Valerie Harper
Valerie Harper | |
---|---|
Harper at a 2007 SAG Foundation brunch | |
Born |
Valerie Kathryn Harper August 22, 1939 Suffern, New York, U.S. |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1959–present |
Spouse(s) |
Richard Schaal (m. 1964; div. 1978) Tony Cacciotti (m. 1987) |
Children | 1 |
Website | Official website |
Valerie Kathryn Harper (born August 22, 1939)[1][2] is an American actress.
She is best known for her roles as Rhoda Morgenstern in the 1970s television series The Mary Tyler Moore Show and its spin-off, Rhoda, and later as Valerie Hogan in Valerie. She is a four-time Primetime Emmy Award winner. Her notable film roles include Freebie and the Bean (1974), and Chapter Two (1979), both of which garnered her Golden Globe Award nominations.
Harper is also known for her stage work, having appeared in several Broadway productions. She started her career as a dancer on Broadway, making her debut in the musical Take Me Along in 1959. In 2010, she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her performance as Talullah Bankhead in the play Looped.
Early life
Harper was born in Suffern, New York, the daughter of Iva Mildred (née McConnell; 1910—1988)[3] and Howard Donald Harper. Her father was a lighting salesman, and her mother was born in Canada and trained as a nurse. She is the middle child of three siblings. She has an older sister, Leah; a younger brother, Merrill (who later took the name "Don") and a half-sister, Virginia, from her father's second marriage.
She claims her parents were expecting a boy and after her arrival, her first and middle names derived from that year's women's doubles tennis champions, Valerie Scott and Kay Stammers.[4][5][6] She is of French, English, Irish, Scottish, and Welsh ancestry.[7] Harper claims to have based her future character Rhoda Morgenstern on her Italian stepmother, Angela Posillico, and Penny Ann Green (née Joanna Greenberg), with whom she danced in the Broadway musical Wildcat.[8][2] She was raised Catholic,[9] although at an early age she "quit" the church.[10]
The family moved every two years due to her father's work, attending schools in South Orange, New Jersey; Pasadena, California; Monroe, Michigan; Ashland, Oregon; and Jersey City, New Jersey. When her family returned to Oregon, Harper remained in the New York City area to study ballet. She attended Lincoln High School in Jersey City, graduating from the private Young Professionals School on West 56th Street, where classmates included Sal Mineo, Tuesday Weld, and Carol Lynley.[2]
Career
Broadway dancer and improv
Harper began as a dancer and chorus girl on Broadway, and went on to perform in several Broadway shows, some choreographed by Michael Kidd, including Wildcat (starring Lucille Ball), Take Me Along (starring Jackie Gleason), and Subways Are For Sleeping. In-between she was also cast in Destry Rides Again but was forced to leave rehearsals due to illness. Her roommate, actress Arlene Golonka, introduced her to Second City improvisation theater and to improv performer Dick Schaal, whom Harper later married in 1965. Harper was stepmother to Schaal's daughter, Wendy, an actress. They lived in Greenwich Village.[2] She returned to Broadway in February 2010, playing Tallulah Bankhead in Matthew Lombardo's Looped at the Lyceum Theatre.[11]
Harper appeared in a bit part in the film version of Li'l Abner (1959), playing a Yokumberry Tonic wife. She broke into television on an episode of the soap opera The Doctors ("Zip Guns can Kill"). She was an extra in Love with the Proper Stranger. She was in the ensemble cast of Paul Sill's Story Theatre[12] and toured with Second City with Schaal, Linda Lavin and others, later appearing in sketches on Playboy After Dark. Harper performed several characters in a comedy LP, When You're in Love the Whole World is Jewish, which included the popular novelty single, The Ballad of Irving, a recitation by TV announcer Frank Gallop. Harper and Schaal moved to Los Angeles in 1968, and co-wrote an episode of Love, American Style.[2]
Television
While doing theater in Los Angeles in 1970, Harper was spotted by casting agent Ethel Winant, who called her in to audition for the role of Rhoda Morgenstern on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.[2] She co-starred from 1970–1974 and then starred in the spin-off series, Rhoda (CBS 1974-1978) in which her character returned to New York.
