell down. My stove. It would look
Michelle Newman 23:33
so amazing right there. I know. Yeah. So they're at the studio, and this is when they sing Sunshine Day, it's beautiful. They make the show. They don't have costumes, however, but the host says they can find them some in the wardrobe department. And don't worry, everybody, we're going to come all the way back to that in just a hot second. Now, when the host asks what their group name is, they all pause, and I thought it was I mistakenly attributed this very, you know, obviously was going to become a very famous line to Jan. I think two episodes ago, but it's Greg who says, "Just call us the Silver Platters," and they're all like, "No, no,
Kristin Nilsen 24:10
nod heads." Yes, nodding, nodding.
Michelle Newman 24:14
Yeah. So early the morning of the show, Alice. I love this scene too. Alice discovers them sneaking down the stairs, and she wonders where they're all where they're going, all dressed up and ready so early in the morning. Football game, obviously, and why so early? Well, they need to get good seats. Now, one thing that I love is there's Alice at you know what time? I'm in my head. It's 530 in the morning. I don't know, but Alice there she is always
Kristin Nilsen 24:40
tiptoeing. They are, and it's kind of dim. You see,
Michelle Newman 24:42
it's it's almost like they've lowered the set lights, so the living room's almost dusky. But here's Alice with like her her I don't know I don't remember. She have a laundry basket, a a dusting rag. She's a rag. She's a rag. She's all pressed and starched, hair all perfectly done. And I'm like, God dang, Alice, you get up early. Hope she gets paid well for that.
Carolyn Cochrane 25:00
She does.
Michelle Newman 25:01
Well, later that day, you know, we don't get to see them getting there, getting the costumes at the costume department. You know, we've got a 20, we've got a 22 minute show to get through, right? Later that day, Alice is she's on the phone with her French, fed up with her soap opera. So she switches the channel and discovers amateur hour. This looks interesting. She stops channel surfing, sits down to watch, and is shocked when the silver platters take the stage, and she's frantic. mrs. Brady, mr. Brady, come quick! The kids are on television, and of course, Carolyn Mike are just enjoying a little cup of coffee at the round kitchen table
Kristin Nilsen 25:36
mugs. By the way, they're drinking out of our mugs that we own. Yeah, listeners, we
Michelle Newman 25:39
own those mugs. Yeah, thank you so much, Susie. And they're like, "What kids? His kids? Your kids? Our kids?" And they run in, and there they are on their little TV in their resplendent blue and white matching costumes, singing "Keep on" this time, and doing some very complicated and incredible choreography, in my opinion. Like, you know, I know they've been rehearsing in the garage, but they had to come up with that pretty quickly. And Mike and Carol and Alice, they're just stunned but delighted, and they are bopping along, and they're just they're so proud and impressed with them, and it's very cute. I am told when Alice
Kristin Nilsen 26:18
jumps up and is running, Miss All righty, Miss All Righty. Like I feel Alice right there. I feel the same excitement. Like Alice can barely speak. It's probably one of Alice's best moments in the entire run of the show because she's like, "They're your kids. Our our kids. Our kids. Your kids. They're on the TV." And I'm like, "Yes, yes, yes, yes. Let's go watch the kids."
Michelle Newman 26:40
Well, I also Alice has another really great moment about five seconds later because sadly the judges aren't as impressed as we all are and as Carol and Mike and Alice are and the silver platters come in third place and are awarded a stupid plaque. How could you be so stupid?
Kristin Nilsen 27:00
It's such bullshit. They
Michelle Newman 27:02
were robbed, all caps. And I don't know about you guys, but I was Alice in that moment, and she's all third prize. They were gypped. She gets up and she switches off the TV, and she's like, "The last time I ever watched that crooked channel,"
Kristin Nilsen 27:17
and I was kind of pissed because I'm like, "Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait! They're gonna come back out. Like the show's not over. It just it seemed like a real miss to me. And also, she turned
Michelle Newman 27:26
it off
Kristin Nilsen 27:27
right before they're announced as the third place winner. There's this moment. It's such a Brady Bunch moment where Alice is like, "Oh, I sure hope the kids win that so they can get you your gift." And Carol puts her hand on Mike's arm, and she looks at him, and she says, "We've already got our gift." And they definitely look like people who do it, like the way they look at each other. Sorry,
Michelle Newman 27:50
and he kind of does. Yeah, it's almost like you needed just a little bit of the. Yep, yep, yep. There because it was so like yeah, we've already
Kristin Nilsen 27:59
got our gift
Michelle Newman 28:00
because after the performance, the host had asked them what they'd do with the $100 if they won first prize. And on TV, so Mike and Carol saw this. They explained about needing the money to pay for the engraving on the parents' anniversary gift. And yeah, Mike and Carol they're visibly moved. And when the kids returned home, Mike and Carolyn waiting for them with what the engraved silver platter, best gift ever. They said, and they're like, "How
Kristin Nilsen 28:31
was how was the football game, kids?"
Carolyn Cochrane 28:33
Yeah, and then they're
Michelle Newman 28:35
like, "You guys, we saw you." Like, how did you know? And they pull the silver platter out, and they're it's all it's very sweet, and yeah, like I said earlier, the long-lasting gifts this episode has given us are many. But I think more, maybe more than ever, we need to start with those two songs.
Carolyn Cochrane 28:53
Yeah, those songs. Let's just have a moment. I mean, it's almost like a moment of silence for two of the best songs that live in our minds and connect an entire generation. The best
Michelle Newman 29:04
songs ever written in the history of writing the history of songwriting
Carolyn Cochrane 29:08
and performed. Yes. Well, interestingly enough, there might have been some people who heard those songs before the episode because you know why? They were released on the Brady Kids record album that came out in December before the January episode of the Silver Best. Both
Kristin Nilsen 29:26
songs are on that album.
