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In Memory of
Florence Agnes Henderson
February 14, 1934 - November 24, 2016

Florence Agnes Henderson



Celebrity

Mom of The Brady Bunch

Born February 14, 1934

Died November 24, 2016



Florence Henderson, who went from Broadway star to become one of Americas most beloved television moms in The Brady Bunch, has died, her manager and her publicist said. She was 82.



Henderson died Thursday night at Cedars~Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, after being hospitalized the day before, said her publicist, David Brokaw. Henderson had suffered heart failure, her manager Kayla Pressman said in a statement. Family and friends had surrounded Hendersons hospital bedside, Pressman said.

On the surface, The Brady Bunch with Henderson as its ever~cheerful matriarch Carol Brady, resembled just another TV sitcom about a family living in suburban America and getting into a different wacky situation each week.

But well after it ended its initial run, in 1974, the show resonated with audiences, and it returned to television in various forms again and again, including The Brady Bunch Hour in 1977, The Brady Brides in 1981 and The Bradys in 1990. It was also seen endlessly in reruns. It represents what people always wanted: a loving family. Its such a gentle, innocent, sweet show, and I guess it proved theres always an audience for that, Henderson said in 1999.

Premiering in 1969, it also was among the first shows to introduce to television the blended family. As its theme song reminded viewers each week, Hendersons Carol was a single mother raising three daughters when she met her TV husband, Robert Reeds Mike Brady, a single father who was raising three boys. The eight of them became The Brady Bunch, with a quirky housekeeper, played by Ann B. Davis, thrown into the mix.

The blonde, ever~smiling Henderson was already a Broadway star when the show began, having originated the title role in the musical Fanny. But after The Brady Bunch, she would always be known to fans as Carol Brady.

We had to have security guards with us. Fans were hanging on our doors. We couldnt go out by ourselves. We were like the Beatles! she said of the attention the show brought the cast.

Like the Beatles, there was even a Saturday morning cartoon version called Brady Kids, although Henderson was not in that show. She and Reed did return, however, for The Brady Bunch Hour, The Brady Brides and The Bradys. So did most of the original cast.

She was also back again in 1995 when a new cast was assembled for The Brady Bunch Movie, a playful spoof of the original show. This time she was Grandma Brady opposite Shelly Longs Carol. Numerous memoirs also kept interest in the show alive, as cast members revealed they were more than just siblings off camera. Barry Williams, who played eldest son Greg Brady, would confess to having a crush on his TV stepmom. Henderson, in her own book, denied having any relationship with Williams, but did acknowledge a fling with former New York City mayor John Lindsay. Henderson was a 19~year~old drama student in New York when she landed a one~line role in the play Wish You Were Here.

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were so impressed they made her the female lead in a 1952 road tour of Oklahoma! When the show returned to Broadway for a revival in 1954, she continued in the role and won rave reviews.

She is the real thing, right of of a butter churn somewhere, wrote Walter Kerr of the New York Herald Tribune.

To broaden her career, Henderson took acting, dancing, singing and guitar lessons, even studying French and Italian.

She went on to play Maria in a road production of The Sound of Music, was Nellie Forbush in a revival of South Pacific and was back on Broadway with Jose Ferrer in The Girl Who Came to Supper in 1963. She made her movie debut in 1970 in Song of Norway, based on the 1944 operetta with music by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg.

Her career nearly came to an end in 1965 when she suddenly lost her hearing while appearing in The King and I in Los Angeles, and was diagnosed with a condition linked to heredity.

Corrective surgery in both ears restored my hearing, she said in 2007.

As her TV career blossomed with The Brady Bunch, Henderson also began to make frequent TV guest appearances. She was the first woman to host The Tonight Show for the vacationing Johnny Carson. For eight years she also commuted to Nashville to conduct a cooking and talk series, Country Kitchen, on The Nashville Network. The show resulted in a book, Florence Hendersons Short Cut Cooking. After The Brady Bunch ended its first run, Henderson alternated her appearances in revivals of the show with guest appearances on other programs, including Hart to Hart, Fantasy Island and The Love Boat. In later years she also made guest appearances on such shows as Roseanne, Ally McBeal and The King of Queens.

The Los Angeles Times reports that she also became a commercial spokeswoman and co~produced Country Kitchen, a Nashville Network series. Florence Agnes Henderson was born Feb. 14, 1934, in the small town of Dale in southern Indiana. She was the 10th child of a tobacco sharecropper of Irish descent.

In grade school, she joined the choir at a Catholic church in Rockport, Ind.

After high school she moved to New York, where she enrolled in a two~year program at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, her studies financed by a theatrical couple who had been impressed by her singing when they saw her perform in high school. She dropped out of the program after one year, however, to take the role in Wish You Were There. Henderson married theater executive Ira Bernstein and the couple had four children before the union ended in divorce after 29 years.

Her second husband, John Kappas, died in 2002. Pressman said she is survived by her children; Barbara, Joseph, Robert and Lizzie, their respective spouses, and five grandchildren. __

The late AP writer Bob Thomas contributed to this report.































