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This episode of The Brady Bunch gave Christopher Knight the most teen angst
Peter's changing voice led to some behind-the-scenes grief.
The season-three episode "Dough Re Mi" is a fan-favorite episode that foreshadows the eventual singing career of the Bradys. The animated spinoff The Brady Kids usually featured at least one song an episode. The Brady Bunch Variety Hour, like many variety shows, built its foundation on song-and-dance numbers.
The family would go on to release four studio albums as a group, plus a duet album with Christopher Knight and Maureen McCormick. The last one, Chris Knight & Maureen McCormick, is particularily surprising when you learn how miserable Christopher Knight was during the filming of "Dough Re Mi."
The episode follows the Brady kids after Greg writes a song that he's sure will be a huge hit. To come up with the $150 for the recording session, the kids decide to record as "The Brady Six" and pool their allowances. The plan hits a snag when during rehearsals, something sounds...off. It turns out to be Peter, going through puberty, whose voice keeps cracking. The kids have to decide if they want to give up the recording session (and the money) or cut their own brother out of the family band.
This being The Brady Bunch, they find a solution that keeps everyone together and happy. Greg writes a new song, "Time to Change," to accomodate Peter's voice, and the Brady Six record their song.
The real behind-the-scenes filming, though, wasn't such a happy story. "I hated that episode," Knight said. "I hated doing that episode."
In a group of a bunch of musically talented kids, Knight felt singled out. "I thought they were making fun of my inability to carry a tune," Knight said. "They invented a very special way to avoid me having to sing and then point it out in, I thought, a cruel kind of way."
Knight says that despite him being upset the whole week of filming, the final product turned out well. "The episode, if you watch it as an episode, it works," he said, "but I hated it for what went on behind my little brain at the time."
It's easy to sympathize with Knight. What teenager would want their cracking voice not only televised but made the plot of an episode of one of the biggest TV shows in America?
However, part of the reason The Brady Bunch was so adored was how relatable it was, and Peter's vocal angst made for one of the sweetest musical episodes on TV.
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38 Comments
It's the American way. Blame all of your problems on your childhood.
Maybe I wasn't interested, but it seems like it didn't get a lot of repeats on the Disney show.
the one i saw was b/w (not color) and was trying to NOT get the broken voice thrown out
And wasn't there an episode where Danny's voice broke?
Besides they had little Ricky before Cousin Oliver.
And the most cornball of all episodes was not "Dough Re Mi" but the very final episode, the one with Barry's orange hair. First of all, Mike Brady didn't even appear as he was "off on a business trip." So what father goes off on a business trip when his son is graduating from high school? Actually, Robert Reed was so grossed out by the script he opted out of the episode. He couldn't stand the orange hair thing. And he was probably not the only one. I'm sure Barry Williams was not amused. And then, poof -- that was it. End of the season and the decision not to renew.