Hello again readers, friends and fans. Thank you for joining me this week to review “Will The Real Jan Brady Please Stand Up?”. The viewing public first saw this episode on January 15th, 1971. The story of Jan wanting to reinvent herself is a fun episode with little to critique or question. It still makes for a fun review though. Let us begin reviewing “Will The Real Jan Brady Please Stand Up?”!
The story begins with Jan arriving home from school and joining Marcia in the kitchen for some milk and cookies. Marcia hands over a piece of mail and Jan is delighted to learn it is an invitation to Lucy Winters’ birthday party. However, Jan is a tad miffed to
see that her invite was all ready opened. When questioned, Marcia explains Lucy addressed Jan’s invite to her by mistake. It is just “one of those things” according to Marcia. Well, Jan is not taking it as lightly. She once again finds herself in the shadow of a sister and overlooked. Jan has been labeled Marcia’s younger sister or Cindy’s older sister one too many times!
She expresses her ire to Carol who reminds Jan that even though the envelope was misaddressed, it was still an invite for Jan to come to the birthday party.
Here we have an opportunity to confirm the Brady address. However, Lucy Winters’ handwriting is not entirely legible. I can make out Clinton Way, but can’t be 100% of the street number. We also get to see “City” as the designation for the City and State; this was mentioned also in “Lost Locket, Found Locket”.
As Jan laments being the overlooked Brady sister, she begins thumbing through a copy of “Now” magazine. There she sees an advertisement for something called Glitter. The ad seems to be offering a solution to the dilemma Jan is experiencing at that very moment! It is a tad convenient, but it moves the story along a bit more quickly. From here the episode could have went the way of “The Hair Brained Scheme” and been about Jan giving herself a bad dye job on her hair. Instead, Jan’s response to the ad will be the tale of Jan wearing a wig.
A Google search produced neither a hair dye or shampoo by the name of Glitter. Perhaps at one time such a product did exist. Readers, feel free to share any recollections of such a product or even if this was a genuine ad. Those blonde ladies sure do look depressed in the presence of the lone brunette. A Google search for Now magazine produced no results for a publication that was in print in 1971. It could have been a short lived magazine with no “internet trail” or just one the set dresser had made up for the scene. Again, readers, please fill us in if such a magazine once existed.
The episode’s subplot begins in the next scene. Peter interrupts his father’s work in search of an advance on his allowance. This is another funny scene that is just fun and leaves little to analyze. Mike asks Peter to wait and he does so in a most distracting fashion. Initially he whistles as he watches Mike work and then begins pacing back and forth observing the plans he is working on. With this, Mike stops his work to address Peter’s concern. Peter does continue pacing until Mike puts a stop to it. Peter is in need of .49 cents as he loaned all of his funds, $4.49, to Jan. He needs only .49 cents for Lucy Winters’ gift as he figures that is the amount she spent on him, and he doesn’t want to embarrass her by getting her something too good. For some reason, I recall from childhood Peter saying he’d purchased her a jump rope, but I did not hear him say that when watching this episode on DVD.
Based on inflation, in today’s dollars Peter would be spending approximately $3.00 on Lucy Winters’ gift. $3.00 on a gift today sounds chintzy. I wonder if .49 cents in 1971 was just as cheap sounding for a gift. The $4.49 Peter loaned Jan inflates to about $27.50 in today’s dollars. While that is no princely sum in 2017, it still seems like a lot for 12 year olds to be loaning other 12 year olds. Peter did charge Jan 25% interest, so he will be coming out ahead in the deal. Maybe that was his motivator. I guess that extra .49 cents incurring interest was too tempting for Peter to pass up. He could have just loaned Jan an even $4.00 and had .49 cents left for the gift purchase.