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































The following is from Wikipedia. The information was created by wikipedia. For additional information or details on the following article please visit www.wikipedia.com Florence Agnes Henderson (February 14, 1934 – November 24, 2016) was an American actress and singer with a career spanning six decades. She is best remembered for her starring role as matriarch Carol Brady on the ABC sitcom The Brady Bunch from 1969 to 1974. Henderson also appeared in film as well as on stage and hosted several long-running cooking and variety shows over the years. She appeared as a guest on many scripted and nonscripted (talk and reality show) television programs and as a panelist on numerous game shows. She was a contestant on Dancing with the Stars in 2010. On November 21, 2016, three days before her death, Florence appeared again on Dancing With The Stars giving moral support to her eldest Brady Bunch daughter Maureen McCormick, who played the popular Marcia Brady. Henderson hosted her own talk show, The Florence Henderson Show, and cooking show, Who's Cooking with Florence Henderson, on Retirement Living TV (RLTV), in the years leading up to her sudden death from heart failure.[1] Contents [hide] 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 3.1 Death 4 Works 4.1 Television 4.2 Film 4.3 Stage 5 Awards 6 References 7 External links Early life[edit] Henderson, the youngest of ten children,[2] was born on February 14, 1934,[3] in Dale, Indiana, a small town in the southwestern part of the state.[4] Henderson is a daughter of Elizabeth (née Elder), a homemaker, and Joseph Henderson, a tobacco sharecropper.[5] She is of Irish Catholic ancestry.[citation needed] During the Great Depression, she was taught to sing at the age of two by her mother, who had a repertoire of fifty songs. By the time she was eight, her family called her "Florency", and by age twelve, she was singing at local grocery stores.[6] Henderson graduated from St. Francis Academy in Owensboro, Kentucky, in 1951;[7] shortly thereafter, she went to New York City, enrolling in the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.[8] She was an Alumna Initiate of the Alpha Chi chapter of Delta Zeta sorority.[9] Career[edit] Henderson started her career on the stage, performing in musicals, such as the touring production of Oklahoma! and South Pacific at Lincoln Center.[10] She debuted on Broadway in the musical Wish You Were Here in 1952,[11] and later starred on Broadway in the long-running 1954 musical, Fanny (888 performances) in which she originated the title role.[7] Henderson, along with Bill Hayes, appeared in the Oldsmobile commercials from 1958 through 1961 on The Patti Page Show for which Oldsmobile was the sponsor. Henderson also appeared on Broadway in The Girl Who Came to Supper (1963).[12] In 1962, she won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago theatre,[13] and the same year became the first woman to guest host The Tonight Show in the period after Jack Paar left as the show's host, and before Johnny Carson began his 30 years as the show's longest serving host in October of 1962.[14] She also joined the ranks of what was then called "The Today Girl" on NBC's long running morning show, doing weather and light news, a position also once held by Barbara Walters.[15] Henderson's most famous role was as Carol Brady - the mother on the classic '70s sitcom The Brady Bunch Her most widely recognized role was as Carol Brady in The Brady Bunch which aired on ABC from 1969 until 1974. Henderson's best friend, Shirley Jones, had turned down the role, but the following year accepted the similar role of a mother with five children, named Shirley Partridge in the Partridge Family. (The Partridge Family aired from 1970 - 1974).[16] Primarily owing to her role in The Brady Bunch, Henderson was ranked by TV Land and Entertainment Weekly as No. 54 on their list of the 100 Greatest TV Icons.[17] Henderson was a frequent panelist on the original version of the television game show Hollywood Squares[18] and made occasional appearances on The $25,000 Pyramid. Henderson was the spokeswoman for Wesson cooking oil from 1976 to 1996.[2][19] During that time, she hosted a cooking show on TNN called Country Kitchen,[19] and also did ads for Prange's, a former Wisconsin department store chain. Henderson co-hosted the talk show Later Today on NBC (1999–2000) with co-hosts Jodi Applegate and Asha Blake.[20] In the 2000s, she was the spokeswoman for Polident denture cleanser.[2] In 2003, Henderson seemed to poke fun at her wholesome image by appearing in a Pepsi Twist television commercial with Ozzy Osbourne.[21] Henderson also appeared with her TV children, as she did with Christopher Knight on the reality television series My Fair Brady.[22] She was also in the sixth season of VH1's The Surreal Life.[23] Beginning in the mid-1990s, the song "God Bless America" was performed by Henderson at the Indianapolis 500 accompanied by the Purdue All-American Marching Band,[24] at the request of the Hulman-George family, the owners of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and friends of Henderson's.[25] She appeared in the "Weird Al" Yankovic video for "Amish Paradise" and co-hosted the daily talk show Living Live with former Designing Women star Meshach Taylor on Retirement Living TV.[26] The show was reworked to focus on her and was renamed The Florence Henderson Show. In 2002, she made a memorable guest appearance on improvisational comedy show Whose Line Is It Anyway?, participating in on-screen kisses with Ryan Stiles and Colin Mochrie.[27] From 2007-2009, Henderson was the host of her own television series, The Florence Henderson Show on RLTV (Retirement Living TV).[26] The show was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2010.[28] In May 2010, Henderson did a series of promotional radio ads for Fox. On the July 12, 2010 edition of WWE Raw, Henderson appeared as the night's guest host. Henderson was one of twelve celebrities competing on the eleventh season of Dancing with the Stars which premiered on September 20, 2010. Her professional partner was Corky Ballas, father of two-time champion, Mark Ballas.[29] On October 19, 2010, she was eliminated from the show after receiving the lowest combined total of judges' scores and viewer votes.[30] Henderson made a special appearance on May 11, 2012 in a special Mother's Day episode on The Price Is Right with Drew Carey, displaying prizes as well as one of the showcases. In February 2013, Henderson began hosting her own cooking show, Who's Cooking with Florence Henderson, on RLTV.