Valerie Harper dead at 80

Still remember her in Story Theatre. ( Foolish Gretl) Wonderful career wonderful life.

G*d bless. R.I.P.

I don't know which is the "official" in memoriam thread, so here's what I posted in the other one:

As I said in another thread awhile ago, Miss Harper was one of the nicest celebrities I have ever met. I was in high school, with a night job ushering at the local theater; she was at the height of her fame, having just left TMTM SHOW and begun her own spinoff, RHODA, but was touring with Paul Sills' STORY THEATRE out of loyalty to the company where she began her professional career.

I was also on the staff of my high school newspaper, and Harper and her then-husband, Richard Schaal, gave me a 2-hour interview for my school paper with its circulation of a thousand or so readers. We talked about everything from her early and then current work with Paul Sills to her TV shows (which I adored).

I expected maybe five to ten minutes of her time, but even when the show started she said, "Oh, we don't have to stop talking. I don't go on for 20 minutes."

The ensuing interview was deemed interesting enough to run almost in full, spreading to every page of that month's edition. It was in far more detail than anything published on that show in the local periodicals.

So very much enjoyed her funny and touching performance as Tallulah Bankhead in LOOPED about nine years ago on Broadway. I was rooting for her to win a Tony but it did not happen. I recall an interview she once did about dancing in the chorus of LI'L ABNER, where choreographer Michael Kidd put the cast through their paces, and then some. She admitted it was tough but was grateful to be whipped into shape that grueling year. And I loved her Rhoda. Rest in peace, trouper.

Back in the mid/ ate 90s, Harper visited my hometown (Providence) for about 2 weeks or so, as she was looking for a theater to premiere her work on Pearl S. Buck. One of my very close friends was the assistant manager at the theater she chose, and was privvy to most of the negotiations going on (and he was a huge fan of hers). She wanted the theater for quite a few months, and she wanted to make some significant changes to the backstage area for some reason (I can't recall why), which she offered to pay. Unfortunately, they couldn't accommodate her with the changes because of the historic preservation society and this being a historic theater (our PHS is very, very, very strict).

Over the few weeks she was here, he did say negotiations turned 'ugly', as she couldn't understand why they wouldn't accommodate her and called them unreasonable. She left on 'bad terms', which shocked everyone. A few months later, she revisited the theater and asked everyone to meet with her for a luncheon the next day at a nearby restaurant. She apologized to everyone about how she behaved during negotiations, and explained she was so passionate about this work, she didn't want anything to get in her way and realized later how unreasonable she was being. She asked everyone to forgive her, and made amends, promising she would be back some day to star in one of their productions if they'd let her. (It never happened, for whatever reason, but they would have wanted her). She also said she most appreciated none of the negotiations or the 'friction' never made it to the press (everyone kept quiet back then). She didn't want that ruining her production.

Classy lady.

fbueller said: "Wasn’t Valerie also reported to be difficult on the set of her NBC sitcom ‘Valerie’? That fight got pretty nasty, leading to a major lawsuit.

Supposedly, the production company reneged on salary promises they had made to her. She and her husband sued and won and were awarded around 2 million (I think) and I think she got some percentage of show profits, too. That indicates that whatever stand she took was warranted.

As Ed Asner said in his recent tribute to her, 'she had bigger balls than mine" (he meant that respectfully and in admiration of her willingness to stand up for what she believed in).

It's funny, I was just thinking of her and how her assement at the start of I, Rhoda was premature (I think it goes "By the time you are reading this, I will probably be dead), and how happy I was she was still around.

Now this.

I liked her a lot. There's a great line in the New York Times obit from the time of the first season of Mary Tyler Moore, which she did in conjunction with giving performances in a Broadway show. The New York Times Magazine ran a piece that included the line "“The sexiest chick on Broadway has a regular job moonlighting as an overweight spinster on television.” Valerie Harper (as with Rhoda) was always beautiful, on the inside and out. She will be missed. Her contribution to comedy and to television is eternal.

AADA81 said: "fbueller said: "Wasn’t Valerie also reported to be difficult on the set of her NBC sitcom ‘Valerie’? That fight got pretty nasty, leading to a major lawsuit.

Supposedly, the production companyreneged on salary promises they had made to her. She and her husband sued and won and were awarded around 2 million (I think) and I think she got some percentage of show profits, too. That indicates that whatever stand she took was warranted.

As Ed Asner said in his recent tribute to her, 'she had bigger balls than mine" (he meant that respectfully and in admiration of her willingness to stand up for what she believed in).



Friends connected with DWTS weren't too happy with her, either. Basically they felt she had a real chance of winning but she skipped a lot of rehearsal time.

"

My money is on a "no" to the light dimming. Charlotte and her cronies won't think she was 1) closely enough connected to Broadway and 2) not famous enough.

They don't want to "diminish" the tribute.

Feh.

Updated On: 9/1/19 at 06:49 PM