The next scene was the funniest of the entire episode and one of the funniest of all of season two. Jan is visiting the wig store in search of her new look. Has anybody else ever noticed how easy it was for the Brady kids to get around? This is not the first time we have seen one of them making a solo trip to a store in a city setting. The saleslady is very understanding of Jan’s dilemma and very helpful, even after Jan’s unintentional insult. Jan states she’d love a wild and crazy wig like the saleslady has on, only to find out it is the poor woman’s natural hairdo and not a wig. Among the colors of faux hair
observed were early rust, pompei pumice and lunar dust. A Google search found no wigs of this color being offered today. A fourth curly and reddish-brown wig is immediately dismissed by Jan and the sales lady. The first wig Jan tries on is called midnight temptress. While it is a nice looking head of hair, the saleslady declares it a bit too mature for Jan. Jan does say she is all of twelve years old. The saleslady assures her, “You carry it very well.” Jan passes on midnight temptress as she doesn’t think she will be up that late. As Jan continues shopping, there is cutaway back to the saleslady that does not flow with the scene at all. The saleslady then informs Jan that each wig purchase comes with a free Styrofoam head. Jan then believes she may have found just the look she is going for and adorns another “wig”. The saleslady stops her and informs her that it is not a wig she is putting on her head, but a handbag. The saleslady chides Her coworker Helen for mixing up the merchandise. Helen does not appear in the closing credits, so her identity is a mystery for now.
The more I think about it, in my opinion this scene ranks among the funniest we were ever treated to on The Brady Bunch. Jan acting so grown up while shopping, paired with the accommodating saleslady is a dose of that innocent humor that contributed to the endearing nature of classic sitcoms. Such entertaining, yet innocent humor is what has created the lasting and ageless fan base for classic television.
The aforementioned scene owes much of it’s magic to the amazing talent of Marcia Wallace. This was one of two appearances she would have on “The Brady Bunch”. Her lasting legacy in the television world would come a few years later when she portrayed “Carol Kester” on “The Bob Newhart Show”. Her role as the ultra efficient and man hungry office receptionist played a huge part in what made that show as great as it was. Later recurring television roles would follow, including a role on “Full House” and “The Young and The Restless.” Her other iconic role was voicing the character “Edna Krabapple” on “The Simpsons”. Sadly, Marcia Wallace left us in 2013.
We return to the subplot and find Bobby and Greg outside playing basketball. Bobby shares that one of the partygoers will be Margie Ripple. She is a girl from school that has a major crush on Peter and he does not return any of her affections. Greg and Bobby decide this bit of information will be kept from their brother.
The moral lesson for the episode is played out here. Even Mike is fighting a smirk as he asks Jan where she got the wig. Jan assures him she purchased it with her own money and it will be worn all the time. It is part of her new identity and being noticed as Jan Brady going forward. Mike tells Jan “a person doesn’t make himself different just by different putting on a wig.” Carol adds it’s not the color of a person’s hair that is important, it’s what is inside. Jan throws this back by asking if what Carol shared is true, why would wearing the wig be a problem. Checkmate! Jan has proved a valid point and will be allowed to continue wearing the wig.
Upstairs, Bobby is tickled into revealing that Margie Ripple will be at Lucy Winters’ party. With this news, Peter decides he will fake an illness to get out of attending. He must really loathe Margie Ripple! Mike and Carol are immediately wise to Peter’s scheme and say if he is too sick to party, he’s too sick to play ball the next day. Peter finds himself miraculously cured and must remain so for the duration of the party if he wants to play ball the next day.
In the next scene, Peter and Jan arrive at Lucy Winters’ door where Jan wants to make a big entrance. She hides around the corner and has Peter knock on the door and announce her as the new Jan Brady. For whatever reason, it appears Peter has not tried to discourage Jan’s new look and he is even willing to introduce her. When Lucy answers the door, she immediately summons Margie to the door. Margie throws herself at Peter in a way that would make most any 12-13 year old boy uneasy. After Peter announces Jan and she makes her reveal, things do not go well.
Lucy Winters was played by Pamelyn Ferdin. She had played the recurring role of “Cookie” on the short lived “Blondie” sitcom prior to this episode of the Brady Bunch. She would later enjoy recurring roles on “The Paul Lynde Show”, “Lassie” and “Space Academy”. I wonder if that northern brogue we heard on this episode continued with her other acting gigs? Pamelyn would leave acting in the 1980s to pursue a nursing career, before returning for voice work in 1999. Today she is a very outspoken animal rights activist who has even been jailed for beliefs.