[31] Personal life[edit] Florence Henderson at the 2015 Indianapolis 500 Festival Since the 2000s, she became a public benefactor to the Sisters of St. Benedict in Ferdinand, Indiana, some of the nuns having been her teachers during her early education. She appeared in a number of their promotional videos and helped in fundraising efforts. She won money for the Sisters on the game show Weakest Link and on a classic-television-themed episode of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire in 2001, winning $32,000 in their name.[32] On the show, Henderson used her son, Joseph, as a Phone-a-Friend lifeline for the $64,000 question on a question about laser colors and answered correctly; however, she got the $125,000 question wrong and lost $32,000.[32] When Henderson appeared on the The Surreal Life, she made a point of showing respect for the Catholic Church and the Sisters of St. Benedict by refusing to dress in a nun's costume for a comedy skit.[33] Death[edit] Henderson's manager, Kayla Pressman, reported that she had died of heart failure[1] at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on November 24, 2016, surrounded by family and friends. She was survived by her four children, ten grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.[34] Works[edit] Television[edit] Year Title Role Notes 1954 General Foods 25th Anniversary Show: A Salute to Rodgers and Hammerstein Laurey TV Movie 1956 I Spy Nymph Episode: "The Abbe and the Nymph"[35] 1957–58 The U.S. Steel Hour Episodes: "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" (1957) and "A Family Alliance" (1958) 1958–59 Sing Along 1958 Little Women Meg March 1958–62 Tonight Starring Jack Paar Herself Regular guest 1959 Oldsmobile Music Theatre Canceled after a few months 1959 The Bell Telephone Hour 1959–60 The Today Show Herself Today Girl[15] 1962–67 Password Herself Contestant 1963 Discovery '63 1968 The Dean Martin Show Guest appearance 1969–74 The Brady Bunch Carol Ann Brady 117 episodes 1970 A World Of Love – Celebrating UNICEF CBS Special Broadcast 1976 The Love Boat pilot for series 1976 The Muppet Show Herself Episode: "Florence Henderson" 1976 The Paul Lynde Halloween Special Herself 1976–77 The Brady Bunch Hour Carol Ann Brady 9 episodes 1981 The Brady Girls Get Married Carol Ann Brady TV reunion movie 1981 The Love Boat Annabelle Folker Episode: "Country Cousin Blues" 1981 The Brady Brides Carol Ann Brady TV series; canceled after 10 episodes 1982 Police Squad! Shot woman Episode: "Rendezvous at Big Gulch (Terror in the Neighborhood)" 1982–85 The $25,000 Pyramid Herself Contestant 1983 Alice Sarah James Episode: "It Had to Be Mel" 1985–86 The $100,000 Pyramid Herself Contestant 1985–93 Country Kitchen Herself Host 1986, 1990 Murder, She Wrote Maria Morgana / Patti Sue Diamond 2 episodes 1986 L.A. Law Margaret Flanagan 1987 It's Garry Shandling's Show Guest appearance 1987 Just a Regular Kid: An AIDS Story Ellen Casio After school special 1988 A Very Brady Christmas Carol Ann Brady TV movie 1990 The Bradys Carol Ann Brady TV series; canceled after six episodes. Also sang third version of theme song 1993–95 Dave's World Maggie Occasional; Beth's mother 1994 Roseanne Flo Anderson Episode: "Suck Up or Shut Up" 1995 Fudge Muriel Episode: "Fudge-a-mania" 1995–96 Our Generation Herself Co-host 1996 Ellen Madeline Episode: "Joe's Kept Secret" 1998–2000 Short-cut Cooking Herself Host 1999–2000 Later Today Herself Presenter 2000 The King of Queens Lily Carrie Heffernan's stepmother Episode: "Dark Meet" 2001 Legend of the Candy Cane Thelma Voice role 2001 Weakest Link Herself Contestant Episode: "The Brady Bunch Episode" 2001 Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Herself Contestant 2002 Mom's on Strike Betty TV movie 2002 Speaking of Women's Health Herself Guest, discussing her battle with osteoporosis 2002 Whose Line Is It Anyway? Herself Guest appearance 2003 Mrs. America Herself Host 2003 Intimate Portrait: Florence Henderson Herself Interviewee 2003 The 26th Annual Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts Herself Special appearance 2006 The Surreal Life Herself Cast member 2007 The Ellen DeGeneres Show Herself Guest appearance 2007 Living Live Herself Co-host with Meshach Taylor 2006 Loonatics Unleashed Mallory "Mastermind" Casey 3 episodes 2008 Ladies of the House Rose Olmstead TV movie 2008–16 The Florence Henderson Show Herself Host 2009 Samantha Who Loretta Guest appearance 2010 WWE Raw Herself Guest host 2010 Dancing with the Stars Herself Contestant 2012 The Cleveland Show Nanny Barbara Episode: "The Men in Me" 2012 The Living Room Guest appearances 2012 Handy Manny Aunt Ginny Episode: "Handy Manny and the Seven Tools" 2012 Matchmaker Santa Peggy TV Movie 2012 Happily Divorced Elizabeth Episode: "Meet the Parents" 2012 30 Rock Herself Episode: "My Whole Life Is Thunder" 2013–16 Who's Cooking with Florence Henderson Herself Host 2016 K.C. Undercover Irma Episode: "Dance Like No One's Watching" Film[edit] Year Title Role Notes 1970 Song of Norway Nina Grieg 1992 Shakes the Clown The Unknown Woman 1994 Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult Cameo 1995 The Brady Bunch Movie Grandma (Carol's mother) Cameo 1996 For Goodness Sake II Video store customer 1998 Holy Man Cameo 1999 Get Bruce Herself Documentary 2003 Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star Herself 2008 For Heaven's Sake Sarah Miller 2010 The Christmas Bunny Betsy Ross Venus & Vegas Carmen 2011 The Family Group 2013 Young One 2016 Fifty Shades of Black Mrs. Robinson Stage[edit] Year Title Role Notes 1949 Carousel Carrie Pepperidge 1952 Wish You Were Here The New Girl 1952 Oklahoma! Laurey 1953 The Great Waltz Resi 1954 Fanny Fanny 1961–62, 1968, 1978 The Sound of Music Maria Rainer 1963–64 The Girl Who Came to Supper Mary Morgan 1965 The King and I Anna 1966 Jerome Kern's Theatre 1967 South Pacific Nellie Forbush 1974, 1981 Annie Get Your Gun Annie Oakley 1978 Bells Are Ringing 1989 Alone Together Awards[edit] 2008: Gracie Awards 2012: Gracie Awards References[edit] ^ Jump up to: a b The Huffington Post Staff (November 25, 2016). "Florence Henderson, Famed Mom Of 'The Brady Bunch,' Dead At 82". The Huffington Post. United States: AOL. Retrieved November 25, 2016. ^ Jump up to: a b c Ravitz, Justin (November 8, 2008). "Florence Henderson on Her New One-Woman Show and Why She Was No Fan of Cousin Oliver". Vulture. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ "Monitor". Entertainment Weekly (1194). February 17, 2012. p. 26. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson Biography". The Biography Channel. A+E Television Networks, LLC. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson Biography (1934–)". Film Reference. Advameg, Inc. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson". deardoctor.com. 2015. Retrieved 2015-11-29. ^ Jump up to: a b "Florence Henderson Gets Her Big Break As 'Fanny' in New Musical". Toledo Blade. AP. September 5, 1954. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ Morden, Paul (October 6, 2013). "All the lives of Florence Henderson". The London Free Press. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)". Florence Henderson. Retrieved October 8, 2014. Jump up ^ Meyers, Joe (April 30, 2013). "Florence Henderson conquered Broadway before TV". Connecticut Post. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ Burns, Diane (July 27, 1982). "Florence Henderson lives with Mrs. Brady mold". Star-News. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "The Girl Who Came to Supper". Playbill Vault. Playbill, Inc. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ "Sarah Siddons Society Records, 1849–2000". Chicago Public Library. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ King, Susan (August 25, 2010). "Classic Hollywood: Florence Henderson returns to the stage". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 5, 2014. ^ Jump up to: a b Edelstein, Andrew J.; Lovece, Frank (1990). The Brady Bunch Book. New York: Warner Books. p. 63. ISBN 0-446-39137-9. Jump up ^ Warren, Roz (September 1, 2013). "Thanks For Sharing, Shirley!". The Huffington Post. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Greatest TV Icons: Nos. 100–51". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. November 12, 2007. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson". Hollywood Bowl. Los Angeles Philharmonic Association. Retrieved February 5, 2014. ^ Jump up to: a b Gliatto, Tom; Eftimiades, Maria; Abrahams, Andrew; Baker, Kathryn; Johnston, Jerry (June 1, 1992). "Here's the Story...". People. 37 (21). Retrieved February 2, 2014. Henderson is in her 17th year touting "Wessonality" for Wesson Oil. For eight years she has been host of Florence Henderson's Country Kitchen, a cooking show on the Nashville Network. Jump up ^ "Mrs. Brady's Wake-Up Call". People. February 18, 1999. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ Silverman, Stephen M. (January 23, 2003). "Marie Osmond Inhabits Kelly Osbourne". People. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ Denby, Matthew (July 2, 2012). "Florence Henderson: My life as Mrs Brady". New Idea. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ Kappes, Serena (March 18, 2006). "WEEK AHEAD: Mrs. Brady Joins Surreal Life". People. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Jim Nabors returning to Indy 500". ESPN. AP. May 23, 2013. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ "Indy 500 unique traditions". Yahoo! Sports. Yahoo!. May 24, 2013. Retrieved February 5, 2014. ^ Jump up to: a b "Retirement Living TV Presents The Florence Henderson Show". PR Newswire. January 11, 2008. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson". Whose Line Is It Anyway?. Season 5. Episode 4. September 30, 2002. ABC. Jump up ^ "The Florence Henderson Show". Retirement Living TV. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ DWTS Women: Jennifer Grey, Florence Henderson, Britol Palin, Brandy and More Jump up ^ Shira, Dahvi (October 20, 2010). "Florence Henderson's Dancing Departure Leaves Brandy in Tears". People. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson and Chef Govind Armstrong Team Up for RLTV's Who's Cooking With Florence Henderson, Premiering Feb. 27 at 9 PM ET". The Wall Street Journal. PR Newswire. February 15, 2013. Retrieved February 12, 2014. ^ Jump up to: a b "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?". Florence Henderson's Official Site. F.H.B. Productions, INC. Retrieved February 10, 2014. Jump up ^ McNamara, Pat (February 14, 2009). "Happy Birthday, Mrs. Brady!". Patheos. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ Elber, Lynn (November 24, 2016). "Florence Henderson, "The Brady Bunch" mom, dies". San Francisco Chronicle. San Francisco: Hearst Corporation. Retrieved November 25, 2016. Jump up ^ "Florence on TV". Florence Henderson. Retrieved December 20, 2014. External links[edit] Wikimedia Commons has media related to Florence Henderson. Official website Florence Henderson at the Internet Movie Database Florence Henderson at the Internet Broadway Database Edit this at Wikidata Florence Henderson at the Internet Off-Broadway Database Florence Henderson interview video at the Archive of American Television [hide] v t e Hosts of the Tony Awards ceremonies 1947–1960 Brock Pemberton (1947) Bert Lytell / Hiram Sherman / Harry Hirshfield (1948) Brock Pemberton / James Sauter (1949) James Sauter (1950) James Sauter (1951) Helen Hayes (1952) Faye Emerson (1953) James Sauter (1954) Helen Hayes (1955) Jack Carter (1956) Bud Collyer (1957) Bud Collyer (1958) Bud Collyer (1959) Eddie Albert (1960) 1961–1980 Phil Silvers (1961) Ray Bolger (1962) Abe Burrows / Robert Morse (1963) Sidney Blackmer (1964) Tom Bosley / José Ferrer / Van Johnson (1965) George Abbott / Ginger Rogers (1966) Mary Martin (1967) Angela Lansbury (1968) Diahann Carroll (1969) Julie Andrews (1970) Lauren Bacall (1971) Deborah Kerr (1972) Celeste Holm (1973) Florence Henderson (1974) Larry Blyden / George S. Irving / Larry Kert / Carol Lawrence / Michele Lee / Bernadette Peters / Bobby Van (1975) Jane Fonda (1976) Bea Arthur (1977) Edward Asner (1978) Jane Alexander / Henry Fonda / Liv Ullmann (1979) Mary Tyler Moore / Jason Robards (1980) 1981–2000 Ellen Burstyn / Richard Chamberlain (1981) Tony Randall (1982) Richard Burton / Lena Horne / Jack Lemmon (1983) Julie Andrews / Robert Preston (1984) None (1985) None (1986) Angela Lansbury (1987) Angela Lansbury (1988) Angela Lansbury (1989) Kathleen Turner (1990) Julie Andrews / Jeremy Irons (1991) Glenn Close (1992) Liza Minnelli (1993) Anthony Hopkins / Amy Irving (1994) Nathan Lane / Glenn Close / Gregory Hines (1995) Nathan Lane (1996) Rosie O'Donnell (1997) Rosie O'Donnell (1998) None (1999) Rosie O'Donnell / Nathan Lane (2000) 2001–2020 Nathan Lane / Matthew Broderick (2001) Bernadette Peters / Gregory Hines (2002) Hugh Jackman (2003) Hugh Jackman (2004) Hugh Jackman (2005) None (2006) None (2007) Whoopi Goldberg (2008) Neil Patrick Harris (2009) Sean Hayes (2010) Neil Patrick Harris (2011) Neil Patrick Harris (2012) Neil Patrick Harris (2013) Hugh Jackman (2014) Kristin Chenoweth / Alan Cumming (2015) James Corden (2016) Authority control WorldCat Identities VIAF: 27276929 LCCN: n85022683 ISNI: 0000 0000 0313 0637 GND: 1020302038 BNF: cb14186447r (data) MusicBrainz: f007d751-380d-43fd-9f08-9de55be7e99b Categories: 1934 births2016 deaths20th-century American actresses21st-century American actressesActresses from IndianaAmerican Academy of Dramatic Arts alumniAmerican female singersAmerican film actressesAmerican musical theatre actressesAmerican people of Irish descentAmerican Roman CatholicsAmerican stage actressesAmerican television actressesAmerican voice actressesLas Vegas entertainersParticipants in American reality television seriesPeople from Spencer County, Indiana Florence Agnes Henderson



