By Quin Hillyer at The Spectacle blog;
The wonderful, ever-lovable Mary Tyler Moore has died at age 80, after decades of “turn[ing] the world on with her smile.” She leaves behind two of the most winsome characters in television history — Laura Petrie in The Dick Van Dyke Show and Mary Richards in her own Mary Tyler Moore show. She also leaves a legacy of admirable, effective service on behalf of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and for humane treatment of animals. She endured her own diabetes, defeated alcoholism, recovered from a benign brain tumor, and, bravely got her life back together after her son accidentally shot himself to death while handling a defective shotgun. Perhaps she was no saint, but she handled most of her troubles with dignity and grace….
… For those under age 50, or maybe 48, it might be hard to imagine just how big a deal Mary Tyler Moore was. The character she played in her eponymous sitcom was so eminently lovable (without ever being cloying, saccharine, or preachy) that women wanted to be her, men wanted to marry someone like her, and children had innocent crushes on her…..
For the rest of my fond tribute, please follow this link.