Barry Williams talks about 'The Brady Bunch,' 'dating' Florence Henderson, more

Barry Williams has been an actor for 58 years, appearing in various classic TV shows like “Dragnet 1967,” “That Girl,” “Gomer Pyle, USMC” and “The Mod Squad.” However, no role has ever been as legendary as his portrayal of Greg Brady on “The Brady Bunch.” The show was a modest hit on ABC, airing from 1969 to 1974, but surprisingly became bigger in syndication than during its initial on-air run.

The Bradys lived on in multiple iterations, including reunion films (“The Brady Girls Get Married,” “A Very Brady Christmas”), a variety show (“The Brady Bunch Hour”), spinoff series (“The Brady Brides,” “The Bradys”) and an animated program (“The Brady Kids"). In 2019, HGTV even put out “A Very Brady Renovation” where the six Brady kids took part in the internal renovation of the real house used for the show’s exterior shots.

Prior to his appearance at The Chocolate Expo in Hofstra University’s David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex in Hempstead on May 4 with fellow “Brady Bunch” actors Christopher Knight (Peter Brady), Mike Lookinland (Bobby Brady) and Susan Olsen (Cindy Brady), Williams, 70, spoke to Newsday’s David J. Criblez.

“The Brady Bunch” debuted over 50 years ago but it’s still in the cultural zeitgeist. Why do you think that is?

Our show, unlike most, has never been off the air. It continues to run to this day on multiple networks. The TV viewing habits changed with the advent of syndication. A whole generation, or two, were coming home from school every day and watching this show before they did their homework. It became an active portion of their lives and one powerful kind of connection. All of those things combined created this unique, sustained longevity. Plus, I think that our chemistry came through on the screen, which gave it a lasting quality.

“The Brady Bunch” was the first modern combined family on TV. Was this viewed as forward thinking at the time?

Oh yeah, it was an entirely fresh approach. The idea was so radical that when [creator-producer] Sherwood Schwartz pitched the show, the networks wouldn’t bite. At the time, it wasn’t the way America perceived itself. But a movie came out in 1968 called “Yours, Mine and Ours” with Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda and it was successful, so the networks called Sherwood back to revisit his idea. Plus, it was the first time they showed parents together in the same bed on a sitcom. Who knew “The Brady Bunch” was so groundbreaking?

Do you think that people who had difficulties at home took a lot of comfort in the Bradys’ family dynamic?

I know so. That is one of the most gratifying things about the show. Many people will say, “My family didn’t resemble the Bradys; it was dysfunctional. But ‘The Brady Bunch’ was a respite for me and an example of how a family might be functional.” Seeing an example of a dad who listens to you, a mom who trusted you and parents that were fair has been very meaningful to people.

In your 1992 book, “Growing Up Brady: I Was a Teenage Greg,” you discuss a date you had with your TV mom and co-star, Florence Henderson. Was she aware of this before the book was released?

I contacted her before it went to print. I didn’t share any of it with anybody else. I said, “I want you to see what I’ve written and how I recalled it.” I was actually seeking her permission because if she didn’t want me to put it in, I wouldn’t have. But she read it and loved it, but she did make one change at the end of the chapter. I said something to the effect of “I got a little kiss, no tongue, but still it was nice and she was my best friend.” She said, “We’re still friends!” so I brought it up to date that we still remain friends.

When you were a kid on set, were you aware of Robert Reed’s tension with Schwartz?

I was aware because I was older. My dressing room was on the set and everybody else was outside. It was pretty much kept from us. If the kids were dismissed at 6 p.m., they’d still be filming till 8:30 p.m. or 9, that’s when a majority of those explosions happened. They didn’t generally occur on the set in front of everybody. We knew there was tension, but it didn’t affect us in a great way.

Did you know about Reed being gay at the time?

We knew intimate details about each other because we spent a great deal of time together. There were very few real surprises about things, but it was never an issue.

You had a romance with actress Maureen McCormick, who played your stepsister Marcia Brady, outside the show. How did you keep your personal chemistry off the screen?

Not very well a lot of times. I remember Sherwood’s son Lloyd, who became an associate producer at one point, came up to me when we were doing a scene in my attic bedroom and he said, “OK now, Barry … remember you are Greg and this is your sister.”

Are all the Brady kids still in contact with each other?

Yes and we all remain lifetime friends. I like to pretend I’m the patriarch, but they still don’t listen to what I say.

By David J. Criblez

david.criblez@newsday.comDavidJCriblez

David J. Criblez is a reporter for Newsday's exploreLI, covering entertainment-related events from local music to stand-up comedy to festivals.