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Florence Henderson loved children as much as Carol Brady
Henderson was America's mother.
With four children of her own and six on-screen children, Florence Henderson deserves every Mother of the Year mug that's ever been made. This isn't even taking into account the many children (now adults) who grew up enjoying The Brady Bunch and often thought of Carol Brady as their own mother.
Henderson came by her maternal instincts naturally, as she explained during an interview with The Daily News Leader. "Children are the main reason for living," said Henderson. "Without them, I don't see how anyone can be fully alive."
It wasn't just viewers who believed that Florence Henderson would be a great mother to them. Henderson's costars, namely those who played The Brady kids, often viewed the actor as a maternal figure. This dedication went both ways, as Henderson explained in an interview with The Orlando Sentinel. "We get along well," Henderson said of the cast of The Brady Bunch. "Bob and I even discipline them on the set."
Henderson seemed to be aware of the effect she had on people. "There must be something about me that brings out that certain instinct in people," she said during her interview with The Daily News Leader. "Something that flashes a big 'You are a mother' kind of neon sign to everyone."
Henderson felt that, like most things, it could be traced back to her own childhood. "Perhaps it's because I've been around show business all my life," she said. "Maybe I'm living my own childhood through these others. Not that I'm not capable of living my own life. I am, it's just that I really do adore having crowds of young people around me all the time. I love children, and that's all there is to it."