Celebrity

Mom of The Brady Bunch

Born February 14, 1934

Died“ November 24, 2016



Florence Henderson, who went from Broadway star to become one of Americas most beloved television moms in The Brady Bunch, has died, her manager and her publicist said. She was 82.



Henderson died Thursday night at Cedars~Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, after being hospitalized the day before, said her publicist, David Brokaw. Henderson had suffered heart failure, her manager Kayla Pressman said in a statement. Family and friends had surrounded Hendersons hospital bedside, Pressman said.

On the surface, The Brady Bunch with Henderson as its ever~cheerful matriarch Carol Brady, resembled just another TV sitcom about a family living in suburban America and getting into a different wacky situation each week.

But well after it ended its initial run, in 1974, the show resonated with audiences, and it returned to television in various forms again and again, including The Brady Bunch Hour in 1977, The Brady Brides in 1981 and The Bradys in 1990. It was also seen endlessly in reruns. It represents what people always wanted: a loving family. Its such a gentle, innocent, sweet show, and I guess it proved theres always an audience for that, Henderson said in 1999.

Premiering in 1969, it also was among the first shows to introduce to television the blended family. As its theme song reminded viewers each week, Hendersons Carol was a single mother raising three daughters when she met her TV husband, Robert Reeds Mike Brady, a single father who was raising three boys. The eight of them became The Brady Bunch, with a quirky housekeeper, played by Ann B. Davis, thrown into the mix.

The blonde, ever~smiling Henderson was already a Broadway star when the show began, having originated the title role in the musical Fanny. But after The Brady Bunch, she would always be known to fans as Carol Brady.

We had to have security guards with us. Fans were hanging on our doors. We couldnt go out by ourselves. We were like the Beatles! she said of the attention the show brought the cast.

Like the Beatles, there was even a Saturday morning cartoon version called Brady Kids, although Henderson was not in that show. She and Reed did return, however, for The Brady Bunch Hour, The Brady Brides and The Bradys. So did most of the original cast.

She was also back again in 1995 when a new cast was assembled for The Brady Bunch Movie, a playful spoof of the original show. This time she was Grandma Brady opposite Shelly Longs Carol. Numerous memoirs also kept interest in the show alive, as cast members revealed they were more than just siblings off camera. Barry Williams, who played eldest son Greg Brady, would confess to having a crush on his TV stepmom. Henderson, in her own book, denied having any relationship with Williams, but did acknowledge a fling with former New York City mayor John Lindsay. Henderson was a 19~year~old drama student in New York when she landed a one~line role in the play Wish You Were Here.

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were so impressed they made her the female lead in a 1952 road tour of Oklahoma! When the show returned to Broadway for a revival in 1954, she continued in the role and won rave reviews.

She is the real thing, right of of a butter churn somewhere, wrote Walter Kerr of the New York Herald Tribune.

To broaden her career, Henderson took acting, dancing, singing and guitar lessons, even studying French and Italian.

She went on to play Maria in a road production of The Sound of Music, was Nellie Forbush in a revival of South Pacific and was back on Broadway with Jose Ferrer in The Girl Who Came to Supper in 1963. She made her movie debut in 1970 in Song of Norway, based on the 1944 operetta with music by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg.

Her career nearly came to an end in 1965 when she suddenly lost her hearing while appearing in The King and I in Los Angeles, and was diagnosed with a condition linked to heredity.

Corrective surgery in both ears restored my hearing, she said in 2007.

As her TV career blossomed with The Brady Bunch, Henderson also began to make frequent TV guest appearances. She was the first woman to host The Tonight Show for the vacationing Johnny Carson. For eight years she also commuted to Nashville to conduct a cooking and talk series, Country Kitchen, on The Nashville Network. The show resulted in a book, Florence Hendersons Short Cut Cooking. After The Brady Bunch ended its first run, Henderson alternated her appearances in revivals of the show with guest appearances on other programs, including Hart to Hart, Fantasy Island and The Love Boat. In later years she also made guest appearances on such shows as Roseanne, Ally McBeal and The King of Queens.

The Los Angeles Times reports that she also became a commercial spokeswoman and co~produced Country Kitchen, a Nashville Network series. Florence Agnes Henderson was born Feb. 14, 1934, in the small town of Dale in southern Indiana. She was the 10th child of a tobacco sharecropper of Irish descent.

In grade school, she joined the choir at a Catholic church in Rockport, Ind.

After high school she moved to New York, where she enrolled in a two~year program at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, her studies financed by a theatrical couple who had been impressed by her singing when they saw her perform in high school. She dropped out of the program after one year, however, to take the role in Wish You Were There. Henderson married theater executive Ira Bernstein and the couple had four children before the union ended in divorce after 29 years.

Her second husband, John Kappas, died in 2002. Pressman said she is survived by her children; Barbara, Joseph, Robert and Lizzie, their respective spouses, and five grandchildren. __

The late AP writer Bob Thomas contributed to this report.































