Mary Tyler Moore

"The Mary Tyler Moore Show" is absolutely my FAVORITE television show of all time, with "The Dick Van Dyke Show" falling a hair behind. I love all the characters of the MTM show...they all had great lines, and those actors knew how to deliver. Mary Tyler Moore exemplified true sportsmanship in making this whole show a wonderful example of COMPLETE ensemble acting. Every character had his/her shining moments, time and time again. I was about nine when this show debuted, and truly grew up with it. I used to hate Ted, because he was so unbelievably stupid. However, now that I've spent twenty or so years in the work world, I have had the complete displeasure of working with Ted Baxters everywhere....so many who rise to their level of complete incompetence. And over the years, in watching reruns, I have come to fully appreciate Ted Knight's genius in his portrayal of Ted Baxter. The episode in which Mary is simply feeling completely down in the dumps...her motivation is gone for no apparent reason, other than the fact that she has hit a slump (a "new apartment" episode). Ted Knight's portrayal of Ted Baxter imitating her in her slumpy condition, and repeating the whole scene with identical dialog but with a completely different attitude, basically showing Mary that she has to appreciate what she has in life, and look at it all with a different, positive perspective, was sheer comedic genius at its finest.

The final episode of this series portrayed my comment about Corporate America very realistically, and the episode itself is one for a time capsule....just bottle it up. Ditto for the "Chuckles the Clown" episode...and for the "Veal Prince Orloff" episode. Actually, I'd love to put all of MTM's episodes, along with those from the Dick Van Dyke Show, in a time capsule and send them into space. Nick at Nite should run episodes only from MTM, the Dick Van Dyke Show, Bob Newhart, and The Wonder Years. That is all that that station needs, and I'm sure that the ratings would go through the roof. But back to Mary....her show was a brilliant gem that graced the world of American television, and no other show will ever hold a candle to it....EVER. Yes, Seinfeld was funny, and "breakthrough", in being a show about nothing, and it even offered phrases that entered our vernacular. But it missed the one key element that MTM had in spades...heart. The Seinfeld show, as funny as it always was, really never made you cry or pulled at your heart strings...ever (other than maybe making you cry from laughter). The MTM Show, on the other hand, combined humor, drama, reality, the absurd, the sublime, and a lot of warmth all rolled into one magnificent, shining, seven-year love-fest for our pop culture, and I thank Mary for giving us this bright light. In a comic strip that was published I believe just the Sunday after the last episode aired, a man was depicted throwing his television set out his window, crying. The cartoonist captured the national sentiment quite beautifully. I miss Mary and her gang to this day. Thank goodness for the complete DVD set.

This truly was one of the first ensemble driven situation comedies in the history of television. Even though Mary Tyler Moore was the star of the show, the fact was that the series truly revolved around her relationships with not only her friends at home, but her friends on the job and when those two worlds collided, sparks usually flew. Also, this show was really funny when Valerie Harper was still on the show playing Rhoda. She and Mary were polar opposites (Mary the cheerful optimist and Rhoda the angry cynic). However, those differences was what made their relationship shine. Cloris Leachman was also perfect as the over bearing Phyllis Lindstrom. And lets not forget the other characters; cynical Lou, the optimistic Murray and, of course, dimwitted Ted Baxter. This show definitely one of the all time classics and made Saturday nights worth staying home.

Another interesting fact about this show is the fact that it debuted during the final season of the original series about a single woman trying to make it, "That Girl". However, while Ann pretty much was still an innocent little girl at heart that had a boyfriend and often still relied on him and her parents to get her out of jams, Mary Richards proved that she could be single and live her life on her own terms.

The backstory: Mary Richards moves to Minneapolis, MN, specifically into an apartment with a sunken in living room. She applies for a job at a local television newsroom with high aspirations. The show not only deals with situation comedy, but with how a woman could "make it after all" in a male dominated workforce. Mary becomes close with her newsroom family, from tough-love boss Lou Grant to bumbling news anchorman Ted Baxter. She also deals with wacky neighbor Phyllis and of course, wise cracking Rhoda. The show is great because you care about all the characters and while funny, it can still deliver a strong message. Truly one of the best shows on television.

Right up there with the Dick Van Dyke show, in fact directed by some of the same people, this is another great sitcom. It seems they come along once a decade or so, and this is definitely a great one. Mary Tyler Moore is the newly liberated woman at work, dealing with all the same sexist stuff she dealt with in 1961 on the Dick Van Dyke show, but in a totally different way. The supporting cast is marvelous, from Ed Asner to Valerie Harper (as 'Rhoda') to the irrepressible Ted Knight as the vain news anchor. Hysterical stuff.

I always enjoyed The Mary Tyler Moore Show. The characters were all funny, especially the goofy fights between Ted Baxter and Murray Slaughter. Lou Grant ("I hate spunk!") was always good for a laugh, especially the episode where he ended up drunk on Mary's doorstep!

Of course, the real two stars of the series were Mary Tyler Moore (duh) as Mary Richards and Valerie Harper as her best friend, Rhoda Morgenstern. My all-time favorite episode is the second one, where the two host a small gathering at Mary's apartment for two potential suitors, and everything goes wrong!

A true classic, and it earned every Emmy it got.