Architecture and set design on television shows is something that has affected my life more than it probably should have. For instance when I inspect a home for sale I compare the living area to that of the Brady Bunch's which seemed like it was a couple of hundred square feet and about thirty foot high, more like a cathedral for flared lapels than a family home. If there's ever a brick or stone feature wall I'll always think ''Pfft, I don't think Mike would've chosen that, haven't these people ever seen an Brady design before?''
On Happy Days, I feel Al always had a lot of wasted area where patrons could have been seated on the dance floor as bands weren't really playing that often, he wasn't maximising the earning potential of his establishment and it showed in his general attitude to his customers and somewhat spoiled the otherwise chirpy vibe of the show for me.
One of the shows that were more realistic in their sets was Blossom. I always felt the Blossom house seemed about right for a single parent who was a musician, it was small enough to be intimate whilst providing plenty of hiding spots for the hard drugs we all know that those showbizzy types go in for.
Family Ties is easily my favorite for set design. The spaces were just the right size, tasteful and elegantly decorated providing for a high standard of finish. It was noticeably always fairly dimly lit which has really influenced me in my lighting choices. I mainly have lamps on dimmer switches which I've marked so they remain in what I call the ''Keaton Zone''.
Drop me line if you have any more interest? I'd be happy to mail out some swatches and colour suggestions I've collected from the Alf and Rockford Files sets, they will certainly never go out of fashion, quality never does.
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