She won four Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award for her work as Rhoda Morgenstern throughout this period. In 2000, Harper reunited with Moore in Mary and Rhoda, a TV movie that brought their characters together again in later life.[13] The first season of Rhoda was released on DVD on April 21, 2009, by Shout! Factory.[14]
She was nominated for a Golden Globe for "New Star of the Year" for her role in Freebie and The Bean (1974).[15] Harper was a guest star on The Muppet Show in 1976, its first season.[16]
Harper returned to situation comedy in 1986 when she played family matriarch Valerie Hogan on the NBC series Valerie.[17] Following a salary dispute with NBC and production company Lorimar in 1987, Harper was fired from the series at the end of its second season.[17][18][19][20][21] Harper sued NBC and Lorimar for breach of contract. Her claims against NBC were dismissed, but the jury found that Lorimar had wrongfully fired her and awarded her $1.4 million plus 12.5 percent of the show's profits.[19][20] The series continued without her with the explanation that her character had died off-screen.[17][18] In 1987, it was initially renamed Valerie's Family and then The Hogan Family, as Harper was replaced by actress Sandy Duncan, who played her sister-in-law Sandy Hogan.[17] NBC canceled The Hogan Family in 1990, but it was picked up by CBS for a final season.[22]
Harper appeared in various television movies, including a performance as Maggie in a production of the Michael Cristofer play The Shadow Box, directed by Paul Newman, and in guest roles on such series as Melrose Place (1998) and Sex and the City (1999).
Later career
Harper is a member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and ran for president in the 2001 election, losing to Melissa Gilbert. She served on the Hollywood Board of Directors of SAG.[23]
In 2005 through 2006, Harper portrayed Golda Meir in a US National tour of the one-woman drama Golda's Balcony.[24][25] A film of this production was released in 2007.[26]
She played Tallulah Bankhead in the world-premiere production of Matthew Lombardo's Looped at the Pasadena Playhouse from June 27 to August 3, 2008,[27][28] and at Arena Stage[29] in Washington, D.C., in 2009. The play had a brief run on Broadway at the Lyceum Theatre, from February 2010 (previews) through April 2010.[11][30] She played Claire Bremmer, aunt of Susan Delfino (Teri Hatcher), on ABC's Desperate Housewives in 2011.[31]
On September 4, 2013, Harper was announced as a contestant for the 17th season of Dancing with the Stars. She was partnered with professional dancer Tristan MacManus.[32] Harper and MacManus were voted off on October 7, 2013.