Carolyn Cochrane 29:27
They're both on that album, and pretty much if we think about now how marketing works, this was a way to after the album came out, which was probably right around before Christmas. So there were some lucky kids out in the world that got that album, but then it was a way to promote the album by having the kids sing live on, or not live, but sing on the TV show. So never
Kristin Nilsen 29:49
considered that this was a cross promotional thing. Well, sure, because it
Michelle Newman 29:53
was already recorded. Because in that Brady Bros episode, they do remember that they lip synced it, and obviously they do because the songs.
Carolyn Cochrane 30:02
And I think back then what I was so I thought I was so smart because I was probably put that together like they're bowing and not moving their lips but there's still music going and it's getting softer, and then I would notice that on like talk shows like Merv Griffin or Mike Douglas sometimes you know there'd be like a whole band backing up. I don't know Robert Goulet, and then he finish. You know, he's like bowing, but the song just kind of like his voice out. I'm thinking quiet on it quietly.
Michelle Newman 30:32
He knows how to like pull his voice back as he bows. Oh, they did that guitar quietly.
Kristin Nilsen 30:38
Do you guys
Michelle Newman 30:39
remember on our dance dance fever episode, Irene Cara saying saying flash dance, what a feeling! And it did the same thing. It was still going as she
Carolyn Cochrane 30:49
bowed. Do they think we didn't notice, or was were we just acknowledged?
Kristin Nilsen 30:53
We didn't know. Like I never even considered it. I just thought that that's how songs went. But it is such a '70s thing. You could not get away with that today. Like remember when when Ashley Simpson, yes, was on was on Saturday Night Live, and she sang the wrong songs. Then it made it was clear that she was lip syncing, and it was it was a scandal. None of this was a scandal in the 70s. Well, no,
Carolyn Cochrane 31:17
and you know what else happened in the 70s is that if you were on like a Mike Douglas or a Merv Griffin, it was they could kind of hide it because the applause started like right before it you know went out. But on the Brady Bunch episode, when they're at the audition, there's no applause or anything. Okay, so our audition. What do we hear at our audition, Michelle? What's the song?
Michelle Newman 31:39
That's Sunshine Day,
Carolyn Cochrane 31:40
that is Sunshine Day. Okay, that was written by a songwriter named Stephen McCarthy, and again, like I said, it appeared first on the Brady Bunch album, The Kids from the Brady Bunch, and that was released just for our little fact checkers out there. december 4, 1972. The episode aired January 26 of 1973. So some people had a what a good six seven weeks to learn that song those songs before they came on. My goodness, that song, it appeared on Greatest Hits of the Brady Bunch kids. Like they had a greatest hits come out in 1993. You guys, you can also hear it on the 1999 album Return of Johnny Bravo. Greg Brady has, or Johnny Bravo, Greg Brady has an entire album that comes out where he covers current day songs. He happens to sing It's a Sunshine Day, but he also sings We Are the Champions. Greg also sings Rhythm of the night, or Johnny Bravo sings Rhythm of the Night. Oh,
Michelle Newman 32:43
you guys know how I feel about that song. That's right. That's my walk-up song. I'm getting that. Well, Johnny Bravo purchased Johnny Bravo. The
Carolyn Cochrane 32:52
Johnny Bravo version plays as your walk-up song. So this kind of defines really the TV show and Greg Barry Williams uses this a lot. Not only did it appear on the 1999 Return of Johnny Bravo, it appeared just a few months ago when Greg Brady Barry Williams was brought out at a Smashing Pumpkins concert, and she begins to sing, "It's a sunshine day." Then the Smashing Pumpkins join in and are singing with him, and the place is going wild.
Kristin Nilsen 33:27
I W I love him for this. I love him so much for this. I love the Smashing Pumpkins for this. I love that the audience rewarded them for this. I think this is the ultimate gift to the world.
Carolyn Cochrane 33:39
Ultimate with a capital U, I mean, it is the gift that keeps on giving, and then to see how the video of it goes viral on social media, and then you get to read all the comments of people who are seeing this collab, and just like it's blowing their minds that this is actually happening. So again, it's just to a nod to what we're doing with this podcast, the song lives within so many of us, and kind of like when it's brought out of the you know the archives and brought to current day with a band and a concert that just happened a couple of months ago, and everyone's excited. It just feels good. I mean, think about
Kristin Nilsen 34:17
it. So Billy Corrigan, he's one of us. He's a Gen Xer. He probably grew up listening to those songs in the same way that we did. We don't know. Maybe Sunshine Day was a huge inspiration for him, and then he becomes Smashing Pumpkins.
Carolyn Cochrane 34:31
I mean, who knows? I mean, and how is he good friends with Greg? Did they bump into each other at a Starbucks line? Oh, I really, you know, your song is a Sunshine Day, and Johnny Bravo inspired my career. Oh wow! Let's grab a drink together. Oh, bring your you know significant others, and now they're good friends. I don't know. I totally made up a Carolyn story, but nonetheless, how fun was that? I heard somebody
Kristin Nilsen 34:53
refer to this song as Archie's esque, like the Archies, and I totally agree. Like this is the ultimate Sunshine Pop song. This is this is and the Archies another fake band. The '70s were the era of fake band. I'm here for it. I love all of it. I love the sound. It makes me happy. You can criticize it all you want. I don't care. I love it.
Carolyn Cochrane 35:13
Yeah, just listen to our Sunshine Pop episode, and we talk about that whole genre. And I mean, heck, Sunshine is in the title of this one. You can't get any more in your face. Yes, that you know what you're going to get. It's going to be happy. It's going to be boppy, and it's going to make you feel good.
