This article appeared in oklaugh.com and has been published here with permission.
We fell in love with the Partridge family when they won us over with their voices and their comical ways.
It was a series in the 70’s that cannot be forgotten, but over 40 years later, we wonder where they are now.
With some familiar faces still gracing our screens, we may have forgotten their one time appearance when they were fortunate to star alongside the singing family.
Names such as Jodie Foster, Dick Clark, and David Cassidy were all famous faces who continued a career in the entertainment business.
Yet, we wonder what happened to the other main characters who played the talented Partridge family. While David Cassidy was amongst them, having played the role as eldest son, Keith, his siblings were also a familiar face during the four years the show was on air.
Shirley Jones as Shirley Partridge | Then
Shirley Partridge was the widowed mother of five children on the series. Jones co-starred alongside her real-life stepson, David Cassidy, who played her eldest son, Keith, for the four years that the show was on the air.
Shirley also got a number one hit with her single from the show titled, “I Think I Love You.” Having started their careers at a young age, it would be expected that this was just the beginning for many.
Shirley Jones | Now
Shirley was married to Jack Cassidy with whom she had three sons with, but also became the stepmother of his son, David. While starring on The Partridge Family together, Shirley and David formed a close bond and even co-starred alongside one another in more works.
Shirley has since appeared on Days of Our Lives and General Hospital, while also appearing in musicals, to which her songs appeared on a “Then & Now” album in 2008 which featured songs from Jones’ musical career.
Suzanne Crough As Tracy Partridge | Then
Suzanne was best known for being an American child star having played the youngest Partridge sibling, Tracy. Being cast for the role at the tender age of seven-years-old, her role in the musical family was to play the tambourine while starring on The Partridge Family.
Having had other TV movie roles and guest appearances on television shows following the end of the series, her last credited on-screen role was playing Kate in Children of Divorce in 1980.
Suzanne Crough | Now
When Suzanne appeared on a reunion interview on The Today Show with her former co-stars on The Partridge Family in March 2010, she stated that she was a manager at an OfficeMax in Bullhead City, Arizona.
Following her time on the show, she also graduated from Los Angeles Pierce College and got married in July 1985 to William Condray, with whom she shares two daughters.
Crough sadly passed away on April 27, 2015, at the age of 52 due to a rare form of cardiomyopathy.
Susan Olsen: Then
Susan Olsen played the role of Cindy Brady in The Brady Bunch. The youngest member of the Brady family, Cindy was a naïve but occasionally precocious little girl that had a pronounced lisp.
She was often seen sporting two ponytails throughout the show, that is until she let her hair down in season five’s “The Driver’s Seat.”
Cindy enjoyed snooping and sharing secrets she discovered so the family had to help her correct her habit of tattling.
Susan Olsen: Now
Post The Brady Bunch, Susan was appointed as a spokesperson for Sindy doll. Apparently, the makers of the doll wanted to leverage her Cindy image from The Brady Bunch. Susan also appeared in a few of The Brady Bunch specials.
In 2009, she released her coffee table book, Love to Love You Brady’s: The Bizarre Story of the Brady Bunch Variety Hour. She was also a part of the 2021 special episode, Dragging the Classics: The Brady Bunch.
Ann B. Davis: Then
Ann B. Davis played the role of Alice Nelson in The Brady Bunch. Alice is a full-time house maid for the Brady family but is treated as family.
In the show, she has an ongoing relationship with Sam the butcher — whom she ends up marrying. Alice is known for her dry wit and sports her sky blue uniform in most of the episodes.
Ann B Davis: Now
Post The Brady Bunch, Ann went on to other Brady Bunch spinoffs such as The Brady Girls Get Married, The Brady Bunch Variety Hour, A Very Brady Christmas, and The Bradys.
She also appeared in other projects some of which include Hi Honey, I’m Home, Day by Day, and Something So Right. She was also heavily involved in Episcopal Community Services. The talented star sadly passed away in 2014 after experiencing a nasty fall.
Natalie Schafer: Then
Gilligan’s Island actress Natalie Schafer was one of the guest stars to appear in The Brady Bunch. Schafer was known for playing high-class women, and her character in this show was no different.
She made an appearance as Penelope Fletcher in season five of the show. Fletcher is Mike Brady’s demanding client who is charmed by Cindy’s spontaneous dance moves.
Natalie Schafer: Now
Post her appearance in The Brady Bunch, Natalie Schafer starred and appeared in several different shows including The Love Boat, I’m Dangerous Tonight, Matt Houston, Simon & Simon, Crazy Like a Fox, Gilligan’s Island, and more.
Natalie was also a part of the television spinoff, Gilligan’s Planet. At the age of 90, Schafer passed away in Beverly Hills, California.
Matt LeBlanc (Vinnie Verducci) – Then
Everyone who sees this face will recognize him as Joey Tribbiani from Friends but before Matt LeBlanc landed that breakthrough role, he was a struggling actor trying to break into Hollywood.
So, when he starred as Vinnie Verducci on Married… With Children, the role helped him get his name out there. During the early ‘90s, Matt also starred in two short-lived spin-offs Top of the Heap, and Vinnie & Bobby.
Matt LeBlanc (Vinnie Verducci) – Now
After his short time on Married… With Children, Matt was offered the role that changed his life forever – playing the simpleminded but adored Joey on Friends. He went on to play this character for 12 years and the sitcom is still considered one of the most successful to date.
Matt even landed his own spin-off show from it, entitled Joey, but it was cancelled after just two season. LeBlanc’s career didn’t really pick up until he starred as a fictionalized version of himself on the hit show Episodes, a role that would win him a Golden Globe Award and propel him back into the mainstream.
Joey Lauren Adams (Mona Mullins/Cousin Effie/Janie) – Then
You may recognize Joey Lauren Adams as the leading lady in Kevin Smith’s Chasing Amy, but before she got her breakout role, she played teenage Mona Mullins on Married… With Children.
Adams started her acting career in 1977 when she played a small role in Exorcist II: The Heretic. Then in 1991, she appeared in the 100th episode of Married… With Children entitled “Top of the Heap.”
Joey Lauren Adams (Mona Mullins/Cousin Effie/Janie) – Now
Her role as Mona Mullins on Married… With Children, led to a part in the show Vinnie & Bobby, a spinoff of Top of the Heap (where she also played Mona), which was itself a spinoff of MWC. Adams made two more appearances on the show as Cousin Effie in season six and Janie in season seven.
Then in 1997, Joey landed the role as Alyssa Jones on Chasing Amy, for which she later was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress. Then in 2019, she reprised her role in kevin Smith’s comedy film Jay and Silent Bob Reboot.
Traci Lords (T.C./Vanessa Van Pelt) – Then
Traci Lords made her debut in the film industry when she landed the leading role in the 1988 remake of the sci-fi film Not of This Earth. She then went on to star alongside Johnny Depp in the teen comedy Cry-Baby in 1990.
Soon after, she got her first role on Married…With Children in season four, playing a dental assistant. Lords then returned to the series in season six, as a character in Al’s imagination.
Traci Lords (T.C./Vanessa Van Pelt) – Now
Lords has played minor roles in many popular TV series including Roseanne, Melrose Place, Gilmore Girls, and Will & Grace. She also appeared in the films Skinner, Virtuosity, and Blade.
Her more recent roles include playing Vanessa on Eastsiders for eight episodes and she featured in the thriller film The Farm which is set to release this year. Lords also has a thriving career in music and has released an album entitled 1000 Fires and one E.P.
