WEEKEND REWIND: The Mary Tyler Moore Show

THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW
September 19, 1970 - March 19, 1977
168 episodes
Starring: Mary Tyler Moore, Ed Asner, Valerie Harper, Gavin MacLeod, Ted Knight, Betty White, Georgia Engel, Cloris Leachman

The Mary Tyler Moore Show is a classic sitcom by almost anyone's standards but I would go one step further and say it was more consistently excellent than any other show in television history. Most shows, even the best of them, have dud episodes or dud seasons but not The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Each episode was the highest of quality thanks to incredibly talented writers, directors, and actors. It was a sophisticated show in the 1970s that holds up well in the 2010s with some of the most developed and wonderful characters in sitcom history.

Of course at the center of the show is Mary Tyler Moore as the ever-perky, single, working girl Mary Richards. She broke sitcom barriers by being a career woman in her 30s without a husband or children or even a steady boyfriend. But unlike Norman Lear's shows, it was never controversial. Mary and the show didn't push the envelope, they just evolved as the nation was evolving. A brilliant cast member of The Dick Van Dyke Show, Mary shined in the center of her own show with great comedic timing and special relationships with each of her fellow characters. She was exactly what a star of a great ensemble should be - the glue that holds the group together but one that can step back and let other talents shine. And what great talents they were.

As Mary's gruff but lovable boss at the 6:00 News on WJM, Lou Grant, Ed Asner was a great foil and friend to Moore throughout the show's run. Some of the best scenes in the series took place between Mary and Lou in Lou's office. Asner took a character that could have been somewhat of a caricature as a gruff boss and turned him into a very dynamic character with some serious vulnerability. Mary's best friend in the office was Head Writer Murray Slaughter (Gavin MacLeod) who always was ready with a quick joke or a supportive comment. He was the unheralded member of the newsroom and of the talented cast but his presence was essential throughout the show's run. And then there was the egocentric and dimwitted anchorman Ted Baxter (Ted Knight). Just like Asner, Knight took a character that could have been one dimensional and made him a memorable and beloved supporting character. Knight could play dumb with the best of them but his Ted Baxter was a layered performance that few actors could pull off with such ease.

Another sign of a great show is the ability to replace popular cast members with new popular cast members and The Mary Tyler Moore Show excelled at that as well. In the early years, one of the main parts of the show was Mary's home life with her neighbors Rhoda and Phyllis. As New Yorker Rhoda Morgenstern, Valerie Harper was one of the best sidekicks of all time. Brassy and self-deprecating, she was an opposite of Mary in many ways but they clicked as best friends and they truly did seem like best friends. Rhoda was responsible for most of the funniest lines in the early years. Phyllis Lindstrom (Cloris Leachman) was the landlord of the building Mary and Rhoda lived in and was a friend to Mary but foil to Rhoda. Leachman wasn't in too many episodes but was hilarious in the ones she was in as the irritating and needy but well-intentioned Phyllis. When both Rhoda and Phyllis spun off to their own shows, the show shifted more towards the newsroom and introduced two new characters. As "Happy Homemaker" Sue Ann Nivens, Betty White had the perfect mix of sweet and sassy. She could deliver a downright nasty line with a sugary sweetness that caused cringing and laughter all at once. As Ted's girlfriend and eventual wife Georgette, Georgia Engel began a long career playing up her soft spoken naivete. Not the brightest bulb in the box either, she was the perfect match for the bombastic Ted and allowed his character some new dimensions as well.

The Mary Tyler Moore Show was a TV classic from start to finish. It was a perfect storm of brilliance from the classic first episode when Lou Grant told Mary she's got spunk and then declared "I hate spunk" to the classic last episode where the entire WJM team is fired except for Ted and has a sentimental and funny group hug to say goodbye. There have been many great sitcoms for many great reasons but the consistency in the writing and acting and one of the best ensembles of all time made The Mary Tyler Moore Show quite possibly the best of them all.

THE TOP 10 EPISODES OF "THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW"
As always, this is based on personal opinion.

