R.I.P. Betty White. If you let this play after the credits and through a couple of commercials, you can freeze it at about 28:50 after they brought back Valerie Harper and Cloris Leachman. The 8 people in that shot are gone now, with 4 passing on this calendar year I think. It's been a long time and so it isn't a shock that they're all gone, but damn, wasn't it just yesterday? Thanks for the memories.
There’s a plaque on that sound stage that says “ this was once the home of the Mary Tyler Moore Show” I can only think of a handful of shows where every single cast member was as talented as the other. Not a weak link in any corner. Mary had two series that struck gold. The other was The Dick Van Dyke Show. Both sitcoms were cleverly character driven. No one cut the other down with mean one liners, Sue Ann Niven character came the closest but they used her sparingly. Just the right amount of sauciness that Mary Richard’s wasn’t close to like Rhoda or Phyllis. If they had introduced another female perhaps at her new apartment which I hated by the way. It wasn’t a home but more of a cold mechanical updated version of a modern for the times apartment. Mary’s old place was an apartment in a home. The new apartment gave me a cold feeling where you knew she was isolated. Mary’s speech at the end underlines what is sacrificed being just a “ career woman” where the people she worked with became her family. The tragedy is that like Mary Richard’s one day you go to work and you lose everything by mass firing. Her youth is gone . Mary turned 40 playing Mary who is 37. Her character is 30 when show started in 1970. The Dick Van Dyke show started in 1960 and Laura wasn’t 20.! MTM was 23. Many Bios listed her birth year as 1939 when in actuality it as 1937- released when she passed . MTM had Ordinary People released in oct/nov 1980. So for 20 years Mary was at the pinnacle of her career with some slowness btw 10966-69, although she starred on Broadway,movie with Elvis, made TV special with Dick Van Dyke. Mary tried several series but the magic didn’t meet her expectations and ours. The talent surrounded other stars with Cheers, Taxi, Hill Street Blues, Dallas, Dynasty( Die- Nasty)-all vehicles attempting to show reality as in Taxi, Barney Miller, or complete opposite with fantasy as in Dynasty, Dallas.I don’t see Mary fitting into either type of show. I wish her Oscar nominated role of Beth Jarret had led to more features. Hollywood wasn’t opening their arms to Mary. She proved in Ordinary People that she could play any thing. There is no trace of Mary Richard’s in Bath Jarret. Mary was excellent in Gin Game with Dick Van Dyke.. Both were. I was 14 about to turn 15 when this final show aired. The cast made cover of TV guide with that square pin on her blue dress. That image of her will forever stay in my mind. I knew at the time something hugely special had ended and in a way I knew one day I’d actually lose my parents. My mom always used to say “ good-byes are tough, it’s so final” we are not built for good bye , it’s why we aren’t good at them. I never said good bye really to this show and I don’t think we have to. Thank you to all involved with this classic. The show had class, great character driven humor, and it never talked down to the audience. . It ended at precisely the right time to keep the quality of the show from start to finish. There’s not a weak link in the show, Mary says it the best at the end where she introduces the cast for final time,” The best cast ever-…..”
I love how Betty rubs the top of Gavin's head as they leave the newsroom. My sentiment about this cast is the same as Lou Grant's - I treasure these people. Best show ever ❤️
I never got to see this finale before. So it is double the sweet treat to watch it as it originally aired. Thank you, Fuzzy Memories! You've struck TV gold yet again.
I think that Ted Knight ad libbed a line when he said “these offices are too small to crawl on your hands and knees” and that’s when you see Ed Asner gave that little smirk.
It's interesting that _Mary Tyler Moore_ was one of the very few/first shows to actually have a swan song type storyline for its final episode. Unfortunately most shows before, and during (and for that matter after) NEVER get that kind of privilege. They just simply end when the network decides to end it...
@@libertubey2199 Interesting you mention this as I just came across an article about the Leave It To Beaver finale. I know I've seen that episode many times but just never thought about it in that context. Sometimes innovations in television begin in the least likely places.
You are right There was interview with Isabelle Sanford from Jefferson’s where she said how disappointed she was that The Jefferson’s after 11 seasons did not get proper finale treatment and it’s crazy how network can end series without notification
If you wanted to ensure that kind of ending back then, you had to pull the plug on your show yourself, like this show did. The broadcast networks had zero regard for viewers, and nearly as little for the producers of their shows, so they weren't about to do it for you. Most of the time, they wouldn't even notify you before the upfronts. As for Isabel Sanford, everybody knew that show was getting cancelled. That they didn't do much of a proper finale (and they did do one) was on them. "Alice" and "The Dukes of Hazzard" both got abruptly canned right before Christmas -- and they still managed to have farewells.
Very amusing how Robbie Rist is in the final episode. He's always been referred to as a "show killer." If you watch Brady Bunch, Bionic Woman, or the dozens of other tv shows he's appeared in, they usually end or get cancelled within a year.
Oh they try to. So many shows have borrowed or straight ripped off this episode for their finales. Shows how influenital this really was and still is. It's still a landmark series finale that every show tries to measure up to along with other landmark finales like MASH, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Fugitive, and of course Newhart.
Was there ever any talk about a spinoff featuring Mary and Rhoda living together in New York? There was a made for television movie many years later, but it seemed as if Rhoda asking Mary to come live with her was a possible opening for a spinoff.
Point of interest: The reference to the song "It's a long way to Tipperary" was included as a tribute by Mary to her Irish mother, Marjorie Hackett, who came from County Tipperary, Ireland.
8-26-22 today.Ted left us 8-26-86.Rest easy Ted.Love You and Miss You so much!Thanks for posting this great but emotional episode.The MTM Show is still my all time favorite comedy show.Ted will always be my favorite on that show.
THE WIZARD OF OZ was on the next night. That film has entertained generations and has survived changes in pop culture, politics, education, entertainment, etc., with no end in sight.
Thanks for sharing this with us. I love this show and I'm glad it mostly went out on top, with such a great, emotional last scene. That's Christine Jones in the Avon ad.
One of the greatest series finales ever done! A1! Right along with MASH, The Fugitive, Newhart, Magnum, PI, Cheers, Everybody Loves Raymond, Frasier, Barney Miller, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Malcolm In The Middle, The Shield and The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Honorable mentions to King of The Hill, Home Improvement, The Wonder Years and The Middle. But at this time this finale was a huge game changer and set the bar for series enders for the rest of tv history.
My mother LOVES that show!! Mary was so lovely!! My mother has the entire series on DVD and I recently bought MY own copy. The only difference......She had to build her collection over time, I've started her off with the first two seasons. I have the ENTIRE series in one set. Nonetheless, MTM is a classic with a great cast.
It funny that Sue Ann found a new job as a traveling companion to an old man, Murray comments that she will be cruising on a ship. Months later, Gavin McLeod would play the captain of a cruise ship (Captain Stubing) on The Love Boat.
In syndication and cable repeats, the full version of the sixth/seventh season title is used.....and the "standard" version of the closing credits [as seen on the last network telecast on September 3, 1977] replaced the "curtain call" version.
I just now watched this randomly; it still made me weep... (*Later that night, John Belushi will fall off the Update desk ranting about the Luck of the Irish....)
Lou Grant is such an affectionate person and he loves to show affection and love to his loved ones, however, on the show, he is playing the character of a man who does not like to show any affection to others. Perfection! I love him.
The best finale of all TV shows. No schmaltz. The core of the program and its characters stayed the same, all the way through. Mary Never married. Lou never remarried. So, the ending seemed natural and honest. Like life.
Why were there so many physical splices in the show intro? Who was working the film prep that night? It's almost mind boggling that a first-run finale of such importance got roughed up that much before it aired.
28:07 Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen, for the last time, Mary Tyler Moore! Mary: Thank you. The best cast ever: Ed Asner, Ted Knight, Gavin MacLeod, Betty White, Georgia Engle,Valerie Harper, and Cloris Leachman. Thank you.
The "standard" (syndicated) version of the closing credits was used on the last network {repeat} telecast on September 3, 1977.....and all repeats thereafter.
A lot of the stars of this show lived to a very old age. Betty White (99), Gavin McLeod (90), Ed Asner (91), and Cloris Leachman (94) all were over 90 when they died, and Mary herself was 80 when she passed (not bad for someone with Type 1 diabetes). Valerie Harper died of lung cancer at age 80. Georgia Engel was 70 when she passed, but she could probably have lived considerably longer if she had gotten modern medical care, which she refused due to her religion. Only Ted Knight died at a fairly young age, 62, of colon cancer.
@@wmbrown6 no! Mary was a top 10 show and only Mary wanted to do another season but producers Brooks and Burns wanted to move on. They felt it was better to end a year early than a year late.
@@wmbrown6 I’m not sure my memory was show was still strong ratings wise. It wasn’t close to being canceled. But another year or two things could have changed.