Carolyn Cochrane 35:29
Love it. Okay, now this is amazing to me too, and I'm probably even thought this at the time. Fast forward, we're actually at the event, the amateur hour. Yeah, come to think of it, wasn't even nighttime when they did it. Anyway, that just hit me. Okay, so we go, and this has to be just a couple of days later. This isn't like a month later or whatever. But we have a whole another routine and a whole nother song. They're not even just reprising their song. It's a sunshine day. We are getting keep on, okay guys. Just take a moment. Keep on. I mean, it's just it's there. We can all sing it. So this song also appeared on that album, The Kids from the Brady Bunch, december 4, 1972. It was written by Jackie Mills and Thomas Jenkins. Now Jackie Mills, you guys, we need to remember this guy because we have him to thank for a few things. He was not only a songwriter; he was also a drummer, and he was a producer. He produced that album that I talked about, and he produced some other music for artists such as Janis Joplin, and we have him to thank for Bobby Sherman. So, mr. Yappy Mills, thank you, thank you for your contribution to the '70s and to the music of our generation. Yeah, because you really did it. So, in terms of those two songs, I love them both. Either of you guys have a favorite? If you were only could take one on that desert island, Sophie's choice. Yes, it is a Sophie's
Michelle Newman 36:57
choice. But I'm. I think immediately what comes is I like Sunshine Day, and the reason why I love Sunshine Day is the same today as it was when I was a child. There is one little snippet of a verse that Marsha sings, and she comes walking forward and she scoops all her words. I think I'll go for one outside now. The summer sun's cold, and her voice is so clear and so cute and perfect, and even as a kid, and you guys know I was all about. Well, I was kind of all about Cindy until she got the braids, and then I, you know, wasn't as much. But I love that part, and I loved the choreography of that part. I don't know, it's just Boppy and Kristen. Like you said, it's such. It's so sunshine pop to me. It's happy. I love both songs. Don't get me wrong, but if I've got to take one, it's going to be Sunshine Day.
Kristin Nilsen 37:46
This is you gave me a second to think about it, which is really great because I've decided that to listen to my favorite song is Sunshine Day, but the performance of Key Bon is what keeps me alive. Yeah, it's what keeps my heart pumping.
Carolyn Cochrane 38:00
Yes, she's not kidding.
Michelle Newman 38:01
You might think that's hyperbole. She's not kidding. Keeps her alive. It's one. It's for life support.
Carolyn Cochrane 38:06
Well, I thought it was super interesting because when I was thinking about the lyrics, I don't know that I've ever really thought about those lyrics before. And maybe this is a common, this is common knowledge, and you guys know this. But I did read a take on you know the line makeshift model TA, and I just always kind of saw a model T in my head. But do you know what that might be referring to? Makeshift model TA.
Kristin Nilsen 38:31
Well, I just pictured a model T. I just pictured Model T.
Michelle Newman 38:35
Me too. I've been called an A.
Kristin Nilsen 38:37
Yeah.
Carolyn Cochrane 38:37
Trans Am.
Kristin Nilsen 38:38
Oh, what? Okay. All right. That makes more sense. I just pictured like a groovier. It was a jollof t. I did too. Way groovier.
Carolyn Cochrane 38:47
And of course we would have at that age because I'm not even sure I would have known what a trans am was when I would have first seen those episodes. So yeah, I was like almost picturing them in a Model T, like maybe even an old-fashioned clothes in a Model T.
Speaker 4 38:59
Yeah, but yeah, Beverly Hillbillies. Yeah.
Carolyn Cochrane 39:02
So anyway, another fun little yeah little fact. Carolyn, what's your
Michelle Newman 39:06
what what song would you take to the desert?
Carolyn Cochrane 39:09
Same. I'm gonna maybe have to use Kristen's kind of logic and get both songs in with Sunshine Day. Just yeah, happy boppy, and you know, also you have to remember if we didn't have this podcast, that would be one of those songs that it would just somehow pop up occasionally on your like social media feed. And when you'd hear when you saw my
Michelle Newman 39:32
reel, right? Yeah,
Carolyn Cochrane 39:34
like stop. You would stop dead in your tracks and be so immediately happy. The fact that we probably hear it a little bit more, just because the nature of the business that we're in, we have more opportunity to just bring it up when we're making our social media. But the joy that I would get pre PCPS, if somehow that would stumble into my, you know, what do I want to say, into my orbit, I would just be so so. Yeah,
Kristin Nilsen 40:00
I mean, think about remember these two moments. These are two pivotal Gen X moments. The first one is the Saturday Night Live episode where the where the Partridge family meets the Brady Bunch, and you hear that song, and all of us were like, I know. And then the second moment is when you hear it in the Brady Bunch movie. Of course, they put it in the Brady Bunch movie. These are Gen X touchstones. These stayed with us, and like you said, they were so elusive. You couldn't just go out and listen to it. They weren't playing it on the radio. We didn't have streaming, so when they landed in your lap, it was a holiday.
Michelle Newman 40:34
Yes, and let's not forget, like of of the era, you've got so many family singing groups, and and we talk about in our episode where we talk where we talk about the Brady Bunch Variety Hour, and the whole reason that came to be is because of the Partridges, the Osmonds, the Cowskills, the you know the all of these groups, and they're like, well, we've got a family here, and they can mostly sing, so they've got to sing too. So they can
Kristin Nilsen 40:58
mostly sing. Back
Michelle Newman 41:00
in the 70s, I mean, this was just this was candy to us to have these this these adolescents and children who we like revered also singing. I mean, my God, it's the perfect storm.
