# Did the Brady Bunch house living room have a conversation pit or not? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 4, 2016, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137 "2016-01-04T07:05:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/1 "2016-01-04T07:05:14Z")
This is a [conversation pit](http://twistedsifter.com/2014/09/conversation-pits-worth-talking-about/). I do not recall, did the Brady Bunch house layout ever have a variation on this or not? ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/2 "2016-01-04T07:17:43Z")
Those are some nice pits but I don’t think the Brady’s had anything like that. They did have a sunken living room, if I remember correctly. You had to go down a few steps to enter the living room. If you lived on The Grand Concourse in Tremont in The Bronx if you were lucky you tenement apartment could have a sunken living room and parquet floors. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/3 "2016-01-04T07:40:40Z")
three steps down. Thats sunk pretty deep. Always thought they had a pretty house. [![](http://wwwimage.cbsstatic.com/base/files/styles/596xh/public/01._the_brady_bunch.jpg) ](http://wwwimage.cbsstatic.com/base/files/styles/596xh/public/01._the_brady_bunch.jpg) [![](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/53/dd/aa/53ddaab193b28ef48772547f2cfe84bd.jpg) ](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/53/dd/aa/53ddaab193b28ef48772547f2cfe84bd.jpg) here its only one step down. the set seemed to change over time. [![](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/58/aa/a2/58aaa2625bdfbf6dd63c515a66655ad9.jpg) ](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/58/aa/a2/58aaa2625bdfbf6dd63c515a66655ad9.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/4 "2016-01-04T07:46:20Z")
They did [not](https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-WvHGj5vZnSY/TY0R3pVhInI/AAAAAAAAAiY/T8LnTJs-z5I/s1600/bradylivingroom1.jpg). (Same scene aceplace linked to, but a different angle and on a rehearsal day) Check [this real house out](http://retrorenovation.com/2013/07/16/time-capsule-house-1975-kansa/). It’s the Bradiest thing I’ve ever seen! ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/5 "2016-01-04T07:51:02Z")
> [@astro](#): > > This is a [conversation pit](http://twistedsifter.com/2014/09/conversation-pits-worth-talking-about/). #16 in that link is rather odd. Does the platform with the bed raise and lower? Nice piece of engineering, cantilevered out like that. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/6 "2016-01-04T07:52:52Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > three steps down. Thats sunk pretty deep. Always thought they had a pretty house. > [http://wwwimage.cbsstatic.com/base/files/styles/596xh/public/01.\_the\_brady\_bunch.jpg](http://wwwimage.cbsstatic.com/base/files/styles/596xh/public/01._the_brady_bunch.jpg) > [https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/53/dd/aa/53ddaab193b28ef48772547f2cfe84bd.jpg](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/53/dd/aa/53ddaab193b28ef48772547f2cfe84bd.jpg) > > here its only one step down. the set seemed to change over time. > [https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/58/aa/a2/58aaa2625bdfbf6dd63c515a66655ad9.jpg](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/58/aa/a2/58aaa2625bdfbf6dd63c515a66655ad9.jpg) I don’t think it changed over time, those are just different angles. It’s three steps up to the base of the staircase (and the door to Mike’s den), but only one step up to the front door. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/7 "2016-01-04T08:15:31Z")
Hmmm, it seems that many have not had the pleasure of a sunken living room. [An example of a Bronx apartment sunken living room.](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/uw67RsT498U/maxresdefault.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/8 "2016-01-04T08:28:52Z")
I’m way too distracted by how pretty and opulent all those pictures linked in the OP are to actually think about the Brady Bunch. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/9 "2016-01-04T09:13:49Z")
Firepit No. 11 in the OP’s link is from Johnny Carson’s former home in Malibu. It isn’t clear whether that’s the way it looked when he lived there or whether it’s a redesign for a subsequent owner, but it’s very cool either way. Cite: [http://www.zillow.com/digs/Chris-Barrett-Design-boards/Wildlife-Home/](http://www.zillow.com/digs/Chris-Barrett-Design-boards/Wildlife-Home/) ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/10 "2016-01-04T09:26:04Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > I’m way too distracted by how pretty and opulent all those pictures linked in the OP are to actually think about the Brady Bunch. Those are tragic scenes of 1970’s California poverty. It was 9 people living in one house (10 when they brought in poor cousin Oliver) and only 1 known bathroom. The kids were stacked three to a bedroom and the only breadwinner was Mike, the junior architect at a mid-sized local firm. It is a wonder that they survived at all although, if things got too bad, they could always get [Johnny Bravo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6wR7ACcMRk) to whore himself out for a few extra dollars. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/11 "2016-01-04T16:41:11Z")
