Created by Bernard Slade, the series was inspired by and loosely based on The Cowsills, a real singing family in the late sixties. In fact, in its early development the Cowsill children were approached to be featured on the show, though that idea was quickly discarded (The Cowsills rejected the offer when producers wanted to replace their real-life mother Barbara in the cast). The show starred Shirley Jones as mother Shirley Partridge and David Cassidy (Jones' real-life stepson) as her son Keith. The remaining Partridge children were played by Susan Dey as Laurie, Danny Bonaduce as Danny, Jeremy Gelbwaks (replaced after one year by Brian Forster) as Chris, and Suzanne Crough as Tracy Partridge. Dave Madden played Reuben Kincaid, who was their manager and family friend.
The back of the bus, became an icon for the show, due to its Mondrianesque paint design.
The Partridge Family was produced for ABC by Screen Gems television, which was just finishing its run with The Monkees, another show about a fictional music group. The company promoted the success of the show by releasing a series of albums featuring the music of the family band, though most cast members did not actually play on the recordings. A group of studio singers and musicians, led by producer Wes Farrell actually created the Partridge Family sound. Although he was originally cast with the intent to lip sync, just weeks into production David Cassidy convinced Farrell he could sing, and was allowed to join the studio ensemble as the lead singer. Several songs were made without Cassidy as lead, they were featured in some of the early episodes and on the first album. He and Shirley Jones, who sang background, were the only cast members who were actually featured on the recordings. The whole cast would lip sync to the recordings when they performed on each episode, though it was obvious to most viewers that the actors were lip-synching, The Partridge Family became an instant success, not only as a TV show, but as a band that produced actual hit songs.
The Partridge Family's biggest hit came in 1970 with the song "I Think I Love You," which began climbing the Billboard chart in September and peaked at number one in December of that year. The companion LP, "The Partridge Family Album" reached number four. Other Partridge Family singles including, "I'll Meet You Halfway", "Doesn't Somebody Want To Be Wanted", and "I Woke Up in Love This Morning" would also chart high on the Billboard chart. The theme songs "When We're Singing", and its successor "C'Mon, Get Happy" were composed by Danny Janssen and Wes Farrell.
The title card for the pilot episode of The Partridge Family was, "What? and Get Out of Show Business?".
As the show and associated merchandizing took off, David Cassidy became an overnight teen idol. Cassidy launched a solo singing career, touring with his own group of musicians and performing Partridge Family songs as well as hits from his own albums. In the midst of his overwhelming rise to fame, Cassidy soon grew tired of the show. In the summer of 1972 he gave a very candid interview to Rolling Stone magazine in which he attempted to distance himself from the squeaky-clean image of Keith Partridge.
By the fourth season, due to declining ratings and Cassidy's looming departure, a feeble effort was made by the producers to breathe new life into the show. They introduced a precocious 4-year-old neighbor named "Ricky Stevens" played by Ricky Segall to occasionally sing children's songs with the band. To no avail, the ABC network moved the show from its 8:30 Friday night slot to Saturday at 8:00, directly opposite the hit All in the Family, against which they knew it would not survive. The show was cancelled, after 96 episodes and ten Partridge Family albums.
The Partridge Family had a brief resurgence in animated form, which saw the family propelled into the future. The animated Partridge Family first appeared when the kids did a series of guest spots on "Goober and the Ghost Chasers". That idea evolved into a CBS Saturday morning Hanna-Barbera-produced cartoon, "Partridge Family 2200 A.D.". It featured new characters Veenie (Keith's Venusian friend) and Marion (Laurie's Martian friend). Danny had a pet robot dog named Orbit. Shirley Jones and David Cassidy did not voice their animated counterparts, and Susan Dey and Dave Madden had very limited involvement with this series. Sixteen half-hour installments were produced for the animated series, which lasted for half a season on CBS Saturday morning (September 7, 1974 - March 8, 1975); on the syndicated Fred Flintstone and Friends, it was retitled The Partridge Family in Outer Space.
Nickelodeon featured a heavily publicized run of the original series in the early- to mid-90s, along with the Brady Bunch, as part of its Nick-At-Nite line-up. The network used interviews and commercials featuring cast members, and even created a new version of the Mondrian-esque Family bus for promotion.
In 2000 two different made-for-TV movies aired on different networks; Both "Come On Get Happy" and "The David Cassidy Story" attempted to tell the story behind the series. While the movies were criticized as being somewhat inaccurate, they did recreate some of the imagery and music from the original series. "Come On Get Happy" even featured another replication of the bus, which was later auctioned off on eBay.
