‘The Brady Bunch’: Maureen McCormick Gave a Birthday Shout Out to This Former Co-Star and ‘One of My Biggest Crushes’
The Brady Bunch lives in television history and is still considered a fan favorite. Introducing America to the daily lives of a blended family, the sitcom ran from 1969 to 1974 and featured Robert Reed (Mike Brady) and Florence Henderson (Carol) as newlyweds raising their six children. Barry Williams (Greg), Maureen McCormick (Marcia), Christopher Knight (Peter), Eve Plumb (Jan), Mike Lookinland (Bobby), and Susan Olsen (Cindy) bonded as young actors playing siblings over the course of the show’s five seasons.
McCormick has previously spoken of her romance with Williams during their time on the series, yet she also harbored a crush on this co-star that was more of a father figure.
Maureen McCormick sends love to late ‘TV dad’ Robert Reed
McCormick frequently shared her fondness for Reed and Henderson and continuing admiration for her TV parents. Though Reed died in 1992, The Brady Bunch alum still holds him close to her heart and recently posted some birthday wishes to the late actor, along with a confession.
“Happy Heavenly Birthday to one of my biggest crushes ever!” McCormick captioned on Twitter and Instagram on Oct. 19 next to a photo of the two. “Love you Bob.”
Loyalists of the sitcom were quick to chime in with their accolades of Reed, as well as the beloved series.
“What a beautiful picture of you and America’s best TV Dad, Robert Reed. Wishing him a Happy Heavenly birthday,” a fan wrote. “Definitely crush worthy!” another posted. “What a great cast you had! Robert Reed is deeply missed,” a follower responded. “The Brady Bunch is one of the best tv shows ever made!!” one fan commented.
‘The Brady Bunch’ alum admitted her feelings for Robert Reed in her memoir
McCormick revealed a plethora of behind-the-scenes details of The Brady Bunch in her 2009 autobiography, “Here’s the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice“. One of those tidbits included her crush on Reed.
“I also liked working closely with Bob Reed,” she wrote in her memoir. “I always had a thing for older men, including Bob. … I used to imagine running off with him.”
Despite later discovering that Reed was gay, McCormick still harbored feelings for the actor and continued to fantasize of a romance.
“Apparently, I was the last one, or rather the only one, on the set who didn’t know about Bob,” she explained. “I don’t know why, but I would still need a few years before I stopped dreaming that the two of us would run off together someday.”
Maureen McCormick crushed on other actors
Reed wasn’t the only one outside of her McCormick’s demographic that caught her eye.
“Fred McMurray… Michael Cole,” she listed of other crushes. “I also thought Barry Williams’ father was cool, too. Then I developed a thing for Jack Klugman and Tony Randle, the stars of The Odd Couple. Who didn’t adore them?”
McCormick also chronicled her romance with Williams over the show’s five-season run, and explained why they never sustained a lasting relationship.
“We had real feelings for each other,” McCormick remarked in her memoir. “But at our ages – I turned 16 in August, and he was 18 a month later – and given our unique situation, our relationship turned out to be more of an on-again-off-again game. … As always with us, the timing was off.”
