91 Fun Facts About The Partridge Family

On which network did The Partridge Family air from 1970 to 1974?

ABC aired The Partridge Family for 96 episodes from September 1970 to March 1974, scheduling it on Friday nights after The Brady Bunch.

Who created The Partridge Family?

Bernard Slade created The Partridge Family for Screen Gems in 1970; he later wrote the Broadway hit Same Time, Next Year (1975).

The show was loosely based on which real-life family band?

The Cowsills, a Newport, Rhode Island family band, inspired the show; they charted with 'The Rain, the Park & Other Things' (1967) and 'Hair' (1969).

Why did the real family who inspired the show turn down the chance to play themselves?

The Cowsills declined because their mother was to be replaced by an actress: Screen Gems planned in 1969 to recast Barbara Cowsill with a professional, and the family walked away.

Who played the family's widowed mother?

Shirley Jones, star of the film musicals Oklahoma! and Carousel, played widowed mother Shirley Partridge and was the first cast member hired.

Who played eldest son Keith Partridge?

David Cassidy played Keith Partridge and sang lead on the group's records; the role made him the biggest teen idol of the early 1970s.

What was the real-life relationship between the actors who played Shirley and Keith?

They were stepmother and stepson: Shirley Jones married David Cassidy's father, Jack Cassidy, in 1956, making her sons Shaun, Patrick and Ryan his half-brothers.

Who played Laurie Partridge?

Susan Dey, a 17-year-old model with no acting experience, was cast as Laurie Partridge in 1970 and stayed for all four seasons.

Danny Bonaduce's wisecracking Danny Partridge played which instrument in the band?

Danny Partridge, the wisecracking middle son played by Danny Bonaduce, was the family band's bass guitar player.

Which character was played by two different actors, Jeremy Gelbwaks and then Brian Forster?

Chris Partridge, the family drummer, was played by Jeremy Gelbwaks in season one and recast with Brian Forster from season two onward.

Brian Forster, the show's second Chris, is a great-great-great-grandson of which author?

Brian Forster is a great-great-great-grandson of Charles Dickens; he is also the stepson of actor Whit Bissell and later raced cars in northern California.

Suzanne Crough's Tracy, the youngest Partridge, mainly played which instrument?

Tracy Partridge, played by Suzanne Crough, shook a tambourine and sang backup while her older siblings handled the guitars, keyboards and drums.

What was the name of the family's put-upon manager, played by Dave Madden?

Reuben Kincaid, the band's harried manager, was played by Dave Madden, who had first gained notice as the confetti-throwing sad sack on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.

Dave Madden was born in which country?

Dave Madden was born in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada, in 1931 and raised in Terre Haute, Indiana; he later played coach Earl Hicks on Alice.

The Partridges lived in which fictional California town?

The Partridges lived in the fictional San Pueblo, California; in the pilot the kids persuade their widowed mother to join their garage band.

What was Shirley Partridge's job before joining the band?

Shirley Partridge worked as a bank teller before her five kids talked her into singing with their garage band in the pilot.

The family's tour bus was painted in patterns inspired by which artist?

The bus's blocks of primary colour were inspired by Piet Mondrian's geometric paintings; the vehicle itself was a repainted 1957 Chevrolet.

What kind of vehicle was the Partridge Family bus originally?

The Partridge bus was a 1957 Chevrolet Series 6800 Superior school bus, bought used and repainted in Mondrian-style colour blocks for the show.

Unlike The Monkees, how many cast members played instruments on the records or on the show?

None of the cast played an instrument on the records, where Los Angeles session players did the work; on screen the family mimed, and only Jones and Cassidy sang.

Which famous group of Los Angeles session musicians played the instruments on Partridge Family records?

The Wrecking Crew, the Los Angeles session players behind Phil Spector and Beach Boys hits, played the instruments, while the Ron Hicklin Singers supplied backing vocals.

Who produced the music for the ongoing series after the pilot?

Wes Farrell, a Brill Building songwriter-producer, took over the Partridge Family's music from season one onward and was credited as producer on all eight studio albums.

