Valerie Harper

Unfortunately, I never met Valerie Harper. I saw her once on stage and went to numerous RHODA filmings but never actually met her. Judging by the photos on Facebook I think I’m the only one in show business who didn’t. But I know all those other people who did and they all, to a person, loved her. And she made a huge impact on popular culture. Rhoda Morgenstern was a clearly Jewish character who was embraced by America.

Trust me when I say you would create a Jewish character for a sitcom pilot and the network would say, “Uh, she’s too urban” or my favorite: “She’s too… New York.” We knew what that was code for.

But Valerie broke through all of that. Her “Rhoda” was unapologeticaly Jewish and as such, unapologeticaly FUNNY. She brought a warmth and likability to that character that not only made her accepted, but beloved by the public. When they spun her off into her own series her wedding was watched by 53 million people. THE BIG BANG THEORY grand series finale drew 18 million.

In fairness, a tremendous amount of credit for Rhoda’s success was also the “voice” of that character, MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW writer Treva Silverman. Treva knew just how to write her. It’s quite a trick to make an ethnic character authentic, universal, sympathetic, and hilariously funny. But Treva’s words and Valerie’s performance elevated Rhoda to a television icon.

I invite you to watch the first few seasons of THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW when she and Treva were really hitting their stride. I’ll be honest, THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW was never as good after both she and Treva left.

But that was a long time ago. Valerie played many great parts, touched many lives, and took many photos in the subsequent 40 years. I’m sorry I never did get the chance to meet her. And thank her. I did get to write for her. Okay, it was a RHODA spec that was rejected all over town but STILL.

The thing is, you didn’t need to meet Valerie Harper to love her. And 53 million people did. To me that’s an even greater legacy.

from By Ken Levine