ROBERT REED

'Robert Reed' (October 19, 1932 – May 12, 1992) was an American stage and television actor.

Contents

Biography

Career

Personal life

References

External links

Biography

Born 'John Robert Rietz, Jr.' in Highland Park, Illinois, Reed spent much of his childhood in Oklahoma and later studied Shakespeare in college, where he was a member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity.

Career

He first gained fame in the early 1960s for starring along with E.G. Marshall in the television drama series ''The Defenders'' from 1961 to 1965 and later on the sitcom ''The Brady Bunch'' from 1969 to 1974. After winning the role of 'Mike Brady', he later became unhappy with his part, feeling that acting in the often silly sitcom was beneath his serious Shakespearean training. Despite his discontent with the show as a whole, by most accounts he genuinely liked and was beloved as a father figure by his fellow cast members on ''The Brady Bunch''. As a result of his unhappiness with the ''Brady Bunch''’s content, Reed constantly argued with the show's creator, Sherwood Schwartz. One such argument even resulted in his being completely written out of the show's final episode. Reed was happy when the show ended, but he did return for the ''Brady Bunch Variety Hour'' and the made-for-TV movies and series that reunited the ''Brady'' cast in the years to come.
During the run of ''The Brady Bunch'', Reed also had a recurring role as ''Lt. Adam Tobias'' on the television drama ''Mannix'' from 1967 to 1975 for most of its run.
After the end of ''The Brady Bunch'' in 1974, Reed acted on the stage and made many guest star appearances on other television shows and television movies, including ''Pray for the Wildcats'' (1974). He won critical acclaim for his portrayal of a doctor who wants to undergo a sex-change operation in a two-part episode of ''Medical Center'' in 1975. Reed also appeared in ''The Boy in the Plastic Bubble'' (1976) and ''Roots'' (1977). He also guest starred on ''Wonder Woman'' (1976), playing the Falcon. Other notable guest appearances include: ''Hawaii 5-0'' (1979), ''Charlie's Angels'' (1980), ''Vega$'' (1981), and ''Murder, She Wrote'' for at least three appearances. Reed played the regular role of Dr. Adam Rose in the hospital drama ''Nurse'' during the 1981-1982 television season. In 1986, he played the role of Lloyd Kendall on the daytime soap opera ''Search for Tomorrow''.

In 1971, Reed was the defendant in ''Anglia TV v. Reed'' an important case in English contract common law.^[1]

Personal life

Like many actors of the time, Reed was secretive about his being gay.^[2] Reed was briefly married to Marilyn Rosenberg (1957-1959). The union produced one daughter, Caroline Reed, who was born 1958. Caroline had a small role in an episode of ''The Brady Bunch'' entitled, "The Slumber Caper." Her character's name was Karen and she is credited as "Carolyn Reed". This episode also reunited Reed with his co-star from ''The Defenders'', ''E.G. Marshall''.
Robert Reed died in 1992 at age 59 in Pasadena, California, from AIDS-related colorectal cancer. He is buried in Skokie, Illinois.

References

1. Anglia Television Ltd. v. Reed
2.

External links

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