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































The following is from Wikipedia. The information was created by wikipedia. For additional information or details on the following article please visit www.wikipedia.com Florence Agnes Henderson (February 14, 1934 – November 24, 2016) was an American actress and singer with a career spanning six decades. She is best remembered for her starring role as matriarch Carol Brady on the ABC sitcom The Brady Bunch from 1969 to 1974. Henderson also appeared in film as well as on stage and hosted several long-running cooking and variety shows over the years. She appeared as a guest on many scripted and nonscripted (talk and reality show) television programs and as a panelist on numerous game shows. She was a contestant on Dancing with the Stars in 2010. On November 21, 2016, three days before her death, Florence appeared again on Dancing With The Stars giving moral support to her eldest Brady Bunch daughter Maureen McCormick, who played the popular Marcia Brady. Henderson hosted her own talk show, The Florence Henderson Show, and cooking show, Who's Cooking with Florence Henderson, on Retirement Living TV (RLTV), in the years leading up to her sudden death from heart failure.[1] Contents [hide] 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 3.1 Death 4 Works 4.1 Television 4.2 Film 4.3 Stage 5 Awards 6 References 7 External links Early life[edit] Henderson, the youngest of ten children,[2] was born on February 14, 1934,[3] in Dale, Indiana, a small town in the southwestern part of the state.[4] Henderson is a daughter of Elizabeth (née Elder), a homemaker, and Joseph Henderson, a tobacco sharecropper.[5] She is of Irish Catholic ancestry.[citation needed] During the Great Depression, she was taught to sing at the age of two by her mother, who had a repertoire of fifty songs. By the time she was eight, her family called her "Florency", and by age twelve, she was singing at local grocery stores.[6] Henderson graduated from St. Francis Academy in Owensboro, Kentucky, in 1951;[7] shortly thereafter, she went to New York City, enrolling in the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.[8] She was an Alumna Initiate of the Alpha Chi chapter of Delta Zeta sorority.[9] Career[edit] Henderson started her career on the stage, performing in musicals, such as the touring production of Oklahoma! and South Pacific at Lincoln Center.[10] She debuted on Broadway in the musical Wish You Were Here in 1952,[11] and later starred on Broadway in the long-running 1954 musical, Fanny (888 performances) in which she originated the title role.[7] Henderson, along with Bill Hayes, appeared in the Oldsmobile commercials from 1958 through 1961 on The Patti Page Show for which Oldsmobile was the sponsor. Henderson also appeared on Broadway in The Girl Who Came to Supper (1963).[12] In 1962, she won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago theatre,[13] and the same year became the first woman to guest host The Tonight Show in the period after Jack Paar left as the show's host, and before Johnny Carson began his 30 years as the show's longest serving host in October of 1962.[14] She also joined the ranks of what was then called "The Today Girl" on NBC's long running morning show, doing weather and light news, a position also once held by Barbara Walters.[15] Henderson's most famous role was as Carol Brady - the mother on the classic '70s sitcom The Brady Bunch Her most widely recognized role was as Carol Brady in The Brady Bunch which aired on ABC from 1969 until 1974. Henderson's best friend, Shirley Jones, had turned down the role, but the following year accepted the similar role of a mother with five children, named Shirley Partridge in the Partridge Family. (The Partridge Family aired from 1970 - 1974).[16] Primarily owing to her role in The Brady Bunch, Henderson was ranked by TV Land and Entertainment Weekly as No. 54 on their list of the 100 Greatest TV Icons.[17] Henderson was a frequent panelist on the original version of the television game show Hollywood Squares[18] and made occasional appearances on The $25,000 Pyramid. Henderson was the spokeswoman for Wesson cooking oil from 1976 to 1996.[2][19] During that time, she hosted a cooking show on TNN called Country Kitchen,[19] and also did ads for Prange's, a former Wisconsin department store chain. Henderson co-hosted the talk show Later Today on NBC (1999–2000) with co-hosts Jodi Applegate and Asha Blake.[20] In the 2000s, she was the spokeswoman for Polident denture cleanser.[2] In 2003, Henderson seemed to poke fun at her wholesome image by appearing in a Pepsi Twist television commercial with Ozzy Osbourne.[21] Henderson also appeared with her TV children, as she did with Christopher Knight on the reality television series My Fair Brady.[22] She was also in the sixth season of VH1's The Surreal Life.[23] Beginning in the mid-1990s, the song "God Bless America" was performed by Henderson at the Indianapolis 500 accompanied by the Purdue All-American Marching Band,[24] at the request of the Hulman-George family, the owners of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and friends of Henderson's.[25] She appeared in the "Weird Al" Yankovic video for "Amish Paradise" and co-hosted the daily talk show Living Live with former Designing Women star Meshach Taylor on Retirement Living TV.[26] The show was reworked to focus on her and was renamed The Florence Henderson Show. In 2002, she made a memorable guest appearance on improvisational comedy show Whose Line Is It Anyway?, participating in on-screen kisses with Ryan Stiles and Colin Mochrie.[27] From 2007-2009, Henderson was the host of her own television series, The Florence Henderson Show on RLTV (Retirement Living TV).[26] The show was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2010.[28] In May 2010, Henderson did a series of promotional radio ads for Fox. On the July 12, 2010 edition of WWE Raw, Henderson appeared as the night's guest host. Henderson was one of twelve celebrities competing on the eleventh season of Dancing with the Stars which premiered on September 20, 2010. Her professional partner was Corky Ballas, father of two-time champion, Mark Ballas.[29] On October 19, 2010, she was eliminated from the show after receiving the lowest combined total of judges' scores and viewer votes.[30] Henderson made a special appearance on May 11, 2012 in a special Mother's Day episode on The Price Is Right with Drew Carey, displaying prizes as well as one of the showcases. In February 2013, Henderson began hosting her own cooking show, Who's Cooking with Florence Henderson, on RLTV.[31] Personal life[edit] Florence Henderson at the 2015 Indianapolis 500 Festival Since the 2000s, she became a public benefactor to the Sisters of St. Benedict in Ferdinand, Indiana, some of the nuns having been her teachers during her early education. She appeared in a number of their promotional videos and helped in fundraising efforts. She won money for the Sisters on the game show Weakest Link and on a classic-television-themed episode of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire in 2001, winning $32,000 in their name.[32] On the show, Henderson used her son, Joseph, as a Phone-a-Friend lifeline for the $64,000 question on a question about laser colors and answered correctly; however, she got the $125,000 question wrong and lost $32,000.[32] When Henderson appeared on the The Surreal Life, she made a point of showing respect for the Catholic Church and the Sisters of St. Benedict by refusing to dress in a nun's costume for a comedy skit.[33] Death[edit] Henderson's manager, Kayla Pressman, reported that she had died of heart failure[1] at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on November 24, 2016, surrounded by family and friends. She was survived by her four children, ten grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.[34] Works[edit] Television[edit] Year Title Role Notes 1954 General Foods 25th Anniversary Show: A Salute to Rodgers and Hammerstein Laurey TV Movie 1956 I Spy Nymph Episode: "The Abbe and the Nymph"[35] 1957–58 The U.S. Steel Hour Episodes: "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" (1957) and "A Family Alliance" (1958) 1958–59 Sing Along 1958 Little Women Meg March 1958–62 Tonight Starring Jack Paar Herself Regular guest 1959 Oldsmobile Music Theatre Canceled after a few months 1959 The Bell Telephone Hour 1959–60 The Today Show Herself Today Girl[15] 1962–67 Password Herself Contestant 1963 Discovery '63 1968 The Dean Martin Show Guest appearance 1969–74 The Brady Bunch Carol Ann Brady 117 episodes 1970 A World Of Love – Celebrating UNICEF CBS Special Broadcast 1976 The Love Boat pilot for series 1976 The Muppet Show Herself Episode: "Florence Henderson" 1976 The Paul Lynde Halloween Special Herself 1976–77 The Brady Bunch Hour Carol Ann Brady 9 episodes 1981 The Brady Girls Get Married Carol Ann Brady TV reunion movie 1981 The Love Boat Annabelle Folker Episode: "Country Cousin Blues" 1981 The Brady Brides Carol Ann Brady TV series; canceled after 10 episodes 1982 Police Squad! Shot woman Episode: "Rendezvous at Big Gulch (Terror in the Neighborhood)" 1982–85 The $25,000 Pyramid Herself Contestant 1983 Alice Sarah James Episode: "It Had to Be Mel" 1985–86 The $100,000 Pyramid Herself Contestant 1985–93 Country Kitchen Herself Host 1986, 1990 Murder, She Wrote Maria Morgana / Patti Sue Diamond 2 episodes 1986 L.A. Law Margaret Flanagan 1987 It's Garry Shandling's Show Guest appearance 1987 Just a Regular Kid: An AIDS Story Ellen Casio After school special 1988 A Very Brady Christmas Carol Ann Brady TV movie 1990 The Bradys Carol Ann Brady TV series; canceled after six episodes. Also sang third version of theme song 1993–95 Dave's World Maggie Occasional; Beth's mother 1994 Roseanne Flo Anderson Episode: "Suck Up or Shut Up" 1995 Fudge Muriel Episode: "Fudge-a-mania" 1995–96 Our Generation Herself Co-host 1996 Ellen Madeline Episode: "Joe's Kept Secret" 1998–2000 Short-cut Cooking Herself Host 1999–2000 Later Today Herself Presenter 2000 The King of Queens Lily Carrie Heffernan's stepmother Episode: "Dark Meet" 2001 Legend of the Candy Cane Thelma Voice role 2001 Weakest Link Herself Contestant Episode: "The Brady Bunch Episode" 2001 Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Herself Contestant 2002 Mom's on Strike Betty TV movie 2002 Speaking of Women's Health Herself Guest, discussing her battle with osteoporosis 2002 Whose Line Is It Anyway? Herself Guest appearance 2003 Mrs. America Herself Host 2003 Intimate Portrait: Florence Henderson Herself Interviewee 2003 The 26th Annual Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts Herself Special appearance 2006 The Surreal Life Herself Cast member 2007 The Ellen DeGeneres Show Herself Guest appearance 2007 Living Live Herself Co-host with Meshach Taylor 2006 Loonatics Unleashed Mallory "Mastermind" Casey 3 episodes 2008 Ladies of the House Rose Olmstead TV movie 2008–16 The Florence Henderson Show Herself Host 2009 Samantha Who Loretta Guest appearance 2010 WWE Raw Herself Guest host 2010 Dancing with the Stars Herself Contestant 2012 The Cleveland Show Nanny Barbara Episode: "The Men in Me" 2012 The Living Room Guest appearances 2012 Handy Manny Aunt Ginny Episode: "Handy Manny and the Seven Tools" 2012 Matchmaker Santa Peggy TV Movie 2012 Happily Divorced Elizabeth Episode: "Meet the Parents" 2012 30 Rock Herself Episode: "My Whole Life Is Thunder" 2013–16 Who's Cooking with Florence Henderson Herself Host 2016 K.C. Undercover Irma Episode: "Dance Like No One's Watching" Film[edit] Year Title Role Notes 1970 Song of Norway Nina Grieg 1992 Shakes the Clown The Unknown Woman 1994 Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult Cameo 1995 The Brady Bunch Movie Grandma (Carol's mother) Cameo 1996 For Goodness Sake II Video store customer 1998 Holy Man Cameo 1999 Get Bruce Herself Documentary 2003 Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star Herself 2008 For Heaven's Sake Sarah Miller 2010 The Christmas Bunny Betsy Ross Venus & Vegas Carmen 2011 The Family Group 2013 Young One 2016 Fifty Shades of Black Mrs. Robinson Stage[edit] Year Title Role Notes 1949 Carousel Carrie Pepperidge 1952 Wish You Were Here The New Girl 1952 Oklahoma! Laurey 1953 The Great Waltz Resi 1954 Fanny Fanny 1961–62, 1968, 1978 The Sound of Music Maria Rainer 1963–64 The Girl Who Came to Supper Mary Morgan 1965 The King and I Anna 1966 Jerome Kern's Theatre 1967 South Pacific Nellie Forbush 1974, 1981 Annie Get Your Gun Annie Oakley 1978 Bells Are Ringing 1989 Alone Together Awards[edit] 2008: Gracie Awards 2012: Gracie Awards References[edit] ^ Jump up to: a b The Huffington Post Staff (November 25, 2016). "Florence Henderson, Famed Mom Of 'The Brady Bunch,' Dead At 82". The Huffington Post. United States: AOL. Retrieved November 25, 2016. ^ Jump up to: a b c Ravitz, Justin (November 8, 2008). "Florence Henderson on Her New One-Woman Show and Why She Was No Fan of Cousin Oliver". Vulture. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ "Monitor". Entertainment Weekly (1194). February 17, 2012. p. 26. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson Biography". The Biography Channel. A+E Television Networks, LLC. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson Biography (1934–)". Film Reference. Advameg, Inc. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson". deardoctor.com. 2015. Retrieved 2015-11-29. ^ Jump up to: a b "Florence Henderson Gets Her Big Break As 'Fanny' in New Musical". Toledo Blade. AP. September 5, 1954. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ Morden, Paul (October 6, 2013). "All the lives of Florence Henderson". The London Free Press. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)". Florence Henderson. Retrieved October 8, 2014. Jump up ^ Meyers, Joe (April 30, 2013). "Florence Henderson conquered Broadway before TV". Connecticut Post. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ Burns, Diane (July 27, 1982). "Florence Henderson lives with Mrs. Brady mold". Star-News. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "The Girl Who Came to Supper". Playbill Vault. Playbill, Inc. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ "Sarah Siddons Society Records, 1849–2000". Chicago Public Library. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ King, Susan (August 25, 2010). "Classic Hollywood: Florence Henderson returns to the stage". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 5, 2014. ^ Jump up to: a b Edelstein, Andrew J.; Lovece, Frank (1990). The Brady Bunch Book. New York: Warner Books. p. 63. ISBN 0-446-39137-9. Jump up ^ Warren, Roz (September 1, 2013). "Thanks For Sharing, Shirley!". The Huffington Post. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Greatest TV Icons: Nos. 100–51". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. November 12, 2007. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson". Hollywood Bowl. Los Angeles Philharmonic Association. Retrieved February 5, 2014. ^ Jump up to: a b Gliatto, Tom; Eftimiades, Maria; Abrahams, Andrew; Baker, Kathryn; Johnston, Jerry (June 1, 1992). "Here's the Story...". People. 37 (21). Retrieved February 2, 2014. Henderson is in her 17th year touting "Wessonality" for Wesson Oil. For eight years she has been host of Florence Henderson's Country Kitchen, a cooking show on the Nashville Network. Jump up ^ "Mrs. Brady's Wake-Up Call". People. February 18, 1999. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ Silverman, Stephen M. (January 23, 2003). "Marie Osmond Inhabits Kelly Osbourne". People. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ Denby, Matthew (July 2, 2012). "Florence Henderson: My life as Mrs Brady". New Idea. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ Kappes, Serena (March 18, 2006). "WEEK AHEAD: Mrs. Brady Joins Surreal Life". People. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Jim Nabors returning to Indy 500". ESPN. AP. May 23, 2013. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ "Indy 500 unique traditions". Yahoo! Sports. Yahoo!. May 24, 2013. Retrieved February 5, 2014. ^ Jump up to: a b "Retirement Living TV Presents The Florence Henderson Show". PR Newswire. January 11, 2008. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson". Whose Line Is It Anyway?. Season 5. Episode 4. September 30, 2002. ABC. Jump up ^ "The Florence Henderson Show". Retirement Living TV. Retrieved February 5, 2014. Jump up ^ DWTS Women: Jennifer Grey, Florence Henderson, Britol Palin, Brandy and More Jump up ^ Shira, Dahvi (October 20, 2010). "Florence Henderson's Dancing Departure Leaves Brandy in Tears". People. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ "Florence Henderson and Chef Govind Armstrong Team Up for RLTV's Who's Cooking With Florence Henderson, Premiering Feb. 27 at 9 PM ET". The Wall Street Journal. PR Newswire. February 15, 2013. Retrieved February 12, 2014. ^ Jump up to: a b "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?". Florence Henderson's Official Site. F.H.B. Productions, INC. Retrieved February 10, 2014. Jump up ^ McNamara, Pat (February 14, 2009). "Happy Birthday, Mrs. Brady!". Patheos. Retrieved February 2, 2014. Jump up ^ Elber, Lynn (November 24, 2016). "Florence Henderson, "The Brady Bunch" mom, dies". San Francisco Chronicle. San Francisco: Hearst Corporation. Retrieved November 25, 2016. Jump up ^ "Florence on TV". Florence Henderson. Retrieved December 20, 2014. External links[edit] Wikimedia Commons has media related to Florence Henderson. Official website Florence Henderson at the Internet Movie Database Florence Henderson at the Internet Broadway Database Edit this at Wikidata Florence Henderson at the Internet Off-Broadway Database Florence Henderson interview video at the Archive of American Television [hide] v t e Hosts of the Tony Awards ceremonies 1947–1960 Brock Pemberton (1947) Bert Lytell / Hiram Sherman / Harry Hirshfield (1948) Brock Pemberton / James Sauter (1949) James Sauter (1950) James Sauter (1951) Helen Hayes (1952) Faye Emerson (1953) James Sauter (1954) Helen Hayes (1955) Jack Carter (1956) Bud Collyer (1957) Bud Collyer (1958) Bud Collyer (1959) Eddie Albert (1960) 1961–1980 Phil Silvers (1961) Ray Bolger (1962) Abe Burrows / Robert Morse (1963) Sidney Blackmer (1964) Tom Bosley / José Ferrer / Van Johnson (1965) George Abbott / Ginger Rogers (1966) Mary Martin (1967) Angela Lansbury (1968) Diahann Carroll (1969) Julie Andrews (1970) Lauren Bacall (1971) Deborah Kerr (1972) Celeste Holm (1973) Florence Henderson (1974) Larry Blyden / George S. 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Celebrity

Mom of The Brady Bunch

Born February 14, 1934

Died“ November 24, 2016



Florence Henderson, who went from Broadway star to become one of Americas most beloved television moms in The Brady Bunch, has died, her manager and her publicist said. She was 82.



Henderson died Thursday night at Cedars~Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, after being hospitalized the day before, said her publicist, David Brokaw. Henderson had suffered heart failure, her manager Kayla Pressman said in a statement. Family and friends had surrounded Hendersons hospital bedside, Pressman said.

On the surface, The Brady Bunch with Henderson as its ever~cheerful matriarch Carol Brady, resembled just another TV sitcom about a family living in suburban America and getting into a different wacky situation each week.

But well after it ended its initial run, in 1974, the show resonated with audiences, and it returned to television in various forms again and again, including The Brady Bunch Hour in 1977, The Brady Brides in 1981 and The Bradys in 1990. It was also seen endlessly in reruns. It represents what people always wanted: a loving family. Its such a gentle, innocent, sweet show, and I guess it proved theres always an audience for that, Henderson said in 1999.

Premiering in 1969, it also was among the first shows to introduce to television the blended family. As its theme song reminded viewers each week, Hendersons Carol was a single mother raising three daughters when she met her TV husband, Robert Reeds Mike Brady, a single father who was raising three boys. The eight of them became The Brady Bunch, with a quirky housekeeper, played by Ann B. Davis, thrown into the mix.

The blonde, ever~smiling Henderson was already a Broadway star when the show began, having originated the title role in the musical Fanny. But after The Brady Bunch, she would always be known to fans as Carol Brady.

We had to have security guards with us. Fans were hanging on our doors. We couldnt go out by ourselves. We were like the Beatles! she said of the attention the show brought the cast.

Like the Beatles, there was even a Saturday morning cartoon version called Brady Kids, although Henderson was not in that show. She and Reed did return, however, for The Brady Bunch Hour, The Brady Brides and The Bradys. So did most of the original cast.

She was also back again in 1995 when a new cast was assembled for The Brady Bunch Movie, a playful spoof of the original show. This time she was Grandma Brady opposite Shelly Longs Carol. Numerous memoirs also kept interest in the show alive, as cast members revealed they were more than just siblings off camera. Barry Williams, who played eldest son Greg Brady, would confess to having a crush on his TV stepmom. Henderson, in her own book, denied having any relationship with Williams, but did acknowledge a fling with former New York City mayor John Lindsay. Henderson was a 19~year~old drama student in New York when she landed a one~line role in the play Wish You Were Here.

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were so impressed they made her the female lead in a 1952 road tour of Oklahoma! When the show returned to Broadway for a revival in 1954, she continued in the role and won rave reviews.

She is the real thing, right of of a butter churn somewhere, wrote Walter Kerr of the New York Herald Tribune.

To broaden her career, Henderson took acting, dancing, singing and guitar lessons, even studying French and Italian.

She went on to play Maria in a road production of The Sound of Music, was Nellie Forbush in a revival of South Pacific and was back on Broadway with Jose Ferrer in The Girl Who Came to Supper in 1963. She made her movie debut in 1970 in Song of Norway, based on the 1944 operetta with music by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg.

Her career nearly came to an end in 1965 when she suddenly lost her hearing while appearing in The King and I in Los Angeles, and was diagnosed with a condition linked to heredity.

Corrective surgery in both ears restored my hearing, she said in 2007.

As her TV career blossomed with The Brady Bunch, Henderson also began to make frequent TV guest appearances. She was the first woman to host The Tonight Show for the va