Carolyn Cochrane 41:15
Kristen, you'll remember the the character's name or the actress. You will remember the cast member's name on Saturday Night Live who played Jan. Who was that again? Melanie
Kristin Nilsen 41:24
Hudsell.
Carolyn Cochrane 41:25
Melanie Hudson. Okay, and you might also know this, but I did not. That she kind of was reprising her character of Jan because she was part of a comedy group in L.A. that did that Brady Bunch live. I did not know this where they recreated those classic episodes, and I saw
Kristin Nilsen 41:43
that in Chicago. I saw that, and yes, I did. And I remember Carolyn, my other friend. Carolyn, are you out there listening? I saw it with my friend Carolyn, my other friend Carolyn, and it was again a moment where, like, we were clinging to each other. Everybody, like, the whole audience was bonding because we were here for this moment. Somebody was acknowledging the role that the Brady Bunch played in our lives.
Carolyn Cochrane 42:02
Yes. Oh, again, that collective that we talk about all the time, and that was pre all of this social media stuff. Yeah. So that and and just that SNL skit when they you know basically are calling out the Partridge family for lip syncing, and they're like, you know, we've got the real deal and we have choreography. I just I thought that's it. That is it in a nutshell. It was speaking to us,
Kristin Nilsen 42:23
and I know not all of the Brady kids feel have fond feelings for that for that sketch. But for us as viewers, we treasure it. We we see it as honoring. We saw it as honoring.
Carolyn Cochrane 42:36
Do you think Kristen and Michelle? But Kristen always is talking about you know the reminiscence bump and what music does. Do you think the music, the fact that there's music in it, I mean, attributes to the fondness like that it sticks with us a little more than 100%.
Kristin Nilsen 42:52
I mean, the same can be true of the the Davy Jones episode. Girl, look what you've done to me. It does. It elevates everything because it's almost like a mnemonic device, and it sticks in our memory in a greater capacity. And because music is an emotional thing, so it creates an emotional connection, even if the emotion is I'm having so much fun.
Carolyn Cochrane 43:14
Yes. Yeah. So two great songs that will live on forever, and I don't know. Maybe at my celebration of life. You guys can play that. Keep on. We'll do keep on. Keep on. Yeah, she's gonna keep on just in another world. Everybody. And I always thought it was
Kristin Nilsen 43:28
funny that I think I think I just learned when we were researching this that it's called keep on because I thought it was called keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on dancing all through the night. Like it's a really long title, but I just thought that's what it was called.
Michelle Newman 43:42
Yeah.
Carolyn Cochrane 43:43
Yeah. Well, they needed all those keep on so they could the
Kristin Nilsen 43:46
bouncing. Oh, so good.
Michelle Newman 43:48
Yeah. Well, let's talk about that. So, besides these songs, much of the actual performances have also lived in the recesses of our brains for decades. Yeah. So much so that many of us, all three of us, I know for sure, we can't sing either one without busting out that choreography.
Kristin Nilsen 44:08
Yeah. Well, and before, can I talk about the costumes before we get to choreography? Because the choreography is nothing without the costumes, even for Sunshine Day, which is just in their street clothes. Because remember, they're auditioning. Yeah. But both of these performances are the absolute highlight of the episode, Sunshine Day and Keep On. They have become iconic in the minds of everyone, except maybe the people who were born after Nick at Night went off the air. So it's not just Gen Xers; it's it's other people too. The first time I saw Sunshine Day, I was going to say you saw, and then I was like, Kristen, maybe not everybody feels this way. The first time I saw Sunshine Day, it was probably the closest that I'd ever come to experiencing like pure bliss in my short little life. And then just a few minutes later, you get the actual on-air performance of Keep On in their costumes, in those blue and white polyester costumes, an outfit I've been. Pining for ever since, literally, I believe the blue and white sweater slash track pants combo could be the best potential Halloween costume of all time, especially if you have five friends. So let's start with Sunshine Day. This is their audition, so they show up in their street clothes and perform what they've been practicing in the carport with Chris. Come on, Chris! And seeing them all in a line like that, moving their bodies in very bubblegum pop ways to this bubblegum pop song. It's like a distillation of everything it means to be in the 70s. First, everyone's got a short-sleeved sweater on with a pointy collar or a sweater vest. Everything was made of sweater material, even for your summer clothes. Everyone's made of sweater material. All the girls are wearing miniskirts. Cindy has a sweet long sleeve sweater with a big pointy collar, and drumroll please, white go-go boots. Oh, so good! This
Carolyn Cochrane 45:55
is where it comes from,
Kristin Nilsen 45:57
everybody. This is where we love white go-go boots. Yeah, you
Carolyn Cochrane 46:00
associate white go-go boots with pure bliss.
Kristin Nilsen 46:02
Pure bliss. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, Greg has his signature very slim fitting white pants on with a very wide belt, giant belt loops, and a salmon-colored gingham shirt that is skin-tight with drink everybody a pointy collar,
Michelle Newman 46:21
pointy collars, yeah.
Kristin Nilsen 46:22
And earlier in the show, Carol is also wearing a salmon-colored gingham shirt. Is this Carol's gingham shirt that he's wearing on audition day? Oh
Michelle Newman 46:30
my God! Because on her, it was
Kristin Nilsen 46:32
kind of loose, but on him, it's very tight. I'm like, I think you're wearing Carol's gingham shirt. Well, maybe
Michelle Newman 46:36
they were like, Hey guys, we're getting to the end. Yeah, we can't
Kristin Nilsen 46:40
afford a shirt for great. Can I just interject something? If
Michelle Newman 46:42
we're talking their street clothes and costumes, and you said earlier in the episode, also I think it's in the same scene. Not sure. Early when Bobby and Cindy go into the Mike's office to ask about how we can get a loan, Bobby is wearing a hang 10 T-shirt. It's a little striped T-shirt, like brown and white striped, and the little
Kristin Nilsen 47:05
embroidered, embroidered, embroidered, embroidered, embroidered
Michelle Newman 47:07
feet. The little Hankton feet.
