Eight is enough remains a favorite TV series for millions of Americans, but for star Betty Buckley, filming the ABC comedy-drama from 1977-1981. it could be difficult at times.
Buckley, who made her film debut in horror and horror Carrie In 1976, she was cast as Abby Abbott, a teacher and widow who falls in love with and marries the show’s patriarch, Tom Bradford (Dick Van Patten), who is himself a widower and the father of eight children.
Future Cats Tony winner Buckley, 76, was brought in as the mother in place of Diane Hyland, who previously played Tom’s wife Joan. Actress (who was in a relationship with Buckley Carrie costar John Travolta at the time) died of breast cancer at the age of 41 after shooting only a few episodes of the series.
Hyland’s death was written into the series, and Buckley’s Abby was slowly introduced to viewers as well as to the Bradford household.
“It was the first time I’d been in Hollywood and going through a lot of negotiations with lawyers and things like that. I had to hire a big gunslinger lawyer to deal with them,” she tells PEOPLE, adding of production company Lorimar, “They were very, very difficult to deal with.”
Why Carrie and Conceived Betty Buckley star set to play ‘Strange, Crazy Ladies’ in horror flicks (Exclusive)
Her negotiations to join the show would be the first of many times she clashed with the powers that be.
“In the first season, they promised me this character who had a PhD and drove an old green MG, and they made him sound like a really interesting modern person,” says Buckley.
From left: Susan Richardson, Laurie Walters, Connie Newton, Dick Van Patten, Adam Rich, Grant Goodeve, Betty Buckley, Willie Aames, Dianne Kay and Lani O’Grady in a 1978 ‘Eight Is Enough’ cast photo.
ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty
But that was not the case. “They put me in the muumuu and put me in the kitchen. And so I said, ‘Folks, this is before the 1950s. Come on,’ says Buckley, who was in her 20s when she started filming the series.
The actresses who played her stepsons, including Laurie Walters, Lani O’Grady and Dianne Kay, were Buckley’s age or just a few years younger. Buckley says she was banned from wearing jeans on the show because it would have been seen as trying to “compete” with the girls, which was a no-no.
She even got into a fight with writers over food after meeting with Laverne & Shirley actress Penny Marshall, who thought Eight is enough needed to “light up,” as Buckley says. However, on the day when the recording was supposed to take place, it was turned off.
“I was so excited because this idea that I passed on from Penny Marshall was going to be used [and] they came to me and said, ‘You can’t be in a food fight because Abby is a role model, and ABC standards and practice said no,'” she recalls.
“They wanted me to act and act like a mature 40-year-old because Diana Highland, who was the original mother, was 40,” she continues.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2)/betty-buckley-gender-roles-2-032124-5ce5c995791e4153ab739ac782d34e03.jpg)
Adam Rich and Betty Buckley on ‘Eight Is Enough’ in 1979.
ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
“One day I was sitting in my dressing room and one of the girls [who played a stepdaughter], I won’t say her name, she entered. He says, ‘Betty, I know you’re going through a really tough time. I just want you to know that I’m older than you.’ So amazing. It was funny,” Buckley continues.
Despite the frustrating moments, Buckley said working on the series was still a “dream job.”
“I look back on it – 29 episodes a year for four years – it was an extraordinary gift,” she said The Hollywood Reporter 2016. “I grew into a better actress. I’m very proud of that.”
Buckley remained close to her castmates and would often see them whenever she was in Los Angeles on trips organized by the late publicist Jeff Ballard, who worked as Van Patten’s assistant.
“He always brought us all together,” Buckley tells PEOPLE of Ballard. “‘Betty’s come to town!’ And they would get everyone to come see me in concert and hang out.”
She also has fond memories of her on-screen stepson Adam Rich, who died in 2023 at the age of 54. “I think some of my best scenes on the show were working with Adam,” she says. “He was just a great little kid.”
Her latest role in Conceived is far from the maternal Abby of Eight is enough. In the horror film, she plays Gloria, the nosy neighbor who lives next door to Jessica (DeWanda Wise), a Louisiana woman whose stepdaughter finds a terrifying teddy bear in their basement.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education