Close Calls - #8 "The Snow Must Go On," #145 "Mary Midwife," #91 "Best of Enemies," #54 "Rhoda the Beautiful," #49 "The Good Time News"

10. #168 "The Last Show" (first aired March 19, 1977)
In one of the best series finales of all time, the entire WJM gang is fired except for Ted. After return appearances by Rhoda and Phyllis and denial by Mary, the gang says a heartfelt goodbye with a moving (literally) group hug. It was a great and somewhat ironic ending to a classic series.

9. #87 "Happy Birthday Lou" (first aired December 22, 1973)
In one of Mary's many disastrous parties, she plans a surprise party for Lou's birthday. The only problem is he hates surprise parties so a stressed Mary must bring in guests one by one to appease Lou. It's a great episode for showcasing the great relationship between Mary and Lou.

"Chuckles Bites the Dust"

8. #127 "Chuckles Bites the Dust" (first aired October 25, 1975)
It may be the most classic episode of the series and it's for good reason. When Chuckles the Clown is killed in bizarre fashion, the entire newsroom think it's funny except for Mary until the funeral when everyone keeps it under control except Mary who can't control her laughter. The actual funeral is a comedic masterpiece by Mary Tyler Moore as she desperately tries to contain her laughter.

7. #29 "A Girl's Best Friend is Not Her Mother" (first aired October 16, 1971)
Any episode with a visit from Nancy Walker as Ida Morgenstern was a great episode and this is no exception. Ida is desperate to be friends with daughter Rhoda and even tries to dress the same as her. It's a great dynamic between mother and daughter that continued in the spinoff series Rhoda.

6. #1 "Love is All Around" (first aired September 19, 1970)
A pilot episode is always tricky but The Mary Tyler Moore Show had a great one with already well-developed characters. From Mary's awkward interview with Lou for a job to the Rhoda's initial hatred of Mary, it set the tone for a great series.

5. #82 "The Dinner Party" (first aired November 17, 1973)
Mary is hosting a dinner party for a congresswoman and (surprise) it does not go very well. Rhoda brings a date (Henry Winkler) who has to sit at another table because Mary had a strict planned number. But what makes this episode is the famous line when Lou takes half of the Veal Prince Orloff and Mary, in a desperate manner that only Moore can do, says "Mr. Grant you gotta put some back."

"Put on a Happy Face"

4. #71 "Put on a Happy Face" (first aired February 24, 1973)
Typically perfect Mary is having a rotten week as she is sick, sprains her ankle, and has an incurable hair bump. This is one of the funniest episodes of the series as Ted becomes disaster Mary's date to the Teddy Awards and Rhoda revels in Mary having troubles for once.

3. #6 "Support Your Local Mother" (first aired October 24, 1970)
The first episode with Ida Morgenstern is the best and a great showcase for Rhoda. Ida stays with Mary when she has a fight with Rhoda and Mary soon learns why Rhoda is driven crazy by her mother. This has many great moments including a touching end but the best moment might be Mary and Rhoda's "code language" on the phone when Ida shows up.

2. #14 "Christmas and the Hard Luck Kid" (first aired December 19, 1970)
The best Christmas episode of all time - for any show - has Mary working on Christmas Eve all alone. This has every element of a great Christmas episode and great performances from the whole cast - from Rhoda's Christmas Eve excitement to Lou's awkward moment as he fills in an amount on a gift check to Mary, it's a classic Christmas episode and a classic Mary episode.

"The Lars Affair"

1. #73 "The Lars Affair" (first aired September 15, 1973)
But the best episode of this classic series is the first appearance of Betty White and the finest performance from Cloris Leachman. Phyllis' husband Lars is having an affair with White's Sue Ann Nivens. Leachman won a well deserved Emmy and she is hilarious from start to finish as she tastes her pie with disgust and then the final scene with Sue Ann that also includes a great moment with Mary. It was a memorable first appearance for a classic character and a shining moment for another classic character.