Activism and charity work
In the 1970s/80s, Harper was involved in the Women's Liberation Movement and was an advocate of the Equal Rights Amendment.[33] With Dennis Weaver she co-founded L.I.F.E. in 1983, a charity that fed thousands of needy in Los Angeles.[34][35]
Personal life
Harper married actor Richard Schaal in 1964. They divorced in 1978. Harper later married Tony Cacciotti in 1987; the couple have a daughter by adoption.[36]
In 2009, Harper was diagnosed with lung cancer.[37] She announced on March 6, 2013, that tests from a January hospital stay revealed she has leptomeningeal carcinomatosis, a rare condition in which cancer cells spread into the meninges, the membranes surrounding the brain. She said her doctors had given her as little as three months' life expectancy.[38] Although the disease was reported to be incurable, her doctors said they were treating her with chemotherapy in an effort to slow its progress.[39] In April 2014, Harper said she was responding well to the treatment.[40] On July 30, 2015, Harper was hospitalized in Maine after falling unconscious, and taken via medevac to a larger hospital for further treatment.[41][42][43] She was later discharged.[44]
Filmography
Films
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1956 | Rock Rock Rock! | Dancer at Prom (uncredited) | |
1959 | Li'l Abner | Luke's Wife (uncredited) | |
1963 | Trash Program | Wife (voice, uncredited) | Short film |
1969 | With a Feminine Touch | ||
1973 | Shape of Things, TheThe Shape of Things | Herself | Television movie |
1974 | Thursday's Game | Ann Menzente | Television movie |
1974 | Freebie and the Bean | Consuelo | Nominated—Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress |
1977 | Night Terror | Carol Turner | Television movie |
1979 | Chapter Two | Faye Medwick | Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture |
1980 | Last Married Couple in America, TheThe Last Married Couple in America | Barbara | |
1980 | Fun and Games | Carol Hefferman | Television movie |
1980 | Shadow Box, TheThe Shadow Box | Maggie | Television movie |
1981 | The Day the Loving Stopped | Norma Danner | Television movie |
1982 | Farrell for the People | Elizabeth "Liz" Farrell | Television movie |
1982 | Don't Go to Sleep | Laura | Television movie |
1983 | Invasion of Privacy, AnAn Invasion of Privacy | Kate Bianchi | Television movie |
1984 | Blame It on Rio | Karen Hollis | |
1985 | Execution, TheThe Execution | Hannah Epstein | Television movie |
1987 | Strange Voices | Lynn Glover | Television movie |
1988 | Drop-Out Mother | Nora Cromwell | Television movie |
1988 | People Across the Lake, TheThe People Across the Lake | Rachel Yoman | Television movie |
1990 | Stolen: One Husband | Katherine Slade | Television movie |
1991 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Fatal Fashion | Dyan Draper | Television movie |
1993 | Poetry Hall of Fame, TheThe Poetry Hall of Fame | Herself | Television movie |
1994 | Friend to Die For, AA Friend to Die For | Mrs. Delvecchio | Television movie |
1995 | Great Mom Swap, TheThe Great Mom Swap | Grace Venessi | Television movie |
1997 | Dog's Best Friend | Chicken (voice) | Television movie |
2000 | Mary and Rhoda | Rhoda Morgenstern-Rousseau | Television movie |
2002 | Dancing at the Harvest Moon | Claire | Television movie |
2007 | Golda's Balcony | Golda Meir | |
2011 | Shiver | Audrey Alden | |
2011 | My Future Boyfriend | Bobbi Moreau | Television movie |
2011 | Fixing Pete | Mrs. Friedlander | Television movie |
2011 | Certainty | Kathryn | |
2014 | The Town That Came A-Courtin' | Charlotte | Television movie |
2015 | Merry Xmas | Mother | 7 minute short |
2016 | My Mom and the Girl | Norma/Nanny | 22 minute short |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1970–1977 | Mary Tyler Moore Show, TheThe Mary Tyler Moore Show | Rhoda Morgenstern | 92 episodes Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (1971–73) Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (1973–74) Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series |
1971 | Story Theatre | Unknown | Unknown episodes |
1971 | Love, American Style | Barbara Watkins | Episode: "Love and the Housekeeper" |
1972 | Columbo | Eve Babcock | Episode: "The Most Crucial Game" |
1974–1978 | Rhoda | Rhoda Morgenstern Gerard | 110 episodes Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (1976–78) |
1976 | The Muppet Show | Herself | Episode: "Valerie Harper" |
1982 | Fridays | Herself | 1 episode |
1986 | Love Boat, TheThe Love Boat | Laurel Peters | 2 episodes: "Egyptian Cruise Part 1 & Part 2" |
1986–1987 | Valerie | Valerie Hogan | 32 episodes |
1990 | City | Liz Gianni | 13 episodes |
1994 | Missing Persons | Ellen Hartig | 3 episodes: "All They Had to Do Was Ask..." and "Tell Me You Didn't Do It... I'll Go to the Wall for You" and "What Do You Want... A Signed Confession?" |
1995 | The Office | Rita Stone | 6 episodes |
1996–1999 | Touched by an Angel | Kate Prescott | 2 episodes: "Flesh and Blood" (1996) and "Full Circle" (1999) |
1996 | Promised Land | Molly Arnold | Episode: "The Magic Gate" |
1998 | Generator Gawl | Various (voice) | Unknown episodes |
1998 | Melrose Place | Mia Mancini | 2 episodes: "Mama Mia" and "Last Train to Bagdad" |
1998 | Sorcerous Stabber Orphen | Townspeople (voice) | Episode: "The Sword of Baltanders" |
1999 | Sex and the City | Wallis Wysel | Episode: "Shortcomings" |
2000 | Beggars and Choosers | Unknown | Episode: "Be Careful What You Wish For" |
2000 | As Told by Ginger | Maryellen (voice) | Episode: "The Wedding Frame" |
2001 | That '70s Show | Paula | Episode: "Eric's Naughty No-no" |
2001 | Family Law | Julia | Episode: "Clemency" |
2001 | Three Sisters | Merle Keats | 2 episodes: "The In Laws" and "Three Thanksgivings, One Turkey" |
2003−2004 | Less Than Perfect | Judith | 2 episodes: "Claude's Alternative Thanksgiving" and "Mom's the Word" |
2005 | Committed | Lily Solomon | Episode: "The Mother Episode" |
2009 | 'Til Death | Barbara | Episode: "The Courtship of Eddie's Parents" |
2011 | Desperate Housewives | Claire Bremmer | Episode: "Where Do I Belong" |
2011–2012 | Drop Dead Diva | Judge Leslie Singer | 2 episodes: "Bride-a-Palooza" and "Freak Show" |
2013 | The Simpsons | Test Proctor | Episode: "A Test Before Trying" |
2013 | Hot in Cleveland | Angie | Episode: "Love Is All Around" |
2013 | Dancing with the Stars | Herself (Contestant) | Season 17, eliminated week 4 |
2014 | American Dad! | IHOP Diner | Episode: "Cock of the Sleepwalk" |
2014 | Signed, Sealed, Delivered[45] | Theresa Capodiamonte | Guest star; 2 episodes: "Time to Start Livin' " and "To Whom It May Concern" |
2015 | Melissa & Joey | Aunt Bunny | Episode: "Thanks But No Thanks" |
2015 | 2 Broke Girls | Nola | Episode: "And The Great Unwashed" |
2016 | Childrens Hospital | Mamma Fiorucci, head of the Fiorucci crime family | Episode: "Childrens Horsepital" |
Theater
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1959–1960 | Take Me Along | Lady Entertainer, Townswoman | |
1960–1961 | Wildcat | Dancer | |
1961–1962 | Subways Are for Sleeping | Dancer | |
1967–1968 | Something Different | Beth Nemerov | Replacement |
1970–1971 | Paul Sills' Story Theatre | Various | |
1971 | Ovid's Metamorphoses | Ensemble | |
1995 | Death Defying Acts | Dorothy/Carol | Replacement. Off-Boardway: Variety Arts Theatre |
1998–1999 | All Under Heaven | Pearl S. Buck | Off-Broadway's Century Center Theatre. Ran Nov. 3, 1998 to Jan. 11, 1999. Playing 16 previews and 65 regular performances. |
2001–2002 | Tale of the Allergist's Wife, TheThe Tale of the Allergist's Wife | Marjorie | Replacement (from July 31, 2001 - May 26, 2002) |
2008–2010 | Looped | Tallulah Bankhead | 2010 Tony Award nominee: Best Actress in a Play. "Looped" ran on Broadway (at the Lyceum Theatre) from 2/19/2010 - 4/11/2010 for 60 performances. |
2015 | Nice Work if You Can Get It | Millicent Winter | Ogunquit Playhouse (Maine) (July 22—July 29—bowed out after collapsing backstage and hospitalized. Replaced by Brenda Vaccaro for remaining run through Aug 15, 2015.) |
Awards and nominations
Harper is a one-time Tony nominee, eight-time Emmy nominee (four wins) and a six-time Golden Globe nominee (one win).[46]
Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1971 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Won |
1972 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Won |
1972 | Golden Globe | Best Supporting Actress – Television | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Nominated |
1973 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Won |
1973 | Golden Globe | Best Supporting Actress - Television | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Nominated |
1974 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Nominated |
1974 | Golden Globe | New Female Star of the Year | Freebie and the Bean | Nominated |
1974 | Golden Globe | Best Actress in a TV Comedy Series | Rhoda | Won |
1975 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series | Rhoda | Won |
1975 | Golden Globe | Best Actress in a TV Comedy Series | Rhoda | Nominated |
1976 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series | Rhoda | Nominated |
1977 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series | Rhoda | Nominated |
1978 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series | Rhoda | Nominated |
1979 | Golden Globe | Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture | Chapter Two | Nominated |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Actress in a Play | Looped | Nominated |
References
- ↑ "Valerie Harper Biography". The Biography Channel (A&E Networks). Retrieved 2014-04-16.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Harper in Valerie Harper Interview Part 1 of 3. Archive of American Television. February 26, 2009. Event occurs at 00:36. Retrieved 2014-04-16.
It's 'well-known' that I was born in 1940, I read it everywhere, but it was actually 1939.
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-10-04. Retrieved 2015-07-31.
- ↑ Harper, Valerie. I Rhoda: A Memoir © 2013. Gallery Books (Simon & Schuster, Inc.); ISBN 978-1-4516-9946-3/ISBN 978-1-4516-9948-7 (ebok), pg. 8
- ↑ "Good as Golda; Yes, that is veteran actress Valerie Harper playing Israel's 1970s prime minister in a play coming soon to Toronto. Turns out Rhoda Morgenstern has Canadian roots". Pqasb.pqarchiver.com. Retrieved 2013-03-12.
- ↑ Bawden 1987.
- ↑ "Ask Them Yourself". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. 1973-07-28.
- ↑ Jacobs 2008, p. 1.
- ↑ Lacher 2008.
- ↑ Gregory 2002, p. 35.
- 1 2 "LoopedOnBroadway.com". Loopedonbroadway.com. Retrieved 2013-03-12.
- ↑ "Story Theatre". 1 January 2000 – via IMDb.
- ↑ "Mary and Rhoda | Archive of American Television". Emmytvlegends.org. 2000-02-07. Retrieved 2016-08-28.
- ↑ "Rhoda - Formal Press Release from Shout! Factory for Rhoda's 1st Season DVDs" Tvshowsondvd.com, accessed January 26, 2011.
- ↑ "Valerie Harper profile". Thegoldenglobes.com. Retrieved 2013-03-12.
- ↑ "'The Muppet Show', Air Date November 22, 1976, Valerie Harper" tv.com, accessed January 26, 2011
- 1 2 3 4 Weinman 2008.
- 1 2 Hutchings 1987.
- 1 2 Brennan 1988.
- 1 2 Farber 1988.
- ↑ Lacayo & Seufert 1988.
- ↑ "'Hogan Family Jump to CBS Called an Exception", Los Angeles Times, April 19, 1990
- ↑
- ↑ "Home - MET Group". Met.com. Retrieved 2016-08-28.
- ↑ "Talkin' Broadway Regional News & Reviews - "Golda's Balcony" - 6/2/06". Talkinbroadway.com. Retrieved 2016-08-28.
- ↑ Golda's Balcony IMDb listing, retrieved April 5, 2010
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-03-05. Retrieved 2010-03-05.
- ↑
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-05-05. Retrieved 2009-05-27.
- ↑ Jones, Kenneth."'Looped' Will Play Its Final Fadeout April 11" Archived April 7, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Playbill.com, April 5, 2010
- ↑ "Keck's Exclusives: Rhoda Comes to Desperate Housewives". TVGuide.com. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
- ↑ Sher, Lauren (September 4, 2013). "Dancing With the Stars 2013: Season 17 Cast Announced". Good Morning, America. ABC News Network. Retrieved November 6, 2014.
- ↑ "Valerie Harper She Doesn't Mince Words; She's Here For Equality". News.google.com. 1980-09-20. Retrieved 2013-03-12.
- ↑ Antonio Olivo (October 6, 1994). "Info re L.I.F.E. (charity)". Articles.latimes.com. Retrieved 2013-03-12.
- ↑ "Album`s Proceeds To Go To Charity". Sun Sentinel. 1992-10-23. Retrieved 2013-03-12.
- ↑ "Valerie Harper profile". Filmreference.com. Retrieved 2013-03-12.
- ↑ Lloyd, Janice (March 6, 2013). "Harper's brain cancer likely related to previous cancer". USA Today.
- ↑ Tauber, Michelle; Dodd, Johnny (March 6, 2013). "Valerie Harper Has Terminal Brain Cancer". People. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
- ↑ Dodd, Johnny; Tauber, Michelle (March 6, 2013). "Valerie Harper's Rare Cancer Explained". People. Retrieved March 7, 2013.
- ↑ Valerie Harper Reveals: "I Am Absolutely Cancer-Free!". Closer Weekly. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
- ↑ Daley, Megan (July 30, 2015). "Valerie Harper's hospitalization prior to a Maine performance a 'precaution,' says the theater". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 30, 2015.
- ↑ "Valerie Harper In a Coma, Sources Say". Entertainment Weekly.com. July 30, 2015. Retrieved July 30, 2015.
- ↑ "Valerie Harper released from hospital".
- ↑ Gagnon, Dawn. "Valerie Harper not in coma, looking forward to returning to Ogunquit Playhouse". Bangordailynews.com. Retrieved 2016-08-28.
- ↑ "Breaking News - Valerie Harper Will Guest Star in First Two Episodes of "Signed, Sealed, Delivered," the Highly Anticipated Hallmark Channel Original - TheFutonCritic.com". thefutoncritic.com.
- ↑
- Reference bibliography
- Bawden, Jim (1987-06-28). "The hits keep on coming for Valerie Harper". Toronto Star. pp. C.1.
- Brennan, Patricia (1988-10-02). "Life After Lawsuit". The Washington Post.
- Farber, Stephen (1988-10-03). "Harper in TV Film on Network She Sued". The New York Times.
- Hutchings, David (1987-10-19). "Suing the Bosses Who Bounced Her, a Bitter Valerie Harper Fights to Save Her Reputation". People.
- Jacobs, Andrea (2008-08-20). "Valerie Harper: 'Jewish in my heart'". Intermountain Jewish News.
- Lacayo, Richard; Seufert, Nancy (1988-08-29). "Law: Tell It to the Rent-a-Judge". Time.
- Lacher, Irene (2008-07-06). "Valerie Harper tackles Tallulah". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 16, 2010.
Harper is actually Catholic,...
- Gregory, Mollie (2002). Women who run the show. St. Martin's Press. p. 35. ISBN 978-0-312-30182-8.
That was the end of the Catholic church for me. I quit. I had a big click.
- Weinman, Jaime (2008-11-28). "The 20th Anniversary Of the Most Awesomest TV Contract Dispute Ever". MacLeans.ca.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Valerie Harper. |
- Valerie Harper official website
- FilmReference profile
- Valerie Harper on IMDb
- Valerie Harper interview video at the Archive of American Television
- Valerie Harper at the Internet Broadway Database
- Valerie Harper at the Internet Off-Broadway Database