September 19, 2004

"Brady Residence" Featured in "The Delaware County Daily Times"

Haverford writer is a very ‘Brady lady’
MATT HASSON , Times Correspondent 09/19/2004

HAVERFORD -- Laura Nachman is a "very Brady" lady. She runs an award-winning Web site -- www.bradyresidence.com -- devoted to the popular 1970s TV sitcom "The Brady Bunch," from her Delaware County home. Baby boomers, no doubt, remember the Bradys, a blended family formed by a widow with three daughters who married a widower with three sons. Back in the ’70s, it was more acceptable to have the mom and dad widowed instead of divorced. Today, blended families are commonplace.

Alice was the nutty housekeeper, Tiger was the family dog. All of these smiling faces lived in a four-bedroom house in the Los Angeles suburbs.

The show followed the clean-cut but chaotic lives and hilarious domestic mayhem of the Brady family. Typical stories revolved around one or more childs’ daily lives - including going steady, competition for the phone, family camping trips, and wars over who was using the bathroom, and for how long.

Nachman is a "Brady" fan and expert.

Like legions of "Brady Bunch" fans around the world, Nachman is very excited about the show’s 35th anniversary, which takes place Sept. 26. On that day in 1969, the "Brady Bunch’" premiered on ABC TV. First-run episodes ran for five seasons, from 1969 to 1974, and reruns have run continuously on broadcast and cable stations since then.

The cable network, TV Land, has scheduled a 35th anniversary reunion special and 48-hour marathon of "Brady Bunch’" episodes for the weekend of Sept. 25 and 26. TV Land airs "Brady Bunch" episodes regularly.

The one-hour reunion special, "Still Brady After All These Years," is scheduled for 10 a.m. Sept. 26 (the exact date the show premiered in 1969).

The marathon is scheduled to begin at 6 a.m. Sept. 25. It will kick-off with the pilot episode, followed by the three-part episode "The Bradys in Hawaii," where "surfer-dude" Greg wears the cursed taboo idol and "wipes out."

Nachman launched www.bradyresidence.com in 1998. The site features various articles, photos and items ranging from "Brady Bunch" calendars and dolls to videos and lunchboxes.

Nachman lauded the "Brady Bunch" as a good, wholesome show that families can watch together.

"I think it’s a very simple, easy show to watch, with story lines that transfer through every generation," she said. "It has universal themes."

The "Brady Bunch" endures because every new generation of viewers can relate to the show’s characters and situations, said Nachman.

"There’s always a generation to relate to," she said. "It’s easy and safe for parents and kids to watch together. That’s a hard thing to find now."

Nachman drew a clear distinction between the "Brady Bunch" and today’s TV shows.

"Now, you’re lucky if you can find a sitcom because it’s all reality TV," she said. She attributed much of the appeal of the "Brady Bunch" to its "unreality," the almost idealized way the characters get along.

"I can see them doing a reality show," said Nachman, who visualized a show in which the grown-up actors live together, like the characters they played.

Nachman said the current TV series that’s closest to the "Brady Bunch" is "Seventh Heaven" because of its cast of children of varied ages.

The "Brady Bunch" has inspired several plays and TV shows. The off-Broadway play "Real Life Brady Bunch’" ran in the early 1990s with unknown actors playing the "Brady" characters. One cast member, Andy Richter, now appears in the Fox TV series "Quintuplets."

Also in the 1990s, there were two movies: "A Very Brady Movie" and "A Very Brady Sequel." A "Brady"-inspired TV movie ran on Fox a few years ago.

Nachman said her favorite "Brady Bunch" character is Alice, the maid, who was played by Ann B. Davis. Nachman has met actor Barry Williams, who played Greg, and Florence Henderson, who played the mother, Carol. Robert Reid, who played the father, died in 1992.

All of actors who played the Brady "kids" are still alive and in their 40s and early 50s, said Nachman. Some, particularly Williams and Henderson, are still involved in theater and TV. Davis, forever associated with housekeeping, appears in "Swiffer" TV commercials.

Williams seems to be the most devoted former cast member, said Nachman.

"He embraces ‘The Brady Bunch’ the most," she said. "He’s been in a lot of plays and TV shows."

Nachman has taken her love for TV and made it into a career. She writes a local TV column for the Bucks County Courier-Times and appears occasionally as a TV critic on the CN8 cable network’s "Your Morning Show." Her articles also run occasionally in the Delaware County Daily Times.

Nachman’s Brady Web site has been featured on Fox Channel 29 and in Philadelphia Magazine. The Web site allexpert.com named Nachman the "Brady Bunch Expert" in 2000.

Nachman also works as a Web site designer and speaks to groups and organizations about TV. She graduated from Marple Newtown High School in 1993 and earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from Temple University in 1987. She lives with her husband, Brad, daughter Macy, 10, a fourth-grader at Chatham Park Elementary School, and son Fletcher, 4, a pre-schooler.