A modernized version of the bus was created for a new promotion in 2004, when VH1 premiered In Search of The New Partridge Family. This talent competition in the format of American Idol sought a new cast for a contemporary version of the sitcom. The elimination type program aired seven episodes in which a panel of judges selected a new Partridge Family cast from auditioners across the country. The resulting pilot episode of The New Partridge Family aired in January of 2005, but due to low ratings VH1 opted not to produce any more episodes.
The first two seasons of the original series were released as of October 2005 on DVD from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. Also, at the same time Arista Records released a new music compilation, "Come On Get Happy!: The Very Best of The Partridge Family," which included four previously unreleased tracks.
Despite the prefabricated nature of the "band", the Partridge Family's records were some of the best arranged and produced of their day. Much care was given not only to the overall sound, but even to show that sound would translate to AM radio, then the major outlet for pop music. The writing was equally good, at least on the early albums. However, as ratings and record sales began to drop, so did the quality of the material.
Frosty the Snowman
The Partridge Family Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Frosty the Snowman was a jolly happy soul
With a corn-cob pipe and a button nose
And two eyes made out of coal.
Frosty the Snowman is a fairy tale they say
He was made of snow but the children know
There must have been some magic in that old silk hat they found
For when they placed it on his head, he began to dance around.
Oh, Frosty the Snowman was alive as he could be
And the children say he could laugh and play
Just the same as you and me.
Frosty the Snowman knew the sun was hot that day
So he said : 'Let's run and we'll have some fun'
'Now before I melt away'.
Down to the village with a broomstick in his hand
Running here and there all around the square
Saying : 'Catch me if you can'.
He led them down the streets of town right to the traffic cop
And he only paused a moment when he heard them holler : 'Stop!'.
Frosty the Snowman had to hurry on his way
But he waved goodbye saying : 'Don't you cry'
'I'll be back again some day'.
The Partridge Family's song Frosty The Snowman tells the classic tale of a snowman coming to life with the help of a magical hat. The song begins by describing the physical features of Frosty, a "jolly happy soul" with a "corn-cob pipe and a button nose" and "two eyes made out of coal." However, despite his whimsical appearance, many call Frosty a "fairy tale." The children in the song are the only ones who know how he came to life one day through the magic of an old silk hat.
The song continues by detailing Frosty's adventures with the children as they run and play, all while trying to avoid the sun's heat, which would cause Frosty to melt away. Frosty leads the children through the village, daring them to catch him as he runs and dances around with a broomstick in his hand. Eventually, Frosty leads the group to the traffic cop, where he must hurry on his way, promising the children that he will return someday.
Overall, the lyrics to Frosty The Snowman convey the joy of childhood imagination and wonder, showcasing the power of storytelling and the idea that even a snowman can come to life with a little bit of magic.
Line by Line Meaning
Frosty the Snowman was a jolly happy soul
Frosty, the snowman was always cheerful and happy.
With a corn-cob pipe and a button nose
Frosty had unique features like a pipe made of corn cob and a nose of button.
And two eyes made out of coal.
His eyes were made of coal which made him look different from others.
Frosty the Snowman is a fairy tale they say
Some people believe that Frosty is just a made-up story.
He was made of snow but the children know
Although Frosty was made of snow, children know he actually existed physically once upon a time.
How he came to life one day.
At some magical moment, Frosty came to life.
There must have been some magic in that old silk hat they found
There might be some magical powers in the old hat which brought Frosty to life.
For when they placed it on his head, he began to dance around.
The moment they put the hat on his head, Frosty started dancing around.
Oh, Frosty the Snowman was alive as he could be
Frosty was alive and full of life.
And the children say he could laugh and play
According to the children, Frosty was a playful and happy snowman.
Just the same as you and me.
Frosty was just like any other human in his nature.
Frosty the Snowman knew the sun was hot that day
Frosty knew that the summer sun was hot that day.
So he said : 'Let's run and we'll have some fun'
Frosty suggested running and having fun to escape the heat of the sun.
'Now before I melt away'.
Frosty had to hurry up and have fun before he melted away in the sun.
Down to the village with a broomstick in his hand
Frosty went to the village holding a broomstick in his hand.
Running here and there all around the square
Frosty was running around the square in the village.
Saying : 'Catch me if you can'.
Frosty was teasing others by saying catch me if they can.
He led them down the streets of town right to the traffic cop
Frosty led them towards the traffic police officer on the street.
And he only paused a moment when he heard them holler : 'Stop!'.
The moment he heard people shouting 'stop', he paused for a while.
Frosty the Snowman had to hurry on his way
Frosty had to hurry now to go away.
But he waved goodbye saying : 'Don't you cry'
Frosty said goodbye but promised that there's no need to cry.
'I'll be back again some day'.
Frosty said that he would come back again someday.
Contributed by Aaron W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.