What was the show's opening theme song from season two onward?

'Come On Get Happy' opened every episode from season two onward; the season-one theme used the same melody with different lyrics.

What was the title of the season-one theme song?

'When We're Singin'' was the season-one theme; its melody was kept and given new lyrics to become the season-two theme.

The family's smash debut single, released a month before the show premiered, was what?

'I Think I Love You' was released in August 1970, a month before the 25 September premiere, and was already climbing the Hot 100 when the pilot aired.

Who wrote the family's chart-topping debut single?

Tony Romeo wrote 'I Think I Love You'; he had earlier written 'Indian Lake' for the Cowsills, the real band that inspired the show.

How many weeks did the debut single spend at number one on the Billboard Hot 100?

'I Think I Love You' spent three weeks at number one on the Hot 100 in late November and early December 1970, and also topped the Canadian chart.

Which alternative rock band covered the Partridges' debut single in 1991?

Voice of the Beehive, an Anglo-American band fronted by sisters Tracey Bryn and Melissa Brooke Belland, cut 'I Think I Love You' for their 1991 second album Honey Lingers.

The Partridge Family Album, the first LP, peaked at what position on the Billboard 200?

The Partridge Family Album peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 and went gold in December 1970, driven by 'I Think I Love You'.

What was the name of the family dog seen in season one?

Simone, the family dog, appeared in first-season episodes and was written out of the show soon after.

In season four, four-year-old neighbour Ricky Stevens was added and did what in each episode?

Ricky Segall's Ricky Stevens sang a children's song in each season-four episode, an addition often cited as the show's Cousin Oliver moment.

For its final season, ABC moved the show from Friday to which night?

The move to 8 p.m. Saturday preceded cancellation after 96 episodes.

Which record label released the Partridge Family's singles and albums?

Bell Records, then owned by Columbia Pictures, released every Partridge Family record, starting with 'I Think I Love You' in 1970.

Bobby Sherman's guest role as songwriter Bobby Conway launched which short-lived spin-off?

Getting Together, starring Bobby Sherman and Wes Stern as struggling songwriters, spun off from the season-one finale 'A Knight in Shining Armor' and ran on ABC in 1971–72.

The 1974 Hanna-Barbera cartoon spin-off sent the family to which year?

Partridge Family 2200 A.D. aired on CBS Saturday mornings; Jones and Cassidy did not voice their characters.

The animated Partridge kids first appeared as guests on which Hanna-Barbera show?

Animated versions of the Partridge kids guested on Goober and the Ghost Chasers in 1973, and those appearances grew into the futuristic series Partridge Family 2200 A.D.

Which comedian guest-starred in the 'Soul Club' episode alongside Louis Gossett Jr.?

Richard Pryor, alongside Louis Gossett Jr., ran the Detroit soul club where the band is mistakenly booked in place of the Temptations in the 1971 episode 'Soul Club'.

The actress who played Shirley won an Academy Award for which 1960 film?

Shirley Jones won Best Supporting Actress for Elmer Gantry, playing the vengeful prostitute Lulu Bains, a sharp turn from Oklahoma! and Carousel.

Susan Dey later won a Golden Globe for playing deputy DA Grace Van Owen on which series?

Susan Dey won a Golden Globe for playing deputy district attorney Grace Van Owen on L.A. Law, the NBC legal drama that ran from 1986 to 1994.

Cassidy's first solo single, a number nine Hot 100 hit, covered which Association song?

'Cherish', David Cassidy's 1971 cover of the Association's 1966 number one, reached number nine on the Hot 100 and launched his solo career on Bell Records.

In May 1972, Cassidy tried to shed his teen-idol image with a revealing cover of which magazine?

Cassidy posed nude for an Annie Leibovitz photo on the cover of Rolling Stone in May 1972, an attempt to break from his teen-idol image.

Roughly how many were injured in the 1974 stampede at Cassidy's White City Stadium concert?

Nearly 800 fans were injured in the crush at London's White City Stadium on 26 May 1974; 14-year-old Bernadette Whelan died, and Cassidy quit touring soon after.

