TV today has large families like the Duggars of 19 Kids and Counting and the Gosselins of Jon and Kate Plus 8. But before reality shows, there were the Bradfords of Eight Is Enough. The comedy-drama series aired from 1977 to 1981. It was based on the life of syndicated newspaper columnist Tom Braden, who had eight children. He wrote a book, and ABC turned it into a successful TV series of the same name. So, which Eight Is Enough cast members are still alive?
What was ‘Eight Is Enough’ about? ‘Eight Is Enough’ cast portrait, 1978 | Jim Britt/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
Eight Is Enough centered on parents Tom and Joan Bradford and their eight children: David, Mary, Joanie, Susan, Nancy, Elizabeth, Tommy, and Nicholas. Dad was a newspaper columnist, and mom was a homemaker.
Sadly, Diana Hyland, who played Joan, was diagnosed with breast cancer during season 1 and died.
What was ‘Eight Is Enough’ about? ‘Eight Is Enough’ cast portrait, 1978 | Jim Britt/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
Eight Is Enough centered on parents Tom and Joan Bradford and their eight children: David, Mary, Joanie, Susan, Nancy, Elizabeth, Tommy, and Nicholas. Dad was a newspaper columnist, and mom was a homemaker.
Sadly, Diana Hyland, who played Joan, was diagnosed with breast cancer during season 1 and died.
- 2/11/2023
- by Stacy Feintuch
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Remember Eight is Enough? The classic ABC series aired its final episode 35 years ago today.Developed by William Blinn, the dramedy followed the lives of newspaper columnist Tom Bradford (Dick Van Patten) and his eight children. The cast also included Diana Hyland, Betty Buckley, Grant Goodeve, Lani O'Grady, Laurie Walters, Susan Richardson, Dianne Kay, Connie Needham, Willie Aames, and Adam Rich.Read More…...
- 8/30/2016
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
Former "Eight Is Enough" star Susan Richardson is reportedly broke, living in a trailer and suffering from "devastating" health problems.
The 60-year-old spoke with the National Enquirer, telling the magazine that she doesn't want to complain too much, but she admits she has her fair share of problems.
The former actress was cast to play the fourth oldest child on "Eight Is Enough" back in 1977 and played the role of Susan Bradford for five seasons. Her career stalled once the series ended, and her last credit is the 1998 TV movie "An Eight Is Enough Wedding."
Today, Richardson is wracked with medical problems, living with diabetes and having suffered several strokes. She has a digestive problem that she said have caused her to lose all of her teeth, and her weight has plummeted to a mere 60 pounds.
"I had a series of mini-strokes. Then I discovered I had a rare disorder...
The 60-year-old spoke with the National Enquirer, telling the magazine that she doesn't want to complain too much, but she admits she has her fair share of problems.
The former actress was cast to play the fourth oldest child on "Eight Is Enough" back in 1977 and played the role of Susan Bradford for five seasons. Her career stalled once the series ended, and her last credit is the 1998 TV movie "An Eight Is Enough Wedding."
Today, Richardson is wracked with medical problems, living with diabetes and having suffered several strokes. She has a digestive problem that she said have caused her to lose all of her teeth, and her weight has plummeted to a mere 60 pounds.
"I had a series of mini-strokes. Then I discovered I had a rare disorder...
- 1/31/2013
- by Stephanie Marcus
- Huffington Post
Thank you, National Enquirer, for calling our attention to an issue we as a pop-culture society should come together to solve: The health and well-being of our national treasures, aged former sitcom stars. We first became aware of this issue last year, when it was discovered that Happy Days star Erin Moran was homeless and bouncing from motel to motel. Today, we learned that another beloved face from the ’70s and ’80s, Eight Is Enough’s Susan Richardson is suffering from a number of health problems and scraping by in a broken down trailer. The diabetic 60-year-old, who played one of Dick Van Patten’s eight children on the ABC show that ran from 1977-81, has had strokes and also an incurable digestive tract condition that made her lose her teeth, the Enquirer reports (via Radar Online). In addition to a pension, she’s earning a living by turning fallen...
- 1/30/2013
- by Sabrina Rojas Weiss
- TheFabLife - Movies
On this morning's edition of the Today Show, several of the castmembers of Eight Is Enough reunited for the first time in 20-30 years.
Eight Is Enough ran on ABC for five seasons, from 1977 until 1981. Based on a book Thomas Braden, the dramady centers around columnist Tom Bradford (Dick Van Patten), his wife Joan (Diana Hyland) and their eight children, played by Grant Goodeve, Lani O'Grady, Laurie Walters, Susan Richardson, Dianne Kay, Connie Newton, Willie Aames, and Adam Rich.
Hyland became ill and passed away shortly after the series debuted. She'd only filmed a handful of episodes and her character was written out of the rest of the season. When the show returned in the Fall of 1977, Tom was now a widower who fell for and later married Abby (Betty Buckley), his son Tommy's tutor.
The cast reunited...
Eight Is Enough ran on ABC for five seasons, from 1977 until 1981. Based on a book Thomas Braden, the dramady centers around columnist Tom Bradford (Dick Van Patten), his wife Joan (Diana Hyland) and their eight children, played by Grant Goodeve, Lani O'Grady, Laurie Walters, Susan Richardson, Dianne Kay, Connie Newton, Willie Aames, and Adam Rich.
Hyland became ill and passed away shortly after the series debuted. She'd only filmed a handful of episodes and her character was written out of the rest of the season. When the show returned in the Fall of 1977, Tom was now a widower who fell for and later married Abby (Betty Buckley), his son Tommy's tutor.
The cast reunited...
- 3/1/2010
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
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