1. Overview
Ann Bradford Davis (May 3, 1926 - June 1, 2014) was an American actress widely recognized for her prominent roles in television sitcoms. She gained initial fame for her portrayal of Charmaine "Schultzy" Schultz in the NBC situation comedy The Bob Cummings Show from 1955 to 1959, a role for which she twice won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Davis is perhaps best known for her iconic performance as Alice Nelson, the beloved housekeeper in ABC's The Brady Bunch, which aired from 1969 to 1974. Her career also included various other television and film appearances, extensive stage work, and participation in commercials. In her later years, Davis became involved with an Episcopal intentional community.
2. Early life and background
Ann B. Davis's early life was marked by her birth in New York and a family background that included an identical twin sister. Her education led her to pursue a career in drama, a decision that shaped her future.
2.1. Birth and family
Ann Bradford Davis was born on May 3, 1926, in Schenectady, New York. Her parents were Marguerite (née Stott) and Cassius Miles Davis. She had an identical twin sister named Harriet, an older sister named Elizabeth (1917-1974), and an older brother named Evans (1921-2005). When Davis was three years old, her family relocated to Erie, Pennsylvania, in the northwestern part of the state.
2.2. Education
Davis completed her secondary education at Strong Vincent High School. She later attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where she initially enrolled as a pre-medical major. However, her career path shifted after she witnessed her brother's performance in the musical Oklahoma!. This experience inspired her to change her major to drama. She graduated from the University of Michigan in 1948 with a degree in drama and speech.
3. Career
Ann B. Davis's career spanned several decades, marked by her breakthrough in television, her most famous role as a beloved housekeeper, and diverse engagements in film, stage, and commercials.
3.1. Early career and television debut
Davis began her television career in the 1953-1954 season, appearing as a musical judge on ABC's Jukebox Jury. Her first significant television success came with her role as Charmaine "Schultzy" Schultz in The Bob Cummings Show. She secured this part after a friend's boyfriend, who was a casting director, recommended her for the role.
3.2. Success on 'The Bob Cummings Show'
From 1955 to 1959, Davis starred as Charmaine "Schultzy" Schultz in The Bob Cummings Show. Her performance in this role earned her considerable acclaim, including two Primetime Emmy Award wins out of four nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.
3.3. Iconic role as Alice Nelson on 'The Brady Bunch'
Davis's most iconic role was that of Alice Nelson, the witty and warm housekeeper, in The Brady Bunch television series, which aired from 1969 to 1974. This role cemented her place in popular culture. She reprised her role as Alice Nelson in numerous Brady Bunch spin-offs and reunion projects, including the television movies The Brady Girls Get Married (1981) and A Very Brady Christmas (1988). She also appeared in two short-lived spin-off television series: The Brady Brides (1981), which ran for ten episodes, and The Bradys (1990), which lasted only six episodes. In 1995, she made a cameo appearance in The Brady Bunch Movie as a truck driver named "Schultzy," a nod to her earlier role on The Bob Cummings Show.
3.4. Other television and film appearances
Beyond her most famous roles, Davis appeared in a variety of other television series and films throughout her career.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | A Man Called Peter | Ruby Coleman | Uncredited |
| 1956 | The Best Things in Life Are Free | Hattie Stewart | Uncredited |
| 1960 | Pepe | Ann B. "Schultzy" Davis | |
| 1961 | All Hands on Deck | Nobby | |
| 1961 | Lover Come Back | Millie | |
| 1994 | Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult | Alice Nelson | Credited as playing herself |
| 1995 | The Brady Bunch Movie | Trucker (Shultzy) |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1953-1953 | Jukebox Jury | Herself/Judge | Musical series |
| 1956 | Matinee Theater | Peg Miller | Episode: "Belong to Me" |
| 1956 | Lux Video Theatre | Miss Killicat | Episode: "The Wayward Saint" |
| 1955-1959 | The Bob Cummings Show | Charmaine "Schultzy" Schultz | 153 episodes |
| 1960 | Wagon Train | Mrs. Foster | Episode: "The Countess Baranof Story" |
| 1962 | The New Breed | Elizabeth MacBaine | Episode: "Wherefore Art Thou, Romeo?" |
| 1962 | Here's Hollywood | Herself | Celebrity interview program |
| 1963 | McKeever and the Colonel | Sgt. Gruber | Episode: "Too Many Sergeants" |
| 1963 | The Keefe Brasselle Show | Herself | 3 appearances on summer replacement series for The Garry Moore Show |
| 1964 | Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre | Matha | Episode: "Wake Up, Darling" |
| 1965-1966 | The John Forsythe Show | Miss Wilson | 29 episodes |
| 1966 | The Pruitts of Southampton | Mrs. Derwin | Episode: "Phyllis Takes a Letter" |
| 1968 | Insight | Pat | Episode: "The Late Great God" |
| 1970/1973 | Love, American Style | 2 episodes | |
| 1971 | Big Fish, Little Fish | Hilda Rose | Movie |
| 1973 | The World of Sid & Marty Krofft at the Hollywood Bowl | Audience member | Uncredited |
| 1969-1974 | The Brady Bunch | Alice Nelson / Cousin Emma | 117 episodes |
| 1974 | Only with Married Men | Mola | Movie; uncredited |
| 1976-1977 | The Brady Bunch Hour | Alice Nelson | 9 episodes |
| 1980 | The Love Boat | Agnes | Episode: "Invisible Maniac/September Song/Peekaboo" |
| 1981 | The Brady Girls Get Married | Alice Nelson | Movie |
| 1981 | The Brady Brides | Alice Nelson | 6 episodes |
| 1983 | Rosie | Jill Po | Episode: "Waitresses in Line" |
| 1988 | A Very Brady Christmas | Alice Nelson | Movie |
| 1989 | Day by Day | Alice Nelson | Episode: "A Very Brady Episode" |
| 1990 | The Bradys | Alice Nelson | 4 episodes |
| 1991 | Hi Honey, I'm Home! | Episode: "SRP" | |
| 1993 | Bradymania: A Very Brady Special | Herself | TV special |
| 1997 | Something So Right | Maxine | Episode: "Something About Inter-Ex-Spousal Relations" |
| 2004 | The Brady Bunch 35th Anniversary Reunion Special | Herself | TV special |
3.5. Stage activities
Davis also had a significant career in theater. As early as 1958, she appeared in a national touring company of the Thornton Wilder play The Matchmaker, co-starring with her Bob Cummings Show castmate, Lyle Talbot. On June 27, 1960, she replaced Carol Burnett in the starring role of Princess Winnifred in the Broadway production of the musical Once Upon a Mattress, though the show closed shortly after on July 2. In the early 1990s, Davis returned to theater, performing in a production of Arsenic and Old Lace, and both the Broadway production and a world tour of Crazy for You.
| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Once Upon a Mattress | Princess Winnifred | Broadway |
| 1972-1973 | No, No, Nanette | ||
| 1992-1996 | Crazy for You | Mother | Broadway and World Tour |
| 1996 | Arsenic and Old Lace | Abby Brewster |
3.6. Commercials and other activities
For a period in the 1960s and 1970s, Davis was a recognizable face in television commercials for the Ford Motor Company, particularly for the mid-sized Ford Fairlane models. She was also featured in commercials for Minute Rice in Canada until the mid-1980s. In her later years, she became a celebrity spokeswoman for several Shake 'n Bake commercials and later appeared in disposable mop commercials for Swiffer. In 1994, Davis published a cookbook titled Alice's Brady Bunch Cookbook, which featured recipes inspired by The Brady Bunch and also included recipes contributed by other cast members.
4. Awards and honors
Ann B. Davis received several notable awards and honors throughout her distinguished acting career, particularly for her work in television.
4.1. Emmy Awards
Davis was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series four times for her portrayal of Charmaine "Schultzy" Schultz on The Bob Cummings Show. She won the award twice.
| Television Season | Award | Category | Television Program | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955-1956 | Emmy Award | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | The Bob Cummings Show (Episode: "Schultzy's Dream World") | Nominated | Lost to Nanette Fabray (Caesar's Hour) |
| 1956-1957 | Emmy Award | Best Supporting Performance by an Actress | The Bob Cummings Show | Nominated | Lost to Pat Carroll (Caesar's Hour) |
| 1957-1958 | Emmy Award | Best Continuing Supporting Performance by an Actress in a Dramatic or Comedy Series | The Bob Cummings Show | Won | |
| 1958-1959 | Emmy Award | Best Supporting Actress (Continuing Character) in a Comedy Series | The Bob Cummings Show | Won |
4.2. Hollywood Walk of Fame induction
On February 9, 1960, Ann B. Davis was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Her star is located at 7048 Hollywood Boulevard.
4.3. TV Land Awards
Davis received multiple TV Land Awards for her work, particularly for her portrayal of Alice Nelson on The Brady Bunch. She was honored in 2004, 2006, and 2007. On April 22, 2007, The Brady Bunch was presented with the TV Land Pop Culture Award at the 5th annual TV Land Awards ceremony. Davis, along with other cast members, accepted the award and received a standing ovation.
5. Personal life
Outside of her acting career, Ann B. Davis was known for her deep involvement in a religious community.
5.1. Participation in religious community
In 1976, Davis sold her home in Los Angeles and moved to Denver, Colorado, where she became a member of an Episcopal intentional community led by Bishop William C. Frey. The community later relocated to Ambridge, Pennsylvania, in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, after Bishop Frey became the dean of Trinity School for Ministry, a seminary. Davis had a long history of volunteering for the Episcopal Church, including working at the General Convention and regularly attending services at various churches across the country.
6. Death
Ann B. Davis's death in 2014 was sudden and unexpected, attributed to a fall.
6.1. Cause of death and interment
Ann B. Davis died at the age of 88 on June 1, 2014, in a hospital in San Antonio, Texas. Earlier on the day of her death, she had sustained a subdural hematoma as a result of a fall in the bathroom of her San Antonio residence, where she lived with Bishop Frey and his wife, Barbara. Despite her age, sources close to Davis indicated that she was in excellent health, and her death came as a complete shock. Following her passing, she was cremated and her remains were interred in the Saint Helena's Columbarium and Memorial Gardens in Boerne, Texas.
7. Legacy
Ann B. Davis's enduring impact on popular culture is largely defined by her iconic roles, particularly her portrayal of Alice Nelson. Her character as the witty and supportive housekeeper became a beloved figure in American television, making her a memorable part of the cultural landscape. Her consistent presence in The Brady Bunch and its numerous spin-offs ensured her legacy as a comforting and familiar face to generations of viewers. Her contributions to television comedy, including her Emmy-winning performance on The Bob Cummings Show, solidified her reputation as a talented and versatile actress.