©The Daily Times 2004



September 10, 2003


 

October 18, 2000
"Brady Residence" Makes the Front Page of "The Haverford Press"

 

Haverford Woman's Website Devoted to "The Brady Bunch"
Website allexpert.com Crowned Her The Brady Bunch Expert


Laura Harrison-Nachman with "Greg"(Barry Williams)
at the Bucks County Playhouse.

By Matt Hasson

    Havertown resident Laura Harrison-Nachman runs the most popular website devoted to the popular "Brady Bunch" TV series and its enduring legacy.

    More than 250,000 people have visited the site http://www.geocities.com/bradylady.

    Mrs. Harrison-Nachman, 35, a graduate of Marple-Newtown High School, received a bachelor's degree in communications at Temple University and is now self-employed as a website designer.

    She launched the site in 1998, when she was employed with the now defunct Donnelley Directory.

    "I wanted to do something I was interested in," she said.  "I thought this would be a great way to combine my web skills with "The Brady Bunch." It sounds like a cliche, but it's been a labor of love."

    She said it took about one month to set up the site, doing all the writing and graphics herself.

    The site has various sections, including "The Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon/Brady Style," featuring the Philadelphia-born star, "Jan vs. Marcia," on the two sisters, "Alice Uncovered," on the maid, and other features.  It's also full of photos, information on the original series, the 1996 "Brady Bunch" movie, plays, books, and other materials based on the series.

    "Whatever's been done Brady, it's there," Mrs. Harrison-Nachman said.

"Expert"

    The site has been featured on Fox Channel 29's "Good Day Philadelphia,"   "Access Magazine," "USA Today," geocities.com, and abc.com.  It was named "Geocities Landmark Site of the Month" in February 1999, and got four stars in "Access" magazine, and was abc.com's "featured website of the day," also in February 1999.

    The website allexperts.com named Mrs. Harrison-Nachman the "Brady Bunch Expert."

    Mrs. Harrison-Nachman's site has been recommended on the Internet by Florence Henderson, who played the mother, Carol, on the original series, and Barry Williams, who played Greg.  She has also received email from fans around the United States and the world, particularly Australia and Great Britain.

    She noted that many visitors to her site are less than 20 years old, born several years after the original series left prime time network TV.

    ("The Brady Bunch" has run continuously on broadcast and cable stations since 1969.  First-run episodes ran for five seasons, from 1969 to 1974).   

    Mrs. Harrison-Nachman lives with her husband, Brad, daughter Macy, 6, a kindergartner at Chatham Park Elementary School, and infant son, Fletcher.

    She noted that Macy recently met Florence Henderson during a public appearance at the Target store in Springfield.

    Mrs. Harrison-Nachman is available to do website design for other businesses, organizations, and individuals.  Her email address is:  bradyresident@aol.com.

 

 

October 2000

"Brady Residence" recognized
by Geocities

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"Brady Residence" Makes Local Paper

From "The Chatterbox" Column in the "Haverford Press"
October 4, 2000

Did you know that "Brady Residence" is smack in the middle of Havertown?  The most popular "Brady Bunch" site on the internet (250,000 + hits) is hosted by Laura Nachman of Havertown.  "Brady Residence," www.geocities.com/bradylady, has been featured on Fox-Philadelphia, "USA Today," the ABC-GO network, "Access Magazine," and more.


August 16, 2000

"Brady Residence" Enters the "Site Wars"

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July 23, 2000

"Brady Residence" Gets a Good Review in Access Magazine. 

 

BRADY RESIDENCE

Fan Laura Nachman has built an impressive shrine to the ultimate '70s TV family. The homepage features the Bradys on their staircase—click on a character for a rundown of that Brady's trials and tribulations. Here's The Story is a great primer on the show and the subsequent movies and TV specials, but aficionados will want to test their Brady knowledge with Sam's Trivia Questions or relive memories with the episode guide. Bottom line: A very Brady fan site delivers all the basics. ****

 


February 16, 1999


February 1999

"Brady Residence" named "Landmark Site" of the month by Geocities.

Here's an excerpt from their World Report that is emailed to all Geocities members.

The GeoCities World Report
Vol. 4, No. 16
Jan. 22, 1999

ONE WORLD, ONE LOGIN
A VERY BRADY LANDMARK
GREAT DEALS FOR YOU
GEOGUIDE ME TO A PRIZE!

HERE'S THE STORY OF A GROOVY LANDMARK

"Everything you ever wanted to know about America's grooviest TV family can be found at the Brady Residence -- this month's Landmark Site! Homesteader Laura Nachman addresses all the important issues here: Feminism (Brady-style), major Brady milestones, even the great Jan vs. Marcia debate. If you don't know Alice's last name, Bobby's favorite flavor of ice cream or how much Greg paid for his first car, visit the Brady Residence and find out."


January 11, 1999

"Brady Residence" named featured site of the day by Geocities.

"Attention, Brady Bunch fans!
Need to know how many times Alice
didn't wear her housekeeper's uniform?
You'll find this, a Brady timeline, a
comparison of Jan and Marcia and
much more at the Brady Residence."