By Stuart Nulman
I, Rhoda by Valerie Harper (Gallery Books, $29.99)
At the conclusion of her just published memoir “I, Rhoda”, actress Valerie Harper had this to say about the role that she is forever identified with: “Rhoda (Morgenstern) and all the other women I’ve played have brought such joy and happiness into my life. They’ve allowed me, in different guises, to share the qualities I valued most in people – the abilities to laugh, to care, to be committed, to have fun, to contribute, to love. … (Rhoda) have kept me busy, kept me working and … have given that little girl who never stopped moving an outlet for her overflowing energy and enthusiasm. They have given her an excuse to overdo.”
For TV viewers who fondly remember Harper’s first audacious appearance as Mary Richard’s loud, brassy, anxiety-ridden neighbour (and eventual best friend) from New York City on the first episode of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1970, both Valerie Harper and Rhoda Morgenstern automatically won the hearts (and a lot of laughs) of those viewers, first as a scene-stealing supporting player, and then as the star of her own popular sitcom.
In “I, Rhoda”, Harper not only explains why Rhoda Morgenstern became the role of her career, but also the road that led to that defining TV moment when Rhoda was found dangling outside of Mary’s apartment and daringly told her to get out of her apartment!
One thing I found quite interesting when reading “I, Rhoda” was that Harper’s road to that role came through her background as a trained dancer, and found herself as part of the dancing ensembles of some of the most popular Broadway musicals of the late 50s and early 60s, such as “Li’l Abner”, “Take Me Along” with Jackie Gleason, and “Wildcat” with Lucille Ball. And thanks to her first marriage to actor Richard Schaal (who was also one of the original members of the Second City improv comedy troupe), Harper developed and sharpened her acting skills, which helped her get the part of Rhoda Morgenstern after only one audition.
When she became part of the ensemble cast of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show”, Harper credits Mary not only for being a good friend, but also a valuable mentor on how to be an actor, and an encouraging voice towards the rapid stardom that she was getting as one of the most memorable sitcom co-stars in TV history (which earned her Emmy Awards in 1971 and 72). When she was offered by CBS to star in her own spin-off series called “Rhoda”, Harper fretted over the fact if the show would be a hit or not, and asked Mary what would happen if the spin-off bombed, to which she replied “Then you’ll move back to Minneapolis,” (the city where the Mary Tyler Moore Show was based in).
We get another side of Valerie Harper in the book, such as how she became a committed volunteer to such causes as the passing of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) during the 70s and helping to eradicate world hunger. Then there’s the two main dramas of her life; her successful lawsuit against Lorimar Pictures in 1987 after they unceremoniously fired Harper from her NBC sitcom “Valerie” after two seasons (it was later retitled as “The Hogan Family” with Sandy Duncan as its star), and her successful battle against lung cancer.
Then there’s the recent phase of her acting career, as Harper somewhat mastered the theatrical genre of the one-woman show, in which she transformed herself into Pearl S. Buck, Golda Meir and Tallulah Bankhead for three separate stage productions which earned her critical and commercial success (not to mention a Tony Award nomination for the latter role).
“I, Rhoda” is an entertaining memoir of an all-encompassing life in show business. Through a great deal of honesty and graciousness (not to mention plenty of anecdotes), Valerie Harper proves that her six-decade career in entertainment was more than just the New York-born, head scarf-wearing, angst-ridden best known best friend a sitcom star could ever have.
This article was originally published in the January 26, 2013 edition of West End Times.
Stuart Nulman [email protected]