Kristin Nilsen 47:11
Yes, and the toes. Oh my God! I totally forgot about that little logo. The little Hankton. So Bobby has brown tough skins with not just a wide belt, but a white wide for the win. White. Peter has the mandatory wide belt and a color block sweater vest. And under that sweater vest is a quasi puffy shirt. It's not paisley, but do you guys remember that there was a motif that you would oftentimes see on a shirt that was like a country scene, like a little country road, little country? Yeah, yeah. There we go, twill. Thank you. Yeah. So it's like a twill, but it's country. And so he has the country scene shirt on with the again drink bonus points, pointy collar, pointy, pointy, pointy, pointy. Extras points for the pointy collar. And while I took it all in, it made me wonder how much the Brady Bunch influenced what we think of, of like what we imagine when we think of '70s fashion. The kids from the '90s watching it on Nick at Night. I don't even know if what we saw in the Brady Bunch was exactly accurate, but I think the whole world's perception of what the '70s looked like and what we wore comes from one source. Yeah, I think it 100% comes from from the Brady Bunch. That is serious influence, right? So the Sunshine Day choreo is definitely the choreography that you made up in your bedroom for a show that you plan to put on in your backyard, but you kind of never got around to it. You just practice it. You just practice it all the time. So this choreography might be a little juvenile and ham-handed, but they are juveniles, and they are ham-handed. So it just reads authentically. It reads as something you would see on the amateur hour. These are just kids practicing in the court, right? It does look like
Michelle Newman 48:54
what you would make up for your neighborhood talent show.
Kristin Nilsen 48:56
That's right. That's right. And it's a lot.
Michelle Newman 48:58
It's a lot simpler. I just love how it's all in parts, like how they all go up into a V, and then whoever singing, you know, does a little stroll up front. And yeah, yeah. And longtime listeners might remember that way back, like the first year of our podcast, and the three of us went to Chicago, and we have video, a video recording of me and Kristen doing Sunshine Day in front of basically, yeah,
Carolyn Cochrane 49:24
listeners to note that they have video of we have video of Kristen and Michelle doing the dance. I'm recording it.
Kristin Nilsen 49:31
Yes,
Carolyn Cochrane 49:32
Kristen and Michelle are doing the dance. So yeah, you're not going to see me out there, and that's I think when we started the whole thing where I would be the lead singer, and they would be behind me. But
Kristin Nilsen 49:43
I think you could do Sunshine Day. I think Carolyn could do Sunshine. You're giving me
Carolyn Cochrane 49:46
a lot of credit.
Kristin Nilsen 49:47
It's and and by the way, this was not to a recording. We were singing it and performing the choreography. We're doing it ourselves. It's a cappella. We we
Michelle Newman 49:56
came up. It was like all I don't even know how it came up, but we. We're just so happy. It was Sunshine
Carolyn Cochrane 50:02
Day. Yes, we pulled it out of our
Michelle Newman 50:04
brains from you know 40 years before. It's not like we practiced
Kristin Nilsen 50:08
it. No, no, no. We nailed it. Oh, that's right. Again, the influence is intense. In Sunshine Day, in particular, it was so easy for the viewers, obviously at home, to catch on and start doing it themselves and perform it 50 years later. Yes, you could do it right there in the den. Like if you watched it one time, you had it pretty much. It was mostly like step sway, step sway, step sway, holding your corded microphone just so. And then and
Michelle Newman 50:33
lots of flipping of the long cord. Lots of flipping of the long cord of that because there's lots of walking. Because there's lots of walking. And when there's six of you
Kristin Nilsen 50:40
looking down. Yeah,
Michelle Newman 50:41
don't let someone. Better not trip someone with your cord.
Kristin Nilsen 50:44
Yes, and Cindy is super worried about tripping. I could tell. Now, when you watch it, you'll see she's like, "Oh, where's the cord? I don't want to fall down." And then you get to the iconic part in super slow motion when the song sort of slows down when they take turns doing the step together. They turn to the corner first. The girls turn to the corner. Step together. Then the boys turns turn to the corner. Step together. And how I don't know how something so simple can become so iconic, but it is. And that is Brady Bunch magic.
Michelle Newman 51:13
Yeah, that's that. The girls will say like everybody's smiling as they go like step together on everybody's smiling. And then the boys will step. Sunshine next step together day. Everybody's laughing. Whatever sunshine, they're all catching up to each other, and then they start swinging corners. Everybody seems so happy today. Does this translate in a
Kristin Nilsen 51:33
podcast? I'm not sure. Oh no, you know what we're talking about. You can see our heads, right? Yes. All the kids in get a solo in Sunshine Day, but we need to talk about Bobby's solo. That's the one. It's the premier solo. You'd think it would be Greg, but no. Why isn't it crazy? It's little Bobby, and he is just like he like he thinks he's Tom Jones in it. He is Tom Jones in it. Sunshine is that a bridge?
Michelle Newman 52:02
Can you hear me? I learned what a bridge is from you guys, and so
Carolyn Cochrane 52:06
I'm wondering: is that the bridge of that song?