Back at the Brady House, a television show that is ending has really touched Carol emotionally. She tearfully turns off the TV and asks Mike his thoughts on it. He was unaware the program had ended and was reading a book. Carol playfully chides him as it was him who wanted to watch the program in the first place. I enjoyed this scene as something similar has happened with my wife and I on more than one occasion. Jan enters wigless and hates that she wasted her money on it. She now thinks it made her look like a freak. Mike says the money might not have been wasted as she appears to have learned a valuable lesson. He even states the wig didn’t make her look like a freak, it just made her no longer look like herself. As far as lessons learned on the Brady Bunch, this may be the quickest talking to given by Mike and Carol to any of the kids. Soon, Peter enters with Lucy and Margie who apologize for hurting Jan’s feelings. They tell her how pretty her hair is and ask her to return to the party. Peter tries to stay home at this point and refuses Margie’s invite, but Mike and Carol remind him of the conversation earlier in the episode and he leaves with her.
This would be one of two Brady Bunch appearances for Karen Foulkes who portrayed Margie Ripple. These would be her only two on camera acting roles. A Google search yielded no other information for her other than a Myspace page that may or may not belong to her.
The epilogue has Alice wearing Jan’s wig. While it does look better on her, it is still crazy looking. With some negative feedback from Mike and Carol, Alice determines the wig to be a bad fit and considers shaving it and making it a shower cap. It’s a silly conclusion to a fun episode, so it fits. The scene does end with a freeze frame. While this was common on sitcoms, it was the first time I noticed it on “The Brady Bunch”.
As stated before, “Will The Real Jan Brady Please Stand Up?” is simply a fun episode with a very light lesson. Nothing in it is really questionable or subject to deeper analysis. I will use this conclusion to share an unanticipated benefit of writing this blog. Oftentimes, certain elements of an episode that warrant further research will take me down internet rabbit holes that find me reading up on people, places or things I’d have never discovered if I had not been doing research for this blog. This week’s search of “lunar dust” as a wig led to the interesting article in the below link.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-nasa-moon-dust-bag-met-20170228-story.html
This was not the first time such a find occurred. I just thought I’d share that. Please join me next week to review “The Drummer Boy”!
Here's The Story: Every Episode of The Brady Bunch Reviewed 
1. I don’t believe Marcia Wallace when she says that it’s her own hair – that was most certainly a wig.
I also see a tiny bit of Mrs Garrett in her – maybe it’s the red hair/wig.
2. We get a really good look at the kids’ bathroom – but nope, no toilet!
3. When Mike and Carol leave Peter’s room, Peter goes to sit on the bottom bunk and gives the back of his head an ALMIGHTY whack. You can really hear it. I’m surprised he didn’t flinch.
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I will have to look for Peter bonking his head! Thanks for sharing that!
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oh, that bonk is there alright!
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Alice looks like someone else when she wore that wig. That was my favorite part of the episode.
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1. It was most definitely a wig! And yeah I can see the slight resemblance!
2. Paramount wouldn’t allow the Bradies to have a toilet on set.
3. Haha he whacked his head pretty hard.
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Pamelyn Ferdin had also appeared on the 1970 TV series “The Odd Couple” several times as Felix Unger’s daughter Edna.
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Not only that, but she was also Laura Bower in the 1968 Disney live-action movie “The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band”, Lucy van Pelt in “A Boy Named Charlie Brown” and two Peanuts specials from 1969-1971 (“It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown” and “Play It Again, Charlie Brown”), Susie in the 1970 Wonderful World of Disney two-parter “Smoke”, Sally in the 1971 animated TV special adaptation of “The Cat in the Hat”, Pam in the “Curiosity Shop” episode “Special”, Precocia in the 1972 Hanna-Barbera cartoon, “The Roman Holidays”, Sally Murphy in the 1972 Hanna-Barbera cartoon, “Sealab 2020”, Louisa and Lilibit in the ABC Saturday Superstar Movie telefilm, “Oliver and the Artful Dodger”, Lucy Baker in “Lassie”, Fern Arable in the 1973 animated film adaptation of “Charlotte’s Web”, Sally Simms in the “The Paul Lynde Show”, Peggy in the “Sigmund and the Sea Monsters” episode “Puppy Love” and Klara in the 1982 Paramount/Hanna-Barbera animated film, “Heidi’s Song”. She came back in 1999 as Shelley Kelley in “Detention” and as Christmas the Horse in the 2009 TV movie, “Elf Sparkle Meets Christmas the Horse”.
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You must be quite a fan of Ms. Ferdin!
