Anti-vaxxers cite Brady Bunch episode

The anti-vaccination crowd are not bright people. They're now citing a 1969 Brady Bunch episode to prove that measles is no big deal.

From NPR:

The episode "Is There a Doctor in the House?" features the whole family sick with measles. First, Peter gets sent home from school. Mother Carol Brady, played by Florence Henderson, describes his symptoms as "a slight temperature, a lot of dots and a great big smile," because he gets to stay home from school for a few days.

Once the rest of the six kids come down with measles, the youngest two Brady siblings fool around, with Bobby trying to color Cindy's measles spots green.

"If you have to get sick, sure can't beat the measles," sister Marcia says, as the older Bradys sit around a Monopoly board on one of the kid's beds. All the kids are thankful they don't have to take any medicine or, worse, get shots, the thought of which causes Jan to groan.

People who are critical of vaccines bring the episode up often. It's used in videos and memes and is cited by activists like Dr. Toni Bark, who testifies against vaccines in courts and at public hearings across the United States. To them, it aptly illustrates what they consider to be the harmlessness of the illness.

"You stayed home like the Brady Bunch show. You stayed home. You didn't go to the doctor," she says. "We never said, 'Oh my God, your kid could die. Oh my God, this is a deadly disease.' It's become that."

There were 25,000 cases of measles in 1969 and 41 deaths. 

Elena Conis, an associate professor at the University of California, Berkeley, who specializes in medical history, explained that circumstances in 2019 are vastly different from those in 1969.

"In 1969, we had less control over infectious diseases," she says. "Smallpox was still a reality. There were far more cases of polio. In that context, it made sense to think of measles as a lesser threat."

 In contrast to the Brady Bunch episode, I'll mention here an episode of Hazel. Bobby Buntrock draws dots on his face. An unwanted guest sees him, thinks he has measles or chickenpox and says, "You---you! Get away from me!" and flees.

There was a 1950 stage play, a comedy called The Curious Savage set in a sanitarium. One of the patients carries a doll she thinks is her baby. In a running gag, she keeps warning people to be careful because he has the measles. This was what killed her baby.