Kristin Nilsen 52:09
That is the bridge because it bridges the two parts. It gets you back into the verse and the chorus. So it's can you dig the sunshine? Love and sun are the same, which is weird. Can you hear him calling your name? Note: Everyone knows the son is a girl, so that's wrong. But nonetheless, the the the groove that he brings to this solo is is notable and historic. Yeah, and Michelle's like swaying because he does. He's taking this solo very seriously, and it's not just the the vocalization of it. He's gonna do it with his whole head, with his whole body. I do not care for the line "Love and sun are the same." You never knew that's what he was singing. I don't know. Yeah, I have no idea. I'm 28 years old, and I need the sunshine. It's love and sun are the same. Never. I had to think about that years old. What do you mean, love and son are the same? Okay. Oh, now. Well, I kind of get that. Now I get it. It is very bright. Yeah. Yeah. I just love the part
Michelle Newman 53:10
where he goes forward, and when they say, "Can't you hear him call?" Well, it should be, "Can't you hear her calling?" Name, and everyone's like, "Dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun," and they all go back really fast. But it's double time. Not double time, and then you start again. I'd be all worried about the microphone cord. Yes, watch them as they go backwards. They have to flip it, flip it, flip it through the black card.
Kristin Nilsen 53:30
Don't trip over backwards, Cindy. Okay, so keep on. Let's talk about the cost. If you're still
Michelle Newman 53:36
with us, if you're still with
Kristin Nilsen 53:37
us, yes. I hope you're a visual person and you can envision everything we're talking about. There will never be
Michelle Newman 53:43
no
Kristin Nilsen 53:44
a more recognizable dance costume in the history of the world, and it's very hard to find any information on them, which is so frustrating. I just assumed that it warranted its own Wikipedia page, but no,
Michelle Newman 53:58
there is one. Just search in Wikipedia. Just search Finland flag, and you'll and you'll be
Kristin Nilsen 54:07
for our geography nerds out there. It's
Michelle Newman 54:10
the Finnish flag. It's the
Kristin Nilsen 54:12
Finnish flag in a variety of like yeah, in different places. In different places. So probably much like the choreography, they didn't have professionals taking care of that. That's why you can't find any information. And and it was the people who did take care of this costuming was drumroll, please. It was their moms. It was the moms. It was not like the costuming department or anything like that. Mostly, and according to the Brady Bros, mostly Karen Lookenland and Dee Olson. The most, I mean, and that just cracks me up. The most information I was able to find about these costumes, this was actually a little bit meaty, was from an auction house that was auctioning off Bobby Brady's actual costume that he actually wore in the actual show. It sold for 20. $500. It was probably size 6x. Yeah. This is what the listing says. I would
Michelle Newman 55:05
squeeze myself into. I would squeeze my 10 body into that. That'd be some camel toe
Kristin Nilsen 55:10
for sure. Okay. So this is what the listing on the auction house says. Costume includes a white cotton long sleeved shirt with blue stripes accented with silver sequins. Interior label reads Mike. The pants are blue with white stripes and silver accents. Tag reads Fred Siegel, accompanied by a copy of this episode. This costume was used for concert performances by Look and Lind prior to wearing on the television program. For stage use, the silver trim was added. Sherwood Schwartz, producer of the Brady Bunch, requested that the silver trim be removed for the amateur night episode. That trim was reapplied by hand, probably by their moms, after filming the episode for further concert use. So those keep on concert costumes were recycled from their Brady Kids tour to county fairs and livestock shows,
Michelle Newman 56:04
because when you were just saying with silver trim in my head, I'm going no, no silver, no silver.
Kristin Nilsen 56:08
So in this in this episode, those costumes come from the quote unquote wardrobe department. When Pete Stern of the Amateur Hour says, "You, they've made it on the show. Yeah, you're on the show. What about your costumes? Uh oh, he said. Well, don't worry. We you can just go down to our wardrobe department tomorrow morning. Come an hour early, and oh, they just happen to have six costumes, and oh, they just happen to be in all of your sizes. So what I love about the performance of Keepon is how all the microphones are laid out on the ground, with all their cords kind of coiled around willy nilly, so when they are introduced, the silver platters they run out on stage and they pick their microphones up off the ground. That just seemed like a detail that I don't know. It just was a little too real, I guess. It's
Michelle Newman 56:54
also it's very 70s too. It's so
Kristin Nilsen 56:56
very 70s. It seems like a huge tripping hazard, but what are you gonna do? And then this cracks me up. And then Greg counts them down and signals them when to start, like he's the drummer or something. Except they are clearly not playing any instruments or anything, and no one is. There are no performers on the stage, and he's just like nah, nah, nah. And then he brings his name down. This is how we start, except they're lip syncing. I
Michelle Newman 57:24
think that signal was probably for the person offset to push play on the recorder, right?
Kristin Nilsen 57:30
There is full instrument. There is full instrumentation accompanying them, so there's no need for Greg to cue them. All they have to do is start the music, and then they would sing. It's just such a funny fake, I love it. The choreography is also from your bedroom, but its moves are more singular than Sunshine Day, so they become even more iconic. I watched a YouTube video of some kids performing this song in these costumes that they made from like a school talent show in 2008, and when they turn to the back. You know what's coming. You know what's coming. They turn to the back, and the audience goes like you can feel the energy. I'm getting nipple lightning right now. When they turn to the back, the audience knows what's coming, and then they twist around, and they keep their legs twisted, and that's when they bounce. Keep on, keep on, keep on. Everybody can Picture it right. The audience explodes. It explodes. It went nuts. It's the keep on twist, everybody. It's the keep on twist.
Michelle Newman 58:30
So good.
