“A Lovely Lady”: Fans, Friends Mourn the Loss of Florence Henerson

From co-host of the Tonight Show to the mother of The Brady Bunch, fans are mourning the loss of a longtime TV favorite.

“If I were president, I’d make sure every child had food to eat and a good education,” said Florence Henderson in a recent interview.

Henderson passed away surrounded by her family in a Los Angeles hospital at the age of 82.

She grew up in a poor family with an alcoholic father and a mother who abandoned her and her siblings.

Henderson used her singing talents to entertain the family and make ends meet.

In 1951, she made her break landing a starring role in Oklahoma, then the co-host of the Tonight Show” in 1962.

In 1969, she got her starring role in the Brady Bunch, continuing to sing and act on TV for decades.