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And she appeared in the Star Trek episode “And the Children Shall Lead” along with Crain Hundley who was in the previous Brady episode “Where There’s Smoke.”
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CRAIG Hundley that is.
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Ah – STAR TREK! THAT’S where I saw her!
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Does she have that accent in other roles?
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Well, I’m not sure, but she was also in the “Star Trek” episode “And the Children Shall Lead” and Francie Nolan in the 1974 TV movie version of “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn”. Also, I do have a thought about Jan’s selection of hair. To be perfectly honest, her blonde hair or the midnight temptress is a lot better than her Little Orphan Annie-like wig. If she was to wear the Midnight Temptress at Lucy Winters’ birthday party and if the party was to go on through midnight, I guess there might be an exception for Jan to be up that late as normally she doesn’t think she will.
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She also did Lucy’s voice in “A Boy Named Charlie Brown”.
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I, too, remember Pamelyn Ferdin from Charlotte’s Web and The Odd Couple. I watched Charlotte’s Web in the theater when I was eight years old; hearing Wilbur not wanting to die put my own miseries into perspective. There was a line about Fern being affected by spending so much time on the farm with Wilbur. Many years later, I observed that she might have been affected by the vapors in that environment.
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Pamelyn Ferdin is very active on FaceBook and shares photos of shows and projects she has done with trivia about them. Very cool- I’d say as a fan of classic TV you could follow her!
I think the longer black wig would have been a better fit. Funny thing is, Eve Plumb’s own hair is beautiful!
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I am following Pamelyn now! You are right about Eve Plumb’s hair. She was a very pretty girl. She has aged well too.
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Agreed. And as to quote the episode itself:
Saleswoman (Marcia Wallace): “Listen, now don’t you think it’s a little, uh, mature?”
Jan: “Well, I’m older than I look. I’m twelve.”
Saleswoman: “That old? You carried it very well.”
Jan: “Thank you.”
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Pamlyn Ferdin was indeed in a whole lot of shows during that era. I liked her a lot, thought she was very pretty.
Since some folks have mentioned a number of roles she played, I thought I’d pass along info about a role she tried out for but DIDN’T get.
Ferdin tried out for the role of Regan in “The Exorcist”. She did not get the part of course, basically because the casting director felt that she was already too well known for the roles she had played over the years. Another well known child actress that auditioned for the part of Regan was Annisa Jones, who played “Buffy” on “Family Affair”. She obviously did not get the part either, for basically the same reason. The director wanted a relative unknown for the role.
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I, too, always thought that Pamelyn Ferdin was cute, especially as she got “older,” as when she appeared in an episode of the Saturday morning series Shazam!
I always thought that the name of the girl who liked Peter was named Margie Whipple, rather that Ripple. IMDb says Margie Rimple, which I’m fairly sure is incorrect.
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In this episode, when Petey fakes sick, and Mike and Xarol say they’ll call the doctor, like they did in the Today I am a freshmen episode when Marcia faked sick, if they really knew they were faking, and using the call the doctor ruse to see if they really were faking.
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Was that supposed to be Robin Hood or William Tell on the cover of NOW magazine?
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I’ve always liked this episode. Jan’s wig is parodied to even greater effect in “The Brady Bunch Movie” when she makes her debut at the prom as “The new Jan Brady” and the wig is enormous–at least 3 feet wide.
What never made sense to me was why Lucy would put Marcia’s name on the invitation instead of Jan’s. If you were inviting one of your friends to your birthday, how would you accidentally put her older sister’s name on the envelope?
One of my favorite scenes aside from the “Midnight Temptress” scene is when Jan is putting on her wig in the bathroom.
JAN: What do you think?
MARCIA: Jan, I think it (the wig) looks awful.
JAN: Who asked for your opinion?
I also noticed that Susan Olsen’s hair seemed to be much darker and even had a red tint in this episode. Not sure if she dyed her hair that week, or perhaps it was the lighting?
Finally, I always laugh when Peter arrives at the party, only to have Lucy summon Margie Whipple. “Hi Peter,” she says in a moony (great word!) way, as she grabs his arm. I don’t blame her, I always thought Peter was kind of cute.