...when I was a Kid, I hated the "Phyllis" character (especially after she forgot to pick up Rhoda on her Wedding Day)....But, now (as an Adult), she's HILARIOUS in her exchange w/ Rhoda! (15:18) ...We all know those Two would NEVER be Friends, but tolerated each other, for MARY... (16:48) ...like, *TRUE* Friends would..... (17:52) ....
Mary needs to get with the program not Tyler Moore because she knows the expression I mean Richards , guys also refer to chicks as well and the head of the station meant her as well when he said he had to let you guys go
She knew what the phrase meant. She was looking for a technicality to keep her job. It was pretty obvious when she called to verify and over emphasized the word "guys".
Ted has played the role of a very narcissist person, always in love with himself, does not have any empathy for others, cannot connect with others' emotions and feelings and always always needs validation, and thinks of himself very highly. I'd love to watch other shows played by this handsome man.
R.I.P. Betty White. If you let this play after the credits and through a couple of commercials, you can freeze it at about 28:50 after they brought back Valerie Harper and Cloris Leachman. The 8 people in that shot are gone now, with 4 passing on this calendar year I think. It's been a long time and so it isn't a shock that they're all gone, but damn, wasn't it just yesterday?
Thanks for the memories.
Beautifully said❤
"Best cast ever" - MTM & SO TRUE!
There’s a plaque on that sound stage that says “ this was once the home of the Mary Tyler Moore Show” I can only think of a handful of shows where every single cast member was as talented as the other. Not a weak link in any corner. Mary had two series that struck gold. The other was The Dick Van Dyke Show. Both sitcoms were cleverly character driven. No one cut the other down with mean one liners, Sue Ann Niven character came the closest but they used her sparingly. Just the right amount of sauciness that Mary Richard’s wasn’t close to like Rhoda or Phyllis. If they had introduced another female perhaps at her new apartment which I hated by the way. It wasn’t a home but more of a cold mechanical updated version of a modern for the times apartment. Mary’s old place was an apartment in a home. The new apartment gave me a cold feeling where you knew she was isolated. Mary’s speech at the end underlines what is sacrificed being just a “ career woman” where the people she worked with became her family. The tragedy is that like Mary Richard’s one day you go to work and you lose everything by mass firing. Her youth is gone . Mary turned 40 playing Mary who is 37. Her character is 30 when show started in 1970. The Dick Van Dyke show started in 1960 and Laura wasn’t 20.! MTM was 23. Many Bios listed her birth year as 1939 when in actuality it as 1937- released when she passed . MTM had Ordinary People released in oct/nov 1980. So for 20 years Mary was at the pinnacle of her career with some slowness btw 10966-69, although she starred on Broadway,movie with Elvis, made TV special with Dick Van Dyke. Mary tried several series but the magic didn’t meet her expectations and ours. The talent surrounded other stars with Cheers, Taxi, Hill Street Blues, Dallas, Dynasty( Die- Nasty)-all vehicles attempting to show reality as in Taxi, Barney Miller, or complete opposite with fantasy as in Dynasty, Dallas.I don’t see Mary fitting into either type of show. I wish her Oscar nominated role of Beth Jarret had led to more features. Hollywood wasn’t opening their arms to Mary. She proved in Ordinary People that she could play any thing. There is no trace of Mary Richard’s in Bath Jarret. Mary was excellent in Gin Game with Dick Van Dyke.. Both were. I was 14 about to turn 15 when this final show aired. The cast made cover of TV guide with that square pin on her blue dress. That image of her will forever stay in my mind. I knew at the time something hugely special had ended and in a way I knew one day I’d actually lose my parents. My mom always used to say “ good-byes are tough, it’s so final” we are not built for good bye , it’s why we aren’t good at them. I never said good bye really to this show and I don’t think we have to. Thank you to all involved with this classic. The show had class, great character driven humor, and it never talked down to the audience. . It ended at precisely the right time to keep the quality of the show from start to finish. There’s not a weak link in the show, Mary says it the best at the end where she introduces the cast for final time,” The best cast ever-…..”
I love how Betty rubs the top of Gavin's head as they leave the newsroom. My sentiment about this cast is the same as Lou Grant's - I treasure these people. Best show ever ❤️
Good times… 😎
Oh my gosh! I've seen this scene many times, but never noticed when she rubbed his head! Thank you!!
I want to cry! Not just at seeing the show again, but the commercials! I wish I could go back to my childhood!
How about for a week BUT retain your present experiences. Imagine going back for a week and looking at it one more time. WOW!
Wow! I remember recording the audio of this with a mic pointed at the tv speaker! Glad to see it intact!
