How Shirley Jones’ Shocking Career Gamble Made TV History
What To Know
- Shirley Jones, an Oscar-winning film actress, shocked Hollywood by leaving movies to star in the TV show The Partridge Family in 1970, prioritizing time with her young sons over her film career.
- Her role as Shirley Partridge broke new ground as one of television’s first working mothers, contrasting with the traditional stay-at-home TV moms of the era.
- Despite warnings that the move would end her film career, Jones had no regrets, valuing her family time and the lasting impact of her pioneering TV role.
Long before she was Shirley Partridge, Shirley Jones was a bonafide movie star. She’d made a bunch of movies, won an Oscar for Elmer Gantry, and was a household name in Hollywood. (Shirley was also in a favorite movie of mine called Bedtime Story, a comedy which starred David Niven and Marlon Brando as a couple of conmen doing their thing on the French Riviera. If that sounds familiar, it’s because it was remade into an incredibly successful 1988 film called Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, starring Michael Caine and Steve Martin.)
But way back in 1970, she made a decision that shocked her agents, her peers, and maybe even a few fans. She traded in the glitz and glamour of the big screen for a psychedelic bus and a family of singing teenagers. Why? Well, it all came down to one thing: her kids.
Why Shirley Jones left the big screen for TV
You see, at the time, Shirley had three young sons, and she’d spent years traveling for movie shoots, which required her to be away from home for months at a time. She was tired of missing out on those precious moments with her boys.
Talking about family, Shirley said this to Closer Weekly back in 2021: “I am an only child, so to have all this family is amazing. You have to enjoy this moment, the now, because that’s really all we have.”
So, when the opportunity to star in The Partridge Family came along, she saw it as a chance to have it all: a career and a family life. The cool thing is that Shirley wasn’t just breaking ground in her personal life; she was breaking barriers on screen, too. She became one of the first working mothers on television.
Shirley Jones, TV revolutionary
Back then, TV moms were usually stay-at-home types, baking cookies and waiting for the kids to come home from school. In fact, Shirley had already passed on playing something like that when she turned down The Brady Bunch. But Shirley Partridge? Well, she was out there managing a band, booking gigs, and still being an awesome mom.
“As much as I enjoyed The Brady Bunch, I didn’t want to exclusively be the mother at home doing the domestic stuff,” Shirley told The Hollywood Reporter in 2020. “The Partridge Family had the added component of music, which I loved.”
Shirley’s decision wasn’t just groundbreaking, it was controversial. Her agents warned her that doing a TV show would be a big step down for a movie star. They told her it would kill her film career and she’d be stuck as Mrs. Partridge for the rest of her life. And, truthfully, they weren’t completely wrong.
After The Partridge Family, her movie career did take a back seat. But here’s the thing: she didn’t care. She knew exactly what she was signing up for and she had zero regrets. And honestly, can you blame her? Sure, she might’ve traded Oscar-worthy roles for singing “I Think I Love You,” but she gained something even more valuable: time with her family, a chance to be a present mom, and a legacy that still resonates today.
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November/December 2025
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