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Maureen McCormick Dedicates ‘DWTS’ Most Memorable Year Dance To The Love Of Her Life, Her Husband Michael Cummings

By Victoria Miller
Published on: 10:38 PST, Oct 10, 2016

Maureen McCormick has a lot to be thankful for, and she’s channeling all of that gratitude into this week’s routine on Dancing With the Stars. McCormick danced a foxtrot with pro partner Artem Chigvintsev as part of the Most Memorable Year theme week on the ABC celebrity ballroom competition. Maureen took to Twitter to tease that she would be dancing for “the love of [her] life,” her husband, Michael Cummings.

Maureen McCormick’s Most Memorable Year dance was extremely emotional. The 60-year-old actress wears her heart on her sleeve and last week she told Entertainment Weekly that she cries a lot because the DWTS experience has been so emotional.

“I’m emotional about everything. I feel a lot, and I love it,” McCormick told EW.

Indeed, the tears were flowing as the judges raved about Maureen’s “angelic” dance and gave her her highest score to date: 24 points.

While her TV persona, Marcia Brady, had a seemingly perfect life, Maureen McCormick has been vocal about her real life struggles with drugs and eating disorders. In 1985, McCormick married the love of her life, Michael Cummings, after meeting him at church.

“Jerry Houser, who played my husband on The Brady Brides, took me to church one day,” Maureen told Newsweek. “It was an amazing thing for me. I totally reconnected with God. This is where I met my husband, Michael—it was love at first sight. ”

In her 2008 memoir Here’s the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice, McCormick credited her husband with saving her life, and she reiterated that statement during her DWTS opening package. Michael has been by Maureen’s side since 1985.

In addition to her husband of 30 years, Maureen has another love of her life: her daughter, Natalie, who was born in 1990. In a 2008 interview with EW, McCormick revealed that she runs all of her TV offers past her daughter. In fact, it was Natalie’s idea for Maureen to sign on to VH1’s Celebrity Fit Club in 2005—and the former child star won the show after shedding more weight than fellow celeb contestants Dustin Diamond and rapper Warren G.

“I always ask her, ‘Is this going to embarrass you?’ Is this a good one or not?'” Maureen said of her daughter. “She steered me away from The Surreal Life. We watch reality shows together. We watch Sex and the City together. We love to watch old I Love Lucys.”

But the first love of Maureen McCormick’s life may just be her brother, Denny. Maureen’s older brother was born with an intellectual disability and she has been passionate about supporting him. When she appeared on the reality show I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here, McCormick revealed that when Denny was born her parents were told that he should be institutionalized or put away, but they fought for his right to live a normal life.

But after Maureen’s mother passed away from cancer, Denny had to be placed in a group home because he needed full-time care. In an interview with People, McCormick recalled that she felt guilty about sending Denny to a home because she loves her brother so much, but that it was the right decision because he has a better quality of life now.

“I cried every day, I had so much guilt,” Maureen said of her brother. “He needs full-time care. Now I can see he has more of a life, but everything [happened] at once.”

In addition to her real life family, Maureen has plenty of love for her Brady Bunch family. Florence Henderson, who played McCormick’s mom on The Brady Bunch, made a cameo on DWTS to show support for her former co-star, and she also spoke about her TV daughter’s rough time in dealing with the aftermath of Marcia Brady.

And Chris Knight, who played Peter Brady on the ’70s sitcom, posted a message saying that he is proud of his TV sister, Maureen McCormick. Knight also spoke about McCormick for the DWTS package.

Take a look at the video below to see Maureen McCormick pay tribute to her husband Michael on Dancing With the Stars.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bOHaiE8tP4

[Featured Image by Matt Winklemeyer/Getty Images]

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