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Kayla,
I never put together the huge wig in the parody movie with this episode. 🤔
Thanks for making me appreciate the films even more now. 🙂
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I always thought it was ironic that Margie was much more funny looking than Jan, even in the wig.
Pamelyn Ferdin said in the DVD extra for Family Affair (Kathy “Cissy” Garver was hosting a discussion for former child actors) that she did not like show biz. And her mother was a stereotypical mother that pushed and pushed her into acting. She said when she turned 18 she told her mother she was quitting acting and going to use her money from acting to go to college and become a nurse.
She then said, her mother yelled at, and then said “I think I’m the only person in the world who has a mother that god mad because I WANTED to go to college.”
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I thought it wad weird that Peter was invited to the party. At that age, at least back then, boys and girls stayed pretty separate. Did other boys gather at the door when they were all looking at Jan, or was Peter the only boy invited? Maybe for Margie’s benefit?
I also never had to spend my allowance on birthday presents for my friends. That was on my Mom’s tab!
I was really surprised that Mike and Carol allowed Jan to go to the party like that, a. Because they must have known she would make a fool out of herself, and b. Because she would be hijacking the attention from the birthday girl.
I thought Alice looked great with that hair color!
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Good points, Snarla.
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Fun blog.
It’s definitely Margie Whipple, not Ripple. Karen Foulkes played a similar character named Muriel in a later episode. Why they didn’t have her just play Margie again doesn’t make sense.
Re: Cindy’s hair. During the second season, the producers spent a lot of time dying Carol and Cindy’s hair to get a match. So you’ll see the color varying quite a bit from episode to episode. Finally Susan Olson complained to the producers that her hair was falling out from all the dying, and they stopped it.
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Hands down my favorite episode ever. Everything about it just clicks for me—the writing, the acting, the interconnected main Jan story and minor Peter story, the lesson, everything works here. I’ve been amused at your commentary and that of other posters about Eve Plumb’s acting in other posts, where it seems the consensus is that she was one of the better actors in the cast, because my friends and I always felt that Eve was way too hammy, and over-acted too much—I especially hate the “locket” episode in this regard. But here Eve totally nails it in every scene. Her scene with Marcia Wallace isn’t just the best scene in the episode or even Season Two, to me it’s hands down the best scene of the entire series. Every joke, from mistaking Marcia Wallace’s hair for a wig, to trying to try on a purse as a wig, to her “Midnight Temptress” comment and her not staying up that late, is terrific.
I also love the reactions of the other children to Jan’s wig, because they were so realistic, from Marcia’s big sisterly concern (which Maureen really sold) to Cindy’s seeming horror, to the insulting teasing by Greg and Bobby—these are all exactly how kids of those ages would react to this. Every kid nails it and this was as realistic as writing on TBB would ever be. One of my other favorite exchanges is when Jan asks, “So what do you think?, and Marcia says, in the most serious, sober voice imaginable, “Jan, I think it looks awful”, to which Jan replies, “Who asked you?” That always makes me laugh, and I’ve probably seen this episode twenty or thirty times over my life.
I also felt that the scene at Lucy’s party was well done. Jan’s desire to make a bold entrance, Peter’s awkward introduction of her, the ridicule and derision of the other kids, and then Jan’s devastation at their reaction, were all well played. I also felt that the resolution with Lucy and Margy trying to get Jan to see their side and return to the party, was well done and touching. Margy was a bit wooden in the delivery of her line, but Lucy’s were very heartfelt and sincere.
How the Brady parents dealt with Peter’s mystery ailment earlier in the episode was very realistic too; this has happened with my own son several times, where he’s been “too sick” to go to school, but has still wanted to have a play date or sleepover. Nope, if you’re too sick for the unfun stuff, you’re too sick for the fun stuff. And he’s suddenly fine! It’s a miracle!!!
All in all a piece of terrific, entertaining, funny television.
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I agree with pretty much everything you say here, Dave. I do think Eve is a good actress on the show and excels in her emotional scenes. But she’s really hammy in the locket episode, one of my least favorite of the series.
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Sorry, a few more thoughts on this episode. First of all, this information is assuredly out there on other Brady Bunch fan/trivia sites, but the establishing shot of the department store where Marcia Wallace works is of the May Company Wilshire, at the corner of Fairfax and Wilshire Blvd. in mid-city Los Angeles. It is one of the premier examples of so-called Streamline Moderne architecture from the 1930’s and happily the building, while not still a department store, is still there today! LA County Museum of Art purchased it a while back as an additional/temporary exhibition space, and it’s currently being remodeled (but keeping it’s iconic exterior) to be the future home of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. As I understand, it was also used as the establishing shot for the episode in which Jan screws up the silver platter anniversary gift.
One thing about Lucy’s invitation. In the 1970’s, my grandparents would often send me birthday cards and such addressed “Joe Smith, c/o (care of) the Smith family” or something like that. My understanding was that only the adults in the family were listed on the official post office address, and mail sent to kids often contained some link to the actual adults or family name to ensure it was delivered. Interesting that Lucy didn’t do that.
You always give me a chuckle when, upon seeing a member of the Brady household far from home without a car, conjecture that southern California must have been some transit utopia in the early 70’s for them to have taken the bus dozens of miles away. It very obviously wasn’t, and indeed, in the 1960’s the legendary “Red Car” rail transit lines that connected vast swaths of southern California, which had been losing ownership to cars since the post-war period, had been dismantled, supposedly at the behest of the oil, rubber, steel, and auto industries so they could sell more cars. But while it was never specified where the Bradys lived, if they did indeed live in Studio City where the exterior shots of their house were filmed, there actually is a fairly straight shot bus line that currently runs up and over Laurel Canyon to Fairfax and 6th that only takes an hour. I have no idea if there was a bus line in the early 70’s that ran this route but it’s at least possible.
I have to comment yet again on Marcia’s “Jan, I think it looks awful.” It is a common sitcom trope that a character will debut some outlandish new look, and ask everyone for their opinion, and the other characters will dissemble and stutter and eventually say something innocuous like “Well, it’s certainly . . . different” in an effort to spare the person’s feelings, and the person rarely seems to pick up that the others are simply being polite. Not here. Marcia gives it to Jan straight with no sugar-coating. While I personally never want to hurt anyone’s feelings, sometimes brutal honesty like this really IS the best medicine.
Even back in the 1970’s in syndication I found the use of the words “kook” and “freak” by Marcia and Jan, respectively, to describe Jan’s new wigged-out look as interesting. By the late 70’s/early 80’s, “kook” was well-established southern California surfer lingo for someone who didn’t surf and/or was a terrible surfer (it was eventually replaced by “Gilligan”, referencing another classic sitcom). I know it likely just had a prior association as someone who was strange or unusual, but I definitely do not recall it being in regular usage, particularly on family TV, where writers often shied away from insults like this that might have additional freighted meanings. “Freak” obviously had a long history of describing individuals with deformities who often “performed” at circuses, where slack-jawed yokels would pay to stare and yell insults at them, but by the late 60’s many people in the extreme fringe of the hippie movement had co-opted the word. I was never entirely sure which of these meanings Jan was after when she described herself thus; likely the former but it was still an interesting word to use and again I don’t recall it being in widespread use in the 70’s on TV until much later.
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I have never seen that scene with Carol crying and Mike reading the book. Usually the network would just cut that and you just see Mike and Carol kissing as Jan comes home.
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That wig truly did look awful, especially with the bad perm look that it had. I cannot for the life of me figure out why Jan thought that it would look attractive on her. Also, Jan is a blonde with a fair to lighter complexion, blonde eyebrows and eyelashes, so an ebony black head of hair or wig…looks downright terrible as well as somewhat goth looking. I have never liked it when a natural blonde would dye their hair a dramatically dark shade as it just looks fake.
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I can definitely relate to Jan. I am a middle sister and we all had brown hair. I felt that I was in the shadow of both sisters. Relatives could never remember my name and call me by my sister’s name. They would ask if I was the one who played the piano or if I was the one with two kids. I felt like I was nothing.
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I’m a middle child myself. I was a bit more bold socially than my siblings and that worked to my benefit.
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Bobby’s giggling while being tickled by Peter was adorable and very infectious. I found myself laughing after a few seconds. Homer Simpson’s exaggerated laughs have the same effect on me too.
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I also liked the set-up. Greg is fixing a radio and asks Bobby to hand him pliers. Bobby hands him a wrench (“Does this look like pliers?”). Peter enters and prepares to wrap the birthday gift for Lucy. Bobby starts giggling. Greg says, “That’s right, the party’s tonight. That’ll be a lot of fun.” Bobby giggles and responds, “Yeah… FUN!”. Greg explains that Bobby has got the giggles, but Peter knows something’s up.
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Jan easily had the best hair of any Brady (including Alice), and since she was shown to love practical jokes, it was believable that Lucy and Margie thought it had to be one of her jokes.
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Here are ten things I liked about this episode:
1. Jan wears a wig to distinguish herself from her peers.
2. “I figured that’s how much you spent on my birthday present, so I don’t want to embarrass her by getting her something good.” – Peter
3. Jan gets invited to a party.
4. “Jan, a person doesn’t make herself different by putting on a wig.” – Mike
5. Alice mumbling gibberish.
6. Peter pretending to be sick to avoid going to the party.
7. Peter knows quite a bit about money.
8. Everybody’s reactions to Jan’s wig.
9. “She looks like she’s got a skunk sleeping on top of her head.” – Bobby
10. Jan’s friends comfort her in the end.
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Blogger Mike,
I guess I’ve seen this, but until I watched it just now after your “Dragging the Classics” column, it was like watching a “lost” ep.
My lol line was Jan dismissing the “Midnight Temptress” wig because she’s not allowed to stay up that late. 😄
Your line about the wig looking like a brunette version of Little Orphan Annie’s look, made me chuckle as well. When I think of LOA’s hair, I think of Mike Lookinland’s red bozo perm on the BB Variety Hour.
Can you provide the name of the ep where Karen Foulkes plays a similar character, named Muriel? I think the comments concluded that (in the Bradyverse), it was Margie’s twin sister, while you (or another commenter) surmised that writers would get some money when the character they created would appear on subsequent shows. In order to avoid that cost, they brought back the same actress, playing a similar character with a similar name.
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Karen Foulkes was also in “The Show Must Go On”. She plays Muriel instead of Margie. Her adoration of Peter prompts her mom to buy tickets to her the show.
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Jan should have stuck with Midnight Temptress. It made her look older and sophisticated.
If Bobby had any brains, he could have not spilled the beans about Margie being at the party when Peter tickled him. When Peter asked Bobby what he was giggling at, Bobby could have been smart and just said, “I’m thinking about how funny it will be when Jan shows up to the party with that goofy wig.”
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Also, in a previous episode, I think Clark Tyson would have went really ape s—-, if Jan game out sporting the Midnight Temptress wig along with her white dress.
Funny, in this episode, Mike and Carol frowned on Jan trying to change her appearance and re-invent herself, but earlier had no problem glamouring up Jan in the white dress for Clark and helping Marcia become a bug expert to attract Harvey Klinger.
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Very good observation Scot regarding the previous episodes. I didn’t like how they had Jan alter her ways just to catch Clark’s eye.
I edited your comment as we try to keep this blog at least PG rated as many of readers are from the era when entertainment was a bit more censored for language.
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I can only assume Jan chose the ugly wig because she wanted to make a complete 180º change from her beautiful hair.
I wonder if the children would’ve laughed if they hadn’t known Jan and Peter brought her as a guest.
Whether on not Marcia Wallace had on a wig in this episode I don’t know. But to share some trivia for another show “Square Pegs.” Claudette Wells who played LaDonna got the part and was told when rehearsals started she’d have to have her hair in braids (with beads) “a la” Bo Derek style. So she said she spend a lot of money to get it done and it hurt a lot as the braiding was tight. She asked on the first day if her character could lose the braids and the producer said, “Why didn’t you just buy a wig.” So she did and what you’re seeing on LaDonna is a wig for series run.
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I watched that show via reruns in the early 2000s. It should’ve lasted longer than it did.
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Jan is such an iconic character on the Brady Bunch, I felt like it would be fitting for me to review another Jan-centered episode. In this episode, she goes through an identity crisis… always being compared to her big sister Marcia or her little sister Cindy. I really loved the way Jan reinvented herself. Not to mention that the title of this episode was most likely the inspiration for one of the most iconic Eminem songs. Here are my thoughts:
1. Jan comes home from school and Marcia hands her an invitation to her friend’s birthday party. Jan notices that the invitation is already opened, because it had Marcia’s name on the address instead of Jan’s! Being the forgetful middle child in the family, Jan addresses how the envelope was misaddressed and that folks are forgetting who she is.
2. The address to the Brady house is 4222 Clinton Way, but the real address to the Brady house is 11222 Dilling Street. The six Brady children teamed up with HGTV to make the dream come to fruition! This took nearly six months to complete, and a lot of construction was involved. It was originally a split-level two-story house that gradually transformed into a two-story house. I’ve seen photographs of the Brady Bunch house and it looks precisely like the home on the TV show. They really did their homework and it’s very impressive. I would love to go out to Los Angeles and check out the Brady Bunch house! One day someone should turn the Brady home into an Airbnb.
3. Jan rummages through a magazine and finds a tactic to reinvent herself! She sees a woman modeling a wig and has a eureka moment.
4. The next scene shows Mike in his den working on a design because he’s an architect and wants to design iconic buildings that could change civilization for the better! Also, the show wants to emphasize Mike’s architectural career every chance they can, despite it not being the most pertinent aspect of the Brady Bunch! Peter comes in and asks Mike for an advancement on his allowance because he was also invited to Lucy’s birthday party and needs to get her a present. It’s hilarious how you thought Peter admitting that he bought Lucy a jump rope. He and Bobby almost buy one for the square dance in “Jan the Only Child.”
5. Jan goes down to the wig store so she can reinvent herself and evade the stigma of being the forgotten middle Brady girl. The saleswoman was played by Marcia Wallace, who voiced Edna Krabappel on The Simpsons. Wallace made a second appearance in “Getting Davy Jones.” She was super tall for a female celebrity. I would honestly buy the saleswoman’s hair being an actual wig, but that wavy red hair is all natural. We get a genuinely hilarious conversation between Jan and the saleswoman.
6. After trying on multiple wigs and almost grabbing a handbag (she had no idea it was a wig), Jan finally finds a black curly wig that she plans on wearing to Lucy’s party! One of my sorority sisters wore a black wig on sorority bid day in August 2014. She grew up watching The Brady Bunch, is a big fan of the show and always related to Jan because she was the middle child in her family.
7. The next scenes show Jan sporting her new wig. Marcia and Cindy think she looks silly wearing that wig. I don’t have a problem with Jan wearing a black curly wig, but she could’ve found better ways to reinvent herself. She could’ve gotten a shorter haircut, dyed her hair brown, or gotten a perm. After all, this show was filmed in the ’70s and an idyllic representation of the greatest decade of the 20th century.
8. I liked the scenes with Greg and Bobby. They are barely in this episode, but it was nice to see them share scenes together! Greg would usually share scenes with Peter! They talk about how the nerdy redhaired girl, Margie Whipple, will attend Lucy’s party and hesitate to tell Peter because she’s infatuated with him. When Jan shows Mike, Carol, Alice, Greg and Bobby the wig she bought, they glare at her with disapproval. Greg and Bobby mock Jan for wearing a ridiculous black wig. Greg compares Jan to Davy Crockett and Bobby gives the implication that there’s a skunk on her head. Despite all this, Jan still plans on wearing the wig to Lucy’s birthday party.
9. Let’s take a moment and appreciate Peter for accepting Jan’s new look when most of her family members mocked her. Needless to say, Margie is excited to see Peter and tries to be affectionate towards him, much to Peter’s dismay.
10. Peter introduces the “new Jan Brady” and she comes out from the bushes wearing a curly black wig. Lucy and her friends openly insult Jan and believe that Jan was pranking them. I absolutely loved all the girls’ facial expressions. I doubt Lucy and her friends would treat Jan any better if she chose a different wig.
11. Jan comes home and realizes that she made a fool of herself by sporting a silly wig and how Lucy and her friends made fun of her for wearing it. Yes, this was definitely one of the quickest lesson discussions between Jan and her parents in the entire series. Peter comes home with Margie and Lucy, and the two girls apologize to Jan for openly insulting her. However, there is a silver lining throughout this scene: Margie and Lucy both praise Jan’s beautiful blonde hair while simultaneously displaying jealousy.
12. I remember seeing Margie in a subsequent Brady Bunch episode… She plays the daughter of a woman who is offered to buy tickets to the Westdale High family night frolics. I love how apathetic Peter is towards Margie!
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