Kristin Nilsen 58:31
And then they bounce. Keep on. Keep on. Keep on. Keep on. And after that, after the keep on twist, it's mostly pointing. It's a lot of pointing. And if you're not doing the keep on twist, then you point every time you say keep on instead. But
Michelle Newman 58:45
but you but but what I love is especially at the end, right before it fades out, you get to point wherever you want, everyone, and it's kind of fun that they all get to just point willy nilly. Like so, you do have to switch your mic into
Kristin Nilsen 58:57
the other hand every time you point. Switch hands, switch hands, switch hands. I think that was bad planning because you should have just been a mic in one hand and you have to switch point, switch point, switch points. Totally have inspired
Carolyn Cochrane 59:09
John Cavolta's dance. I don't remember any other. Can we get the
Kristin Nilsen 59:14
pointing?
Michelle Newman 59:15
I don't know. I don't. You guys, they created disco right then. It all comes back to everybody. Everybody, everybody, just take a moment
Kristin Nilsen 59:26
and give them credit. Credit where credit is due. Also, during this part, Bobby's head is going to come right off because just like the scene where they're supposed to be excited about getting on the show, he has been told, "Bobby, this is your moment. It's your time to be a rock star. How would Mick Jagger do this? And he is working it. And his head's not natural, but he is following directions. And it's just like, like they've been told, you guys more. I need more. And Bobby's interpretation of more is like whipping his head around, and he's gonna fall down. And then this is a classic 70s move, just like we talked about with Carolyn. They run to the back, and it's the end of the song, and they synchronized bow, but the song is still going, but nobody is singing, and then it just fades out. And then they take their microphones, and they put them on the ground, and run away. And I was like, "Yes, run away! Like you're running, running!" And they just never notice that they have to put their microphones down. And it's a very real humanizing moment. Like you can't be cool in that moment when you put your microphone down on the ground. But you know what? The '70s doesn't care.
Michelle Newman 1:00:37
Oh, it's so good.
Carolyn Cochrane 1:00:38
Okay, I just wanted to share a couple fun facts because you know Carolyn Rabbit Hole like you know is John Sebastian at all related to anything that's happening in this Brady Bunch episode? First thing she the
Michelle Newman 1:00:50
first thing she tries to learn.
Carolyn Cochrane 1:00:51
That's right. So I thought this was really fun. So Peter Stern was played by an actor named Stephen Dunn, who kind of got his career as kind of an announcer, a radio announcer. It's his voice. He looks familiar to me. Yes. Well, he should. He was. This made me so excited. You're not going to be excited about this, but he plays like a TV announcer in the Disney movie Super Dad. And if you remember, that's my favorite Disney movie. Yes, it's the one with Kurt Russell as marrying the bride and all that. Anyway, so he's always playing some kind of a TV announcer. So he's in that typecast for sure, and he is in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory as one of those TV announcers.
Kristin Nilsen 1:01:32
Oh my God, I can totally see it. Can't you? I mean, just with his magazine, '40s
Carolyn Cochrane 1:01:37
TV,
Kristin Nilsen 1:01:38
yeah,
Carolyn Cochrane 1:01:38
you know, announcer or reporter, and he is immediately like the face that comes to mind. And why shouldn't he? For at least for Carolyn, those are three iconic Gen X childhood moments in her life of the Brady Bunch show.
Kristin Nilsen 1:01:50
Isn't that interesting? He's cornered the market on playing one certain kind of character, which isn't really even a character. And he probably lived into it. I think he
Carolyn Cochrane 1:01:58
wanted to break out of that, but he just he was typecast, and so he was somehow always utilized in that way, and then made his career in kind of that announcing thing. Okay, a little just fun little fact about Harold Perry. He played the banker. Again, he must have had maybe it's the voice because Kristen, you you did allude to the fact that these are very interesting voices that these people have. Very
Kristin Nilsen 1:02:23
dignified, yes.
Carolyn Cochrane 1:02:24
Because he played the voice of Big Ben in Rudolph's Shiny New Year. This would be the banker theory. Fun to know. And then, of course, Michelle pointed out that our actor who played the our silverware silverware salesman was also yes, triangle Velcro or not Velcro hair. What do you call it?
Kristin Nilsen 1:02:48
Steel wool. Steel wool.
Carolyn Cochrane 1:02:50
Yes, Alfie. He's Jan's big boyfriend.
Kristin Nilsen 1:02:52
Yeah, Alfie was
Carolyn Cochrane 1:02:53
our photographer from that other iconic anniversary picture photo scene. You know what I'm talking about. I
Kristin Nilsen 1:03:01
just put that together. They're both anniversary episodes.
Carolyn Cochrane 1:03:03
Yes. Is
Michelle Newman 1:03:04
there an anniversary episode every? So the first one they get married. Is there an? We should ask our friend Susie. She runs an account everyone called Dilling Street, and she is probably she is an encyclopedia of Brady Bunch episodes. It's a great account to follow Dilling Street, and you can say, remember the episode where Millicent kisses Bobby, and she'll say season one, episode 16. I mean, she knows, and she knows the title of the episode, and the number, and the season. So, yeah, I hope we're doing her proud right now on this one. I don't know, or she's just
Carolyn Cochrane 1:03:40
like girls. She has her head. Yeah, she's also a good
Michelle Newman 1:03:42
friend of ours, so she could just have her head in her hand. But she could be forgiving us. Yeah. Yes,
Carolyn Cochrane 1:03:47
she'll be. We'll be getting lots of what do I want to say messages from her probably right after she listens to this episode. And she probably knows a lot of these fun facts. But earlier on in the episode, Kristen, you were just alluding to the Saturday Night Live skit and stuff like the pop culture that this this particular episode kind of resonates in is pretty amazing. And so, 2020, we actually had a Purdue a Purdue chicken commercial that featured Sunshine Day in it. And can you imagine how excited we would have been? It kind of sounds like it's not the Brady kids singing it. It's almost like our karaoke version of "Come on, Get Happy," but it's still like kids-ish kind of sounding voices, and you know the solos are are played, and so that was really
Kristin Nilsen 1:04:38
that makes me feel good because as we get older, we feel a little bit like we're becoming invisible. But clearly, if advertisers are are poking fun and grabbing our touchstones and throwing them in advertisements, it means they see us as a valuable group.
Carolyn Cochrane 1:04:55
Oh yes, and I will say, I'll put a link to this Purdue Chicken commercial in our show. Notes because it is far from poking fun. It is very serious with these like fields in the background and these really happy chickens. Because this is for their, I think it's called Heartland brand under Purdue chicken. This is would be for the free range chickens, happy chickens, the little chickens until they would not be having a happy sunshine day in the regular way Purdue raises their chickens, but for the Heartland chickens, this is happy, and we get this very bucolic scenery and kind of golden, you know, hour kind of video with Sunshine Day playing in the background. And then I came across this book. I'm not sure how I got it. I don't know if this person sent it to us or if I just saw it at a bookstore. It's called "The Way We We All Became the Brady Bunch," and it's all about the pop culture stuff and what this actually the impact it really had. And there were some fun things that are not directly related to this episode, but I just had to share with you guys because I did not know this. One was there is a musical called the Bardi Bunch that was I think this was probably in the 90s and it was it's a murder mystery situation comedy of errors and I I'm going to show Kristen and Michelle the picture of the image of it because oh sorry you probably can't see it it would be it's called the Barty bunch because it's the Brady bunch and the Partridge family kind of having at it they're both it's Greg and I'm gonna say Susan Day Lori it's Greg and Lori both holding bloody knives yeah blood drops and they have raised knives with each other, and you know it's them because Lori's wearing the iconic Partridge family outfit, and Greg is in a cool groovy '70s outfit. Just a couple of fun little facts for you guys. I love
Michelle Newman 1:06:52
them. Well, over the past three or four years, definitely, and during this very episode, we've mentioned a podcast when discussing a Brady Bunch episode, and we have many episodes in our back catalog, listeners devoted either entirely to the Brady Bunch, or a Brady episode as part of one of our many themed episodes, or whatever. Anyway, there is a podcast we love called the Brady Bros. You've heard us mention it here, and we love it because it's hosted by two of the Brady Bros. It's hosted by Barry Williams, Greg, and Christopher Knight, Peter, and every episode is just them recapping a Brady Bunch episode, including sharing any memories they have of filming, other little fun facts. It's super fun to hear them reminisce. Anyway, their their recap of this episode, Amateur night is no exception. It's really fun to hear them talk about the costumes and the choreography. And while we, of course, recommend you going and listening to that episode of the Brady Bros, next week we're going to do you even one better because those Brady Bros will be right here on the Pop Culture Preservation Society chatting with us all about amateur night, plus any other things we've been dying to ask them since about 1975. Right? You guys, can you even believe it?
Kristin Nilsen 1:08:12
It's a very surreal moment in our podcasting careers. Yeah. Oh my gosh! We'll be talking pinnacle. It's like the pinnacle. Like if you were just if you had to, if you were going to talk to one set of people and you have a retro Gen X pop culture podcast, who are the people you need to talk to? I think if you just listen to this episode, it clearly has to be somebody from the bunch. Yeah. So this conversation that we're having today about the silver platters, it is exactly the reason that we have a podcast, right? The Silver Platters episode of the Brady Bunch is the reason we have a podcast. These are the gems that deserve preserving. It was a Gen X moment that spun itself out for two more generations, but it was so of the '70s, unmistakably and unapologetically 70s with the miniskirts and the sweater shirts and the polyester costumes, the bubblegum pop, the whole hey, let's make these people who may or may not have any musical ability into a band. Let's make them a band. The silver platters could never have existed in any other time. It was simultaneously ludicrous and beautiful, and it represents the audacity of the 1970s. And no matter how cheesy or outdated it could have become as time went on, because remember we're watching this in the 90s and the 2000s. I never, ever, ever, ever will ever get sick of watching the Silver Platters episode. Never, ever, long live the silver platters. Thank you for listening today, and we will see you next time.
Michelle Newman 1:09:48
And finally, a big big warm Sunshine Day hug and thank you to our Patreon community. Your support means the world to us and makes season 20 and all of our previous. 19 seasons possible truly. If you want to get in on the fun and support the show, tap the Patreon link in our show notes, or just go to Patreon p a t r e o n.com/pop culture preservation society to learn how you can be a supporter. Thank you so much to these patrons. Our newest patron Maya M Y A. Everybody, say thank you to Maya. Hi, Maya. And we're also thanking Colleen and Tam, Lisa, Kieran, Carolyn, Joe, Teresa, S.J.S., Karen, Jennifer, Liz, Kim, Tony, and Jennifer Z.
Carolyn Cochrane 1:10:36
Listeners, before we take our final bow today, we would like to ask for a little favor, if you love us as much as you probably love the Silver Platters episode, we would love for you to share that love. Love that. So much love. They love
Michelle Newman 1:10:52
so much love.
Carolyn Cochrane 1:10:52
So much love. We would be very grateful if you would share your love for us wherever you listen. So that could mean a five-star review. It could even mean a nice little, I don't know, few sentences about just how great we are. We might just be as excited to read those as we are when we hear it's a sunshine day, and that's very excited. So please share, review all those good things because that helps us bring a little sunshine into more people's lives.
Kristin Nilsen 1:11:22
In the meantime, let's raise our glasses for a toast, courtesy of the Silver Platters and the Cast of Three's company. Two good times, two happy days,
Carolyn Cochrane 1:11:34
two little house on the prairie.
Kristin Nilsen 1:11:37
Keep on, keep on, keep on dancing through the night.