"The Mary Tyler Moore Show" (or, TMTMS,) debuted in September 1970. Despite MTM as it's star and some very talented supporting characters, CBS did not like the idea of a young woman who was single-by-choice as a lead character. The show was given a poor time slot, and early reviews from test audiences and critics were less than favorable. So one may say it's odd how 7 years later (when the show aired it's final episode in March 1977,) it was one of the most awarded and critically acclaimed show not only of the 1970s, but of all time.
The first season is a shaky one for many (it happens to be my favorite.) Mary Richards, a 31 year old single woman working as associate producer for the fourth rate WJM news, is finding her footing in Minneapolis. What she lacks in confidence she makes up for in beauty --- never has MTM or the character of Mary Richards looked more beautiful with her long raven hair, mini skirts and dresses, and knee high boots. Many of the early episodes focus entirely on Mary, and while the scenes at her home were flourishing, the scenes featuring her at work were... well, a bit boring. This season can also be noted for showing Mary and the gang in the most settings (restaurants, dental offices, extracurricular clubs, outdoor shopping malls, house parties etc.)
By the second season, the writing had improved, although the first season *can* boast more memorable episodes. Nevertheless, the show strikes a finer balance between Mary at home with the wisecracking, pudgy Rhoda and the cultured, but snooty Phyllis, and her life at work with sarcastic Murray, dimwitted Ted, and the tough but lovable Lou. Was the second season better? From a critical point yes. But it's fresh appeal didn't match that of the first season.
It was the from the third season onward that things really were on a roll. The show was now a bona fide success (coming in at #10 in the Nielsen ratings for season 2,) thus giving the actors and writers a little leeway with the studio in terms of creative control. We see traces of "All in the Family" in this season as several TMTMS episodes deal with controversial issues like equal pay for woman, homosexuality, divorce and infidelity, birth control and premarital sex. But unlike "All in the Family," these episodes and points were deftly written and sensitively acted... it was a rare treat to see a point made without pushing it down the throats of viewers.
The fourth season was about the same as the third, although things got a bit steamier in the office with the addition of Sue Ann Nivens, the dimpled but slutty host of WJM's "The Happy Homemaker." Another character had been added as well - the soft-spoken but surprisingly intelligent Georgette, who becomes Ted's love interest. This was also the last season to feature Rhoda as a main character before she left to star in her own sitcom.
The fifth and sixth and seventh season were a change from the first four. With Rhoda gone, the writers had no choice but develop Mary into a more street smart, confident character. Her evolution can be seen throughout the first four seasons, but without Rhoda she had no best friend to ask advice from or talk about her dates with. She was now completely on her own and responsible for her own decisions. In the fifth season, she's promoted to the role of PRODUCER of the WJM news, a position few women held in the real world at the time. Another major development was the move she makes from her warm, stylish bachelor suite into a modern mid-1970s one bedroom high-rise. While her new home wasn't as 'cozy' or 'cute' as the first, it represented the financial and social gains she had made over the past six years.
The series would end in early 1977, just as television was pulling away from smart, adult- oriented comedy to a raunchier, sillier, more direct sense of comedy. The show essentially could have aired for another year, but the producers and MTM herself decided to go out while still on top. It's one of the few shows to air for such a long period of time and never experience any real decline in quality - a testament to the craft and talent of everyone involved in the show.
But TMTMS was more than just excellent comedy. It was a glowing testament that proved that a woman (or a man) could be in their 30s, could be single, and still live a productive and successful life. Somehow it disproved the fact that you were weird if you weren't married and didn't have a kid by the time you were 30. Whether MTM knows it or not, there's a whole generation of men and women who decided to go out and find themselves, get a career, and develop themselves as a human before rushing into a marriage and having kids. Taste is personal, but I feel safe in saying that no show has since done so much for it's viewers than TMTMS did. Some may be funny, some may be groundbreaking. But no show has ever made it's viewer feel less alone and more confident in themselves as working professionals and human beings than TMTMS did. And for that, I am grateful.
The first season is a shaky one for many (it happens to be my favorite.) Mary Richards, a 31 year old single woman working as associate producer for the fourth rate WJM news, is finding her footing in Minneapolis. What she lacks in confidence she makes up for in beauty --- never has MTM or the character of Mary Richards looked more beautiful with her long raven hair, mini skirts and dresses, and knee high boots. Many of the early episodes focus entirely on Mary, and while the scenes at her home were flourishing, the scenes featuring her at work were... well, a bit boring. This season can also be noted for showing Mary and the gang in the most settings (restaurants, dental offices, extracurricular clubs, outdoor shopping malls, house parties etc.)
By the second season, the writing had improved, although the first season *can* boast more memorable episodes. Nevertheless, the show strikes a finer balance between Mary at home with the wisecracking, pudgy Rhoda and the cultured, but snooty Phyllis, and her life at work with sarcastic Murray, dimwitted Ted, and the tough but lovable Lou. Was the second season better? From a critical point yes. But it's fresh appeal didn't match that of the first season.
It was the from the third season onward that things really were on a roll. The show was now a bona fide success (coming in at #10 in the Nielsen ratings for season 2,) thus giving the actors and writers a little leeway with the studio in terms of creative control. We see traces of "All in the Family" in this season as several TMTMS episodes deal with controversial issues like equal pay for woman, homosexuality, divorce and infidelity, birth control and premarital sex. But unlike "All in the Family," these episodes and points were deftly written and sensitively acted... it was a rare treat to see a point made without pushing it down the throats of viewers.
The fourth season was about the same as the third, although things got a bit steamier in the office with the addition of Sue Ann Nivens, the dimpled but slutty host of WJM's "The Happy Homemaker." Another character had been added as well - the soft-spoken but surprisingly intelligent Georgette, who becomes Ted's love interest. This was also the last season to feature Rhoda as a main character before she left to star in her own sitcom.
The fifth and sixth and seventh season were a change from the first four. With Rhoda gone, the writers had no choice but develop Mary into a more street smart, confident character. Her evolution can be seen throughout the first four seasons, but without Rhoda she had no best friend to ask advice from or talk about her dates with. She was now completely on her own and responsible for her own decisions. In the fifth season, she's promoted to the role of PRODUCER of the WJM news, a position few women held in the real world at the time. Another major development was the move she makes from her warm, stylish bachelor suite into a modern mid-1970s one bedroom high-rise. While her new home wasn't as 'cozy' or 'cute' as the first, it represented the financial and social gains she had made over the past six years.
The series would end in early 1977, just as television was pulling away from smart, adult- oriented comedy to a raunchier, sillier, more direct sense of comedy. The show essentially could have aired for another year, but the producers and MTM herself decided to go out while still on top. It's one of the few shows to air for such a long period of time and never experience any real decline in quality - a testament to the craft and talent of everyone involved in the show.
But TMTMS was more than just excellent comedy. It was a glowing testament that proved that a woman (or a man) could be in their 30s, could be single, and still live a productive and successful life. Somehow it disproved the fact that you were weird if you weren't married and didn't have a kid by the time you were 30. Whether MTM knows it or not, there's a whole generation of men and women who decided to go out and find themselves, get a career, and develop themselves as a human before rushing into a marriage and having kids. Taste is personal, but I feel safe in saying that no show has since done so much for it's viewers than TMTMS did. Some may be funny, some may be groundbreaking. But no show has ever made it's viewer feel less alone and more confident in themselves as working professionals and human beings than TMTMS did. And for that, I am grateful.