Legendary television actress Mary Tyler Moore, known for her roles on The Dick Van Dyke Show and The Mary Tyler Moore Show, has died at age 80, her representative Mara Buxbaum confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter
“Today, beloved icon, Mary Tyler Moore, passed away at the age of 80 in the company of friends and her loving husband of over 33 years, Dr. S. Robert Levine,” Buxbaum said in a statement.
Moore was well-known for her role of Laurie Petrie on The Dick Van Dyke Show, where she played a housewife to Dyke’s Rob. Her character caused quite a stir while the show was on the air from 1961 to 1966, as she usually wore capri pants instead of a dress, which was common for women on TV to wear at the time.
In 1970, she got her own show called The Mary Tyler Moore Show, which ran from 1970 to 1977. Once again, Moore’s character was something of an oddity of the time period, as she was an older woman who was unmarried and a career woman. Because of her role on the show, Moore became a feminist icon.
Throughout her career, Moore has won six Emmy awards, winning them in 1964, 1966, 1973, 1974, 1977 and 1993. She’s also won a Golden Globe and a Tony Award.
Moore has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which she received in 1992, was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1986 and received a Lifetime Achievement Award in Comedy from the American Comedy Awards in 1987.
She made an attempt to have two variety shows, which didn’t catch on, including Mary, which featured David Letterman and Michael Keaton.
In 1980, Moore starred in the Robert Redford-directed movie Ordinary People, where she played Beth Jarrett, a mother who blamed one of her sons for living when her other son, who was her favorite, died. For the role, she was nominated for an Academy Award.
In 2012, Moore underwent brain surgery to remove a meningioma, which is a benign brain tumor in the tissue lining of the brain.
Moore was married three times and had one child, who proceeded her in death. During the course of her life, she wrote two books, one where she revealed some personal struggles in her life, including her struggle with alcoholism, and the second which talks about her diabetes.