FLORENCE HENDERSON Biography - Actors and Actresses

 
 

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FLORENCE HENDERSON

Name: Florence Agnes Henderson                                                       
Born: 14 February 1934 Dale, Indiana, U.S.                                           
                                                                                     
Florence Agnes Henderson (born February 14, 1934) is an American actress and         
singer, perhaps best known for playing the role of Carol Brady in the television     
program The Brady Bunch, which ran from 1969 to 1974.                               
                                                                                     
Henderson, one of ten children, was born on Valentine's Day in Dale, Indiana,       
the daughter of Elizabeth (née Elder), a homemaker, and Joseph Henderson, a         
tobacco sharecropper. Raised Catholic, she graduated from St. Francis Academy       
in Owensboro, Kentucky in 1951; shortly thereafter, she went to New York City,       
enrolling in the prestigious American Academy of Dramatic Arts. She is an Aluma     
Initiate of the Alpha Chi chapter of Delta Zeta Sorority.                           
                                                                                     
Henderson started her career on the stage, performing in musicals, such as the       
touring production of Oklahoma! and South Pacific at Lincoln Center. She debuted     
on Broadway in Wish You Were Here in 1952, and later starred in such notable         
shows as Fanny (1954), and The Girl Who Came to Supper (1963). In 1962, she won     
the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago Theatre, and the same year           
became the first woman to host The Johnny Carson Show. Talented at skit comedy       
as well as song and dance, she was ideal for the Dean Martin Variety Show, on       
which she was a frequent guest.                                                     
                                                                                     
Her most widely seen role was as "Carol Brady" in The Brady Bunch which was         
produced from 1968 until 1974. A worldwide success, it continues to be screened     
in many countries through syndication. Primarily due to her role in the Brady       
Bunch, Henderson was ranked by TV Land and Entertainment Weekly magazine as one     
of the 100 Greatest TV Icons. Henderson's ability to effortlessly transmit           
warmth and affection was an essential element to the long enduring success of       
the Brady Bunch. Henderson was a frequent panelist on the original version of       
the television game show Hollywood Squares.                                         
                                                                                     
Henderson in September 1989                                                         
                                                                                     
Henderson was also the spokeswoman for Wesson cooking oil, from 1976 to 1996.       
During that time, she hosted a cooking show on TNN called Country Kitchen, and       
also did ads for Prange's, a former Wisconsin department store chain. Henderson     
co-hosted the talk show Later Today on NBC (1999-2000) with co-hosts Jodi           
Applegate and Asha Blake. Today, she is the spokeswoman for Polident denture         
cleanser (although she does not wear dentures herself). She is also the             
spokesperson for RainSoft Water Treatment Systems. In 2003, Henderson seemed         
to poke fun at her wholesome image by appearing in a Pepsi Twist television         
commercial with Ozzy Osbourne.                                                       
                                                                                     
Henderson regularly tours as a singer on the condominium circuit with other         
performers such as magician/comedian Jamie Porter. Henderson has also appeared       
with her TV children whenever the opportunity comes about. For instance, she         
appeared on the reality-television series My Fair Brady starring Christopher         
Knight. She is also in the sixth season of VH1's Surreal Life.                       
                                                                                     
In most years since the mid-1990s, the song "God Bless America" has been             
performed by Henderson at the Indianapolis 500. Henderson is a friend of the         
Hulman-George family, the owners of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Her             
performance is followed by "The Star-Spangled Banner," performed by a notable       
artist each year.                                                                   
                                                                                     
An uncharacteristically naughty Florence can be seen on You Tube, on stage           
performing a ribald version of "When You're Good to Mama" from the Broadway         
musical "Chicago."                                                                   
                                                                                     
She appeared in the Weird Al Yankovic video for "Amish Paradise" and co-hosted       
the daily talk show "Living Live" with former Designing Women star Meshach           
Taylor on Retirement Living TV. The show was reworked to focus on her and was       
renamed "The Florence Henderson Show".