Were sunken living rooms a common feature of that era? Don Draper had one on _Mad Men_. Dick Van Dyke, Mary Tyler Moore, the Odd Couple. > [@Shagnasty](#): > > Those are tragic scenes of 1970’s California poverty. It was 9 people living in one house (10 when they brought in poor cousin Oliver) and only 1 known bathroom. The kids were stacked three to a bedroom and the only breadwinner was Mike, the junior architect at a mid-sized local firm. It is a wonder that they survived at all although, if things got too bad, they could always get [Johnny Bravo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6wR7ACcMRk) to whore himself out for a few extra dollars. They had a servant, and their habits were so extravagant that tradespeople like the butcher would come to their door. You didn’t see Mike and Carol’s master bath with the gigantic shower and Jacuzzi tub. Maybe it’s because I’ve been reading Trollope lately, but my thought is that Mrs. Brady was an heiress who came away with a substantial settlement from her first marriage. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/12 "2016-01-04T16:44:55Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > Those are tragic scenes of 1970’s California poverty. It was 9 people living in one house (10 when they brought in poor cousin Oliver) and only 1 known bathroom. The kids were stacked three to a bedroom and the only breadwinner was Mike, the junior architect at a mid-sized local firm. It is a wonder that they survived at all although, if things got too bad, they could always get [Johnny Bravo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6wR7ACcMRk) to whore himself out for a few extra dollars. That’s funny. I always suspected Mike was actually a porn star on the side to bring in extra cash. PS. The X files Brady house episode is funny as shit. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2016, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/13 "2016-01-05T08:13:27Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Were sunken living rooms a common feature of that era? Don Draper had one on _Mad Men_. Dick Van Dyke, Mary Tyler Moore, the Odd Couple. > > They had a servant, and their habits were so extravagant that tradespeople like the butcher would come to their door. You didn’t see Mike and Carol’s master bath with the gigantic shower and Jacuzzi tub. Maybe it’s because I’ve been reading Trollope lately, but my thought is that Mrs. Brady was an heiress who came away with a substantial settlement from her first marriage. Series creator Leonard Schwartz says in his book “Brady, Brady, Brady” that when he was a writer for Red Skelton in the 1950s that domestic help was cheap enough that he could afford a cleaning woman for his wife and four children. I dunno about that but housing costs were less back then ``` Of course later critically acclaimed shows like "Friends" and "Sex and the City" were famous for accurately depicting young, single people on a budget in Manhattan ``` ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2016, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/14 "2016-01-06T07:13:21Z")
I never thought of it as a sunken room, since the kitchen, dining area, and back room were on the same level. I just assumed it was a false step up to the front door and stairs, to give the appearance of a sunken living room. ---
**Author:** ![Lee\_Q](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/aeb1de/32.png) [@Lee\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lee_Q)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2016, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-brady-bunch-house-living-room-have-a-conversation-pit-or-not/742137/15 "2016-01-07T01:26:03Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > They did [not](https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-WvHGj5vZnSY/TY0R3pVhInI/AAAAAAAAAiY/T8LnTJs-z5I/s1600/bradylivingroom1.jpg). (Same scene aceplace linked to, but a different angle and on a rehearsal day) > > Check [this real house out](http://retrorenovation.com/2013/07/16/time-capsule-house-1975-kansa/). It’s the Bradiest thing I’ve ever seen! Concerning that real house, groovy! 😃 It is definitely very very Brady. I noticed something quite interesting about it besides that. The price! The article to which you linked is from 2013 and cites a listing for the house, which was up for sale at the time. The listing includes this detail: > [@](#): > > Price: $399,950 > Year Built: 1975 > Square footage: 4,184 > Beds: 4 Bed > Baths: 4 Bath But if you click on the realtor’s link and go to the page for the house today, which notes the house is now off the market, it says the estimated value is a mere $86k! A look at the property history shows that indeed it was listed for $399k in 2013 (when that article originated) but the price was droped to $285k a year later when it still hadn’t sold and eventually delisted altogether. Guess nobody wanted a Brady house, even with the orange carpet and blue his 'n hers bathroom sinks! $399k ask down to est. value of $86k. Wow! :eek: