“It’s definitely a miracle!” Susan Olsen, a.k.a. Cindy Brady, shouts as she steps into the home of America’s favorite integrated TV family. That reaction bears a strong resemblance to her five fictional siblings in the opening episode of “A Very Brady Renovation” (9 p.m. Sept. 9, HGTV).
“It’s like heading back in time,” says a wide-eyed Barry Williams, who played Greg on “The Brady Bunch.”
The reason for their jaw-dropping raves? A huge renovation of the ranch-style Studio City home that came in display in the opening shots of the beloved 1970s sitcom. Earlier in 2018, HGTV shelled out over $3.5 million for the property (nearly twice the asking price) in an auction battle. What they’ve ever since done with the place is hugely appreciable.
The cable network’s elite designers, alongside a bit of helping hand from the grown-up Brady kids, worked to renovate the formerly private residence into the 1970s masterpiece we all know and love alongside a groovy avocado green and burnt orange accents that make it picture-perfect.
In doing so they had to overcome one gigantic hurdle. Because the house in question was only used to establish the exterior shots for the show, it’s interior never oriented with that of the indoor sets used on the sound stages of Paramount Pictures. In fact, it wasn’t even close.
So the story goes like this: The house had to be gutted. A wing, frontside window and a host of stairs were added — all while not touching the street view of the home that reportedly is the second-most photographed in the nation (behind the White House). On the other hand, a painstaking search was started to find the furnishings that came as close as possible to matching those imprinted in the minds of discerning Brady-maniacs everywhere.
“There are so many things that had to come to make this thing work. It’s almost imposing,” Williams told the critics in Beverly Hills recently. “It’s almost perfectly replicated — from fabrics to carpeting to furniture to decorating to artwork to the artificial grass in the backyard. Even the Tiger’s doghouse.”