I never got to see this finale before. So it is double the sweet treat to watch it as it originally aired. Thank you, Fuzzy Memories! You've struck TV gold yet again.
When Ted Knight, as Baxter, tries to appeal to Lou, you can clearly see Ed Asner trying not to break character.
I think that Ted Knight ad libbed a line when he said “these offices are too small to crawl on your hands and knees” and that’s when you see Ed Asner gave that little smirk.
It's interesting that _Mary Tyler Moore_ was one of the very few/first shows to actually have a swan song type storyline for its final episode. Unfortunately most shows before, and during (and for that matter after) NEVER get that kind of privilege. They just simply end when the network decides to end it...
Leave It to Beaver started it all regarding a true series finale and at the same time, a clip show.
@@libertubey2199 _Many Loves Of Dobie Gillis_ went full circle having their final episode as a remake of their very first episode...
@@libertubey2199 Interesting you mention this as I just came across an article about the Leave It To Beaver finale. I know I've seen that episode many times but just never thought about it in that context. Sometimes innovations in television begin in the least likely places.
You are right There was interview with Isabelle Sanford from Jefferson’s where she said how disappointed she was that The Jefferson’s after 11 seasons did not get proper finale treatment and it’s crazy how network can end series without notification
If you wanted to ensure that kind of ending back then, you had to pull the plug on your show yourself, like this show did. The broadcast networks had zero regard for viewers, and nearly as little for the producers of their shows, so they weren't about to do it for you. Most of the time, they wouldn't even notify you before the upfronts. As for Isabel Sanford, everybody knew that show was getting cancelled. That they didn't do much of a proper finale (and they did do one) was on them. "Alice" and "The Dukes of Hazzard" both got abruptly canned right before Christmas -- and they still managed to have farewells.
this show ended the way it started..brilliant ......
Very amusing how Robbie Rist is in the final episode. He's always been referred to as a "show killer." If you watch Brady Bunch, Bionic Woman, or the dozens of other tv shows he's appeared in, they usually end or get cancelled within a year.
He was the Ted McGinney of the 1970s.
Well now I'm bawling. RIP to this wonderful cast.
They don't make finales like this anymore. Done with grace, panache, and beautifully acted. As said, they don't make them like this anymore.
Oh they try to. So many shows have borrowed or straight ripped off this episode for their finales. Shows how influenital this really was and still is. It's still a landmark series finale that every show tries to measure up to along with other landmark finales like MASH, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Fugitive, and of course Newhart.
I watched this on WBBM the night it aired. Thanks for posting.
Ed left us one year ago today.8-29-21.Rest easy Ed We Miss You! Love You Ed!
It was nice to see Mary reunite with Rhoda and Phyllis.
Was there ever any talk about a spinoff featuring Mary and Rhoda living together in New York? There was a made for television movie many years later, but it seemed as if Rhoda asking Mary to come live with her was a possible opening for a spinoff.
Now age 55.. when I was a boy, MTM was the perfect woman to me. Loved her then, love her memory now.
I hear ya, I started seriously watching MTM in 93 and fell right in love with her. Still one of the best shows ever!
The Nature Valley granola bars ad, wow!
Point of interest: The reference to the song "It's a long way to Tipperary" was included as a tribute by Mary to her Irish mother, Marjorie Hackett, who came from County Tipperary, Ireland.
If "I treasure you people" doesn't get to you, you're not human.
Thanks for posting this! I love the Mary Tyler Moore Show!😊😊
I Really Miss Thoses Day's
8-26-22 today.Ted left us 8-26-86.Rest easy Ted.Love You and Miss You so much!Thanks for posting this great but emotional episode.The MTM Show is still my all time favorite comedy show.Ted will always be my favorite on that show.
My birthday
@@llarmstrong783 🙂
One of my favorite MTM episodes.
THE WIZARD OF OZ was on the next night. That film has entertained generations and has survived changes in pop culture, politics, education, entertainment, etc., with no end in sight.
R.I.P all the legends🙏🙏🕯️🕯️.
I haven't seen since it was originally aired. I got a little misty...
“The best cast … EVER!”
Well said, Mary. Well said.
This made me cry, just as it did when I was a kid…
This and Mash had proper send offs, well Bob Newhart wasn’t bad either
Thanks for sharing this with us. I love this show and I'm glad it mostly went out on top, with such a great, emotional last scene.
That's Christine Jones in the Avon ad.
Phyllis and her Dorothy Hamill haircut. It was the 70’s equivalent of “The Rachel” in the 90’s.