Which of Cassidy's half-brothers became a teen idol himself with 'Da Doo Ron Ron' and The Hardy Boys?

Shaun Cassidy, Shirley Jones's eldest son, topped the Hot 100 with 'Da Doo Ron Ron' in 1977 and starred as Joe Hardy in The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries.

The 1999 ABC TV movie about the show was subtitled 'The Partridge Family ___'?

The 1999 ABC movie Come On, Get Happy: The Partridge Family Story dramatised the making of the show, from casting through David Cassidy's rise as a teen idol.

Where did the Partridges play their first live gig in the pilot episode?

In the pilot, Reuben Kincaid books the family's first live show at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and the episode ends with their nervous debut on the casino stage.

Which country singer made an uncredited cameo in the Partridge Family pilot?

Johnny Cash made a brief, uncredited cameo in the 1970 pilot episode 'What? And Get Out of Show Business?'

Which jazz arranger who had worked with the Monkees produced the music for the pilot episode?

Shorty Rogers, the West Coast jazz trumpeter and arranger who had worked on Monkees sessions, handled the pilot's music before Wes Farrell took over the series.

The Partridge Family was the third fictional act to top the Hot 100, after the Chipmunks and whom?

The Archies' 'Sugar, Sugar' topped the Hot 100 in 1969, following the Chipmunks in 1958, before 'I Think I Love You' made the Partridges the third fictional chart-topper in 1970.

Which future Oscar winner made her first screen appearance in VH1's 2004 New Partridge Family pilot?

Emma Stone, credited as Emily Stone, played Laurie Partridge in the 2004 VH1 pilot The New Partridge Family, her first screen role; the pilot never went to series.

How many paperback mystery novels featuring the Partridge characters did Curtis Books publish?

Curtis Books published seventeen Partridge Family paperback mysteries between 1970 and 1973, alongside a Charlton Comics series and a 1971 Milton Bradley board game.

Which label released Danny Bonaduce's self-titled debut LP in 1973?

Lion Records, an MGM subsidiary, issued the 1973 LP Danny Bonaduce, whose single 'Dreamland' was a minor hit even though Bonaduce had not sung on the Partridge records.

Who served as the show's executive producer?

Bob Claver was the executive producer of The Partridge Family for all four seasons and also directed dozens of its episodes.

In 1993, David and Shaun Cassidy co-starred on Broadway in which musical?

David and Shaun Cassidy played the separated twins Mickey and Eddie in Willy Russell's Blood Brothers on Broadway in 1993, alongside Petula Clark as their mother.

How did David Cassidy's father, actor Jack Cassidy, die in December 1976?

Jack Cassidy died in an apartment fire at his West Hollywood penthouse on 12 December 1976, aged 49, after apparently falling asleep while smoking.

Which Hall of Fame catcher played a poolside waiter in 'I Left My Heart in Cincinnati'?

Johnny Bench, the Cincinnati Reds' Hall of Fame catcher, cameoed as a poolside waiter in the season-three episode shot on location at Ohio's Kings Island amusement park.

Spin-off songwriters Bobby Conway and Lionel Poindexter were modelled on which real duo?

Boyce and Hart, who wrote 'Last Train to Clarksville' for the Monkees, were the model for the pair; the spin-off Getting Together lasted just 14 episodes in a Saturday slot dominated by CBS.

In its final season the show was scheduled against Emergency! and which CBS hit?

Moved to Saturdays at 8 p.m. for 1973–74, the show faced CBS's top-rated All in the Family and NBC's Emergency!, lost much of its audience and was cancelled.

The 1977 ABC Thanksgiving reunion special paired the cast with which other sitcom's cast?

ABC's 1977 special Thanksgiving Reunion with the Partridge Family and My Three Sons brought the two casts together, though the shows shared nothing beyond single parents of large broods.

Who wrote the new lyrics that turned the season-one theme into the season-two version?

Danny Janssen wrote the 'Come On Get Happy' lyrics to Wes Farrell's existing tune, replacing Diane Hildebrand's season-one words for 'When We're Singin''.

In the 1974 cartoon, Danny owned a robotic dog named what?

Orbit, Danny's robotic dog, travelled with the band in Partridge Family 2200 A.D., alongside the alien friends Veenie and Marion.

Which member of the Monkees voiced recurring characters in the 1974 Hanna-Barbera cartoon?

Micky Dolenz voiced recurring characters including Wonderful Wayne and Spotless Sam in Partridge Family 2200 A.D., early in his voice-acting career.

Before the Partridge cartoon, Hanna-Barbera pitched CBS an update of which earlier series?

Hanna-Barbera first pitched CBS a Jetsons revival with a teenage Elroy and reporter Judy; network chief Fred Silverman wanted the Partridges instead, so the futuristic designs became Partridge Family 2200 A.D.

Who played the young Danny Bonaduce in the 1999 TV movie about the show?

Shawn Pyfrom, later Andrew Van de Kamp on Desperate Housewives, played the young Danny Bonaduce; Bonaduce himself narrated the film.

Danny Bonaduce's troubled marriage was the subject of which 2005 VH1 reality series?

Breaking Bonaduce premiered on VH1 in 2005, following Danny Bonaduce's marriage to Gretchen and his struggles with drink and drugs through on-camera therapy sessions.

Which single gave David Cassidy a UK number one in autumn 1973?

'Daydreamer', a double A-side with 'The Puppy Song', topped the UK singles chart in October 1973, Cassidy's second British number one after 'How Can I Be Sure'.

The cover of the 1971 LP Up to Date was designed in the form of what?

Up to Date's sleeve was laid out as a calendar, with the cast's real birthdays marked on the dates, playing on the album's title.

What part of 'Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Wanted' did Cassidy at first refuse to record?

Cassidy balked at the song's spoken interlude, which he found embarrassing, and had to be talked into recording it; 'Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Wanted' still reached No. 6 in 1971.

Mike Appel, co-writer of 'Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Wanted', went on to manage whom?

Mike Appel, who co-wrote 'Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Wanted' with Wes Farrell and Jim Cretecos, became Bruce Springsteen's first manager and co-produced his early albums.

The family's 1973 UK Top 10 'Walking in the Rain' revived a 1964 hit by which girl group?

The Ronettes' original 'Walking in the Rain', a 1964 Phil Spector production written by Mann, Weil and Spector, reached the US Top 30; the Partridges' 1973 cover hit No. 10 in Britain.

Whose 1965 hit 'Looking Through the Eyes of Love' became the Partridges' last US Top 40?

Gene Pitney took 'Looking Through the Eyes of Love', a Mann and Weil song, into the UK Top 10 in 1965; the Partridges' 1973 cover stalled at No. 39 at home but reached No. 9 in Britain.

The family's 1972 UK No. 3 'Breaking Up Is Hard to Do' covered whose 1962 signature song?

Neil Sedaka's 1962 original topped the Hot 100; the Partridges' 1972 cover reached No. 28 in the US and No. 3 in the UK, and Sedaka's own slow 1975 remake returned it to the Top 10.

What is the title of Danny Bonaduce's 2001 memoir?

Random Acts of Badness, Danny Bonaduce's 2001 memoir, recounts his Partridge Family years, his drug arrests and his comeback as a radio host.

The Partridges' producer co-wrote which 1965 No. 1, Ohio's official state rock song?

Wes Farrell co-wrote 'Hang On Sloopy' with Bert Berns; the McCoys' version topped the Hot 100 in 1965, and Ohio made it the official state rock song in 1985.

In 1971 the Partridge Family received a Grammy nomination in which category?

The Partridge Family was nominated for Best New Artist at the March 1971 Grammys, losing to the Carpenters in a field that also included Elton John and Anne Murray.

In which 1962 film musical did Shirley Jones star opposite Robert Preston?

Shirley Jones played librarian Marian Paroo opposite Robert Preston's con man Harold Hill in The Music Man (1962), the film of Meredith Willson's Broadway hit.

Which sitcom matriarch role did Shirley Jones turn down shortly before The Partridge Family?

Shirley Jones turned down Carol Brady on The Brady Bunch, which went to Florence Henderson; her agents warned that a hit series would end her film career.

In which year did David Cassidy die?

David Cassidy died of liver failure on 21 November 2017 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, aged 67, months after announcing he had dementia.

Jones was the only singer ever put under personal contract by which songwriting team?

Rodgers and Hammerstein made Shirley Jones the only performer ever under personal contract to them after she sang at an open call and Richard Rodgers was fetched to hear her.

Cassidy drew two sellout crowds of 56,000 in one 1972 weekend at which venue?

Cassidy played two sold-out shows to 56,000 fans each at the Houston Astrodome on one weekend in March 1972, at the height of what the press called 'Cassidymania'.

Cassidy's manager Ruth Aarons had earlier been a champion in which sport?

Ruth Aarons won the women's singles at the 1936 World Table Tennis Championships, then became a Hollywood manager whose clients included Cassidy and Shirley Jones.

Cassidy scored the first hit with which song later adopted as Barry Manilow's signature?

Cassidy's 1975 version of 'I Write the Songs', co-produced with its writer Bruce Johnston of the Beach Boys, reached No. 11 in Britain a year before Barry Manilow's US No. 1.

Which pop star sang backing vocals on Cassidy's 1985 UK hit 'The Last Kiss'?

George Michael, who called Cassidy a childhood idol, sang backing vocals on 'The Last Kiss', a UK No. 6 in 1985, and interviewed him for Ritz magazine.

In 1982, Cassidy took over the title role in which Broadway musical?

Cassidy took over the title role in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat on Broadway in 1982, a year after being replaced by Donny Osmond in a Little Johnny Jones revival before it reached Broadway.

Cassidy competed on the fourth season of which reality show in 2011?

Cassidy was the first contestant fired on the fourth season of The Celebrity Apprentice in 2011, after clashing with Richard Hatch; he filed for bankruptcy in 2015.

Dey's first film role was a passenger in which 1972 Charlton Heston hijack thriller?

Susan Dey made her film debut as a passenger in Skyjacked (1972), with Charlton Heston as the pilot of a hijacked Boeing 707; she later starred with Albert Finney in Looker.

At 1994's Spring Stampede in Chicago, Bonaduce wrestled which Brady Bunch actor?

Bonaduce beat Christopher Knight, the Brady Bunch's Peter, in a dark match at WCW's Spring Stampede in April 1994; he later TKO'd Barry Williams on Fox's Celebrity Boxing in 2002.

Which retired slugger fought Bonaduce to a majority draw in a 2009 charity bout?

José Canseco and Bonaduce fought three rounds to a majority draw in a January 2009 charity boxing match in Aston, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia.

Bonaduce hosted a morning radio show on KZOK in which city from 2011 to 2023?

Bonaduce hosted the morning show on Seattle classic-rock station KZOK 102.5 from 2011 until stepping away in 2023 after a hydrocephalus diagnosis that required brain surgery.

Bonaduce co-starred with Mark Hamill in which 1978 film about a stolen custom car?

Corvette Summer (1978), Mark Hamill's first film after Star Wars, cast Bonaduce as Kootz, classmate of Hamill's Kenny Dantley, who chases his stolen customised Stingray to Las Vegas.

Which 1955 film musical marked Shirley Jones's screen debut?

Shirley Jones made her screen debut as Laurey in Oklahoma! (1955) and followed it as Julie Jordan in Carousel (1956), both Rodgers and Hammerstein adaptations.

What pun title did Dave Madden give his memoir?

Reuben on Wry, Dave Madden's 2007 memoir, puns on his Partridge character Reuben Kincaid; Madden had taken the young Danny Bonaduce into his home during the boy's family troubles.

In a 2010 reunion interview, Suzanne Crough said she was managing what store in Arizona?

Suzanne Crough told a 2010 cast-reunion interview she was managing an OfficeMax in Bullhead City, Arizona, having long since left acting.