The Braverman Family Homes on “Parenthood”

by HOOKEDONHOUSES on APRIL 24, 2011

To tell you the truth, the only reason I tuned in to see “Parenthood” at first was because of Lauren Graham. As a huge “Gilmore Girls” fan, I was just excited to see her on TV again. But as soon as I got a look at the houses that these families live in, I was hooked for a whole other reason.

The drama, which is a remake/update of the 1989 Steve Martin movie, follows the extended Braverman family in Berkeley, California, headed up by parents Zeek and Camille. Let’s start by taking a look at the house they live in.

Zeek & Camille’s House

Set decorator Julieann Getman says, “Zeek and Camille have lived in this house for 30 years, filled it with heirlooms and haven’t redecorated much. It’s well worn and comfortable.”

Peter Krause and Lauren Graham, who play brother and sister on the show, are reportedly datingin real life.

I’m crazy about the windows in their house.

Many heart-to-hearts take place in their kitchen around the big, butcher-block island:

Craig T. Nelson plays Zeek Braverman (and it really bugs me that it isn’t spelled Zeke). He was reportedly offered the role of Jay on “Modern Family,” but chose to do “Parenthood” instead.

Bonnie Bedelia plays the family matriarch, Camille. A lot of us remember her as Holly McClane in Die Hard.

The paneled kitchen cabinets are painted “Calke Green” (Farrow & Ball), and the walls are Benjamin Moore’s Rockport Gray.

The family gathers around the big dining room table:

I get excited whenever there’s a scene that takes place on their big screened porch. Love it!

Julia and Joel’s House:

Zeek and Camille’s daughter Julia (Erika Christensen) is a successful attorney who lives in a more contemporary home with her stay-at-home husband Joel and their cutie-pie daughter Sydney.

“We wanted to reflect her taste in art and Midcentury Modernism and her ability to purchase it,” Getman says.

I love the little red kitchen set in front of the island for Sydney to play with:

Crosby’s Boat:

Crosby, played by Dax Shepherd, totally blew it with his girlfriend–and the mother of his son–this season. To try to win her back, he sold the cool boat he was living on and bought a fixer-upper in a family-friendly neighborhood. We’ll see if his plan works! I’m looking forward to seeing what he does with the house, so I hope they keep going with that storyline if the series is picked up for another season (I think its renewal is still up in the air).

Adam and Kristina’s Craftsman:

Adam (Peter Krause) and Kristina (Monica Potter) Braverman live in a house that’s reportedly based on a real Craftsman in Pasadena.

“Their style is Pottery Barn, right off the shelf,” set decorator Getman says.

The foyer:

Living Room:

Looking from the entry down the hall into the kitchen:

In the season finale (spoiler alert!!), Adam lost his job and found out his wife was pregnant with their third child on the same day.

The kitchen is painted in Benjamin Moore’s Saybrook Sage. The black and white-checkered floor is fun. I had a checkered floor in my first kitchen and there’s something about it that makes a kitchen feel homey and cheerful.

Their teenage daughter Haddie is played by Sarah Ramos. She’s supposed to be 16 on the show and is 20 in real life but always looks much older than that to me. I don’t know if it’s her haircut or what, but I never buy her as a teenager.

Apparently she played the role of a girl named Patty Pryor on “American Dreams” when she was younger, so you may recognize her from that show.

The sofa and chaise sectional in the family area of the great room were custom made for the set:

Getman says she strives for realism rather than perfection when decorating sets: “It’s much more what people can truly afford as opposed to what they see in magazines.”

A set photo looking from the kitchen into the dining and family room areas:

The display cabinet in the dining room reminds me of one from Crate & Barrel that I like–wonder if it’s the same one (Rojo Cabinet, $999)?

Adam and Kristina’s bedroom is painted Van Courtland Blue from the Benjamin Moore Historical Collection. The headboard and bench were custom made. The rug, nightstands and dresser are from Pottery Barn.

Are you a fan of the show, rooting for its renewal like I am? Did the season finale make you cry? (I’ll admit I was reaching for the tissues!) Do you have a favorite house (or boat) on the show?

More pics on CasaSugar and more set information in an LA Times article by David A. Keeps. Set photos via NBC/Universal. Thanks to Julian for help with this one!

Click Here to See More Houses I’ve Featured from TV Shows, Like “Gilmore Girls” and “Modern Family”!

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“Newhart:” Checking Into the Stratford Inn

by HOOKEDONHOUSES on MARCH 6, 2011

Every Monday I feature the sets from some of our favorite movies and TV shows. During the month of March I thought it would be fun to focus on four sitcoms that have memorable houses in them, starting with the charming old inn from “Newhart.”

The comedy ran on CBS from 1982-1990, fueling my fantasies of moving to Vermont and running a B&B someday while writing books in my spare time, just like Dick Loudon (Newhart) did.

In fact, when I was on vacation in Vermont back in the ’90s, I was determined to track down the real inn that the Stratford was based on. It’s called the Waybury Inn, in Middlebury. Here’s the photo I snapped of it from the car window:

The inn had been repainted tan with green shutters by the time I saw it, and I was disappointed that it didn’t look the same, but it was still a thrill to see the real thing. The Waybury has been a fixture of Middlebury for over 200 years, having begun as a boarding house and tavern serving stagecoach passengers at the gap in the Green Mountains.

In the pilot episode of the sitcom, Dick and Joanna Loudon walk into the empty inn with a real estate agent and decide to buy it on the spot.

In the beginning, the show was videotaped, so the picture quality of those episodes isn’t great. They switched to film later in its run.

Tom Poston played handyman George Utley. In real life, Poston was married to Suzanne Pleshette, Newhart’s wife in “The Bob Newhart Show.”

The Front Desk:

Dick’s Office, where he writes his how-to books:

He later became the host of a TV show called “Vermont Today,” and Peter Scolari played his yuppie producer. Julia Duffy was cast as the new maid, and Peter Scolari was her love interest.

The Dining Room:

I was always hoping they’d show us the kitchen, but as far as I know, they never did. Does anyone remember seeing it?

This is a terrible picture of Mary Frann, who played Dick’s wife Joanna, but it provided a rare glimpse of that wall behind her:

Joanna had fallen through the ice in the pond, so they lead her upstairs to her room:

The Loudon’s (Very Blue) Bedroom:

The Inn at Night:

Here’s how the Waybury Inn looks today (source):

You can learn more about the Waybury Inn’s history and see the rooms they have available (with names like “The Robert Frost Suite”) on their website. There are all kinds of interesting facts, like how the local paper mentioned that it had “an attached bowling alley” back in 1866!

You can watch the famous series finale here, in which Dick wakes up next to Suzanne Pleshette, his wife from “The Bob Newhart Show,” and realizes it was all a dream.

He tells her, “Nothing made sense in this place. The maid was an heiress. Her husband talked in alliterations. The handymen kept missing the point of things. Then there were these three woodsmen, but only one of them talked!”

More Sitcom Sets Coming Soon: Cougar Town, Modern Family, and Mad About You!

Click Here to See All of the TV Shows I’ve Featured So Far. Did Your Favorites Make the List?

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