One of the greatest series finales ever done! A1! Right along with MASH, The Fugitive, Newhart, Magnum, PI, Cheers, Everybody Loves Raymond, Frasier, Barney Miller, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Malcolm In The Middle, The Shield and The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Honorable mentions to King of The Hill, Home Improvement, The Wonder Years and The Middle. But at this time this finale was a huge game changer and set the bar for series enders for the rest of tv history.
RIP to the entire cast (apart from Robbie Rist). 2021 was such a rough year on the show. T_T
Did Rist play the man who fired everyone?
Bravo!!
Good times, great memories!
I think I'll watch the Bob Newhart show next!
My mother LOVES that show!! Mary was so lovely!! My mother has the entire series on DVD and I recently bought MY own copy. The only difference......She had to build her collection over time, I've started her off with the first two seasons. I have the ENTIRE series in one set. Nonetheless, MTM is a classic with a great cast.
It funny that Sue Ann found a new job as a traveling companion to an old man, Murray comments that she will be cruising on a ship. Months later, Gavin McLeod would play the captain of a cruise ship (Captain Stubing) on The Love Boat.
Such an amazingly talented group of people. The bond and chemistry they had will never be replicated.
26:38 The 1998 finale of "Seinfeld" was broadcast a week after CBS' last broadcast of "The Wizard of Oz".
They change the theme song on the DVD version from the original here. The DVD version has the voice version from the first seasons
In syndication and cable repeats, the full version of the sixth/seventh season title is used.....and the "standard" version of the closing credits [as seen on the last network telecast on September 3, 1977] replaced the "curtain call" version.
@@fromthesidelines I watched the Nick at Nite version and your right no curtain call, just regular end credits.
OMG I CAN'T BELIVE they're ALL GONE! Such ICONIC ACTORS! LOVE THEM ALL!❤❤❤❤
Now that Disney owns the rights, they've basically done the same thing to their company!
I just now watched this randomly; it still made me weep...
(*Later that night, John Belushi will fall off the Update desk ranting about the Luck of the Irish....)
17:17 Pre-“Frozen” use of “let it go”! I love it! 😍
Thank you for this. Such memories..
Thanks for posting this. I loved this show.
GOLDEN GIRLS
MR GRANT should have told MARY
I LOVE SPUNK
It was hard watching this! Now that their all gone! I have the box set! Luv this show.😔
The curtain call only aired once in 1977.
sitting here crying at the end in 2023 this show was such a big part of my life as I watched the reruns as a 90s kid
Lou Grant is such an affectionate person and he loves to show affection and love to his loved ones, however, on the show, he is playing the character of a man who does not like to show any affection to others. Perfection! I love him.
Ed Asner trying not to break character starting at 4:40 😂 #Priceless
I remember seeing this. Way back when. They're all gone now. In the big newsroom in the sky❤❤
Star Wars hadn’t even come out yet!
The best finale of all TV shows. No schmaltz. The core of the program and its characters stayed the same, all the way through. Mary Never married. Lou never remarried. So, the ending seemed natural and honest. Like life.
That was the BEST SHOW!!❤❤❤
Why were there so many physical splices in the show intro? Who was working the film prep that night? It's almost mind boggling that a first-run finale of such importance got roughed up that much before it aired.
Gorgeous Mary Tyler Moore❤
Iconic. 😢
28:07 Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen, for the last time, Mary Tyler Moore!
Mary: Thank you. The best cast ever: Ed Asner, Ted Knight, Gavin MacLeod, Betty White, Georgia Engle,Valerie Harper, and Cloris Leachman. Thank you.
Excelente
Ted Knight is so good, Ed Asner cannot control his smile !
28:04 Last Curtin Call
I could be wrong but the version aired on Nick at Nite in the early 90's replaced the curtain call with the regular end credits outro.
The curtain call only aired during the network run. There was a syndicated close that was used after that.
@@rryan554 ok thank you, that did clear that up.
The "standard" (syndicated) version of the closing credits was used on the last network {repeat} telecast on September 3, 1977.....and all repeats thereafter.
A lot of the stars of this show lived to a very old age. Betty White (99), Gavin McLeod (90), Ed Asner (91), and Cloris Leachman (94) all were over 90 when they died, and Mary herself was 80 when she passed (not bad for someone with Type 1 diabetes). Valerie Harper died of lung cancer at age 80. Georgia Engel was 70 when she passed, but she could probably have lived considerably longer if she had gotten modern medical care, which she refused due to her religion. