Housekeepers in Popular Culture – Part Two
1. The Housekeeper in Film – Hollywood would mostly depict the housekeeper character as she appears in such Gothic suspense tales as Daphne Du Maurier’s Rebecca , where the housekeeper’s key role was used to sinister effect (see Part One for more details of this genre). This was done to such a powerful extent by director Alfred Hitchcock and others that the character eventually became clichéd, culminating in the 1974 Gothic horror lampoon movie, Young Frankenstein, from the wicked pens of comedians Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder.

Amelia Bedelia

Alice from. The Brady Bunch
3. Alice, ‘The Brady Bunch’ – the popular American television series introduced Alice as the dependable, down-to-earth housekeeper at the heart of the Brady family. She keeps everything ticking over and also provides every family member with a loving, unbiased ear and sage advice whenever necessary.

Rosie the Robot – The Jetsons
4. Rosie the Robot, ‘The Jetsons’ – in this 1960’s futuristic cartoon, the housekeeper is still right at the heart of the family unit, though now she is a robot! She keeps the house clean and tidy, but like all good housekeepers, she also multi-tasks, helping Judy with her homework and teaching young Elroy how toplay baseball.

Mrs Garrett Diff’rent Strokes
5. Mrs Garrett, ‘Diff’rent Strokes’ – again, it is the housekeeper who provides a family with more than just the necessary cleaning and other traditional tasks. Mrs Garrett, like the Bradys’ Alice, also brings this modern mixed-race family wisdom and compassion, teaching them how to stand up for themselves and what they believe in. All done with a dash of humour, the new requisite for this era’s housekeeper character.

Tony Micelli in ‘Who’s The Boss’
6. Tony Micelli, ‘Who’s The Boss’ – here we see the man stepping up to take on the traditional housekeeper’s role to brilliant effect. Former baseball star Tony is originally driven to take the job by his desire to raise his daughter away from the rough community of Brooklyn, but ends up becoming an integrated part of the Bower family through his strong approach to life and his ability to teach these lessons to those around him.

Mrs Doubtfire
7. Mrs Doubtfire – Hollywood once again embraces the pivotal role of housekeeper, though with none of its former dark undertones, in this 1990’s family comedy in which Robin Williams disguises himself as the elderly Eugenia Doubtfire and takes on the role of housekeeper and nanny at his ex-wife’s home, in order to spend more time with his children.

Magda from Sex The City

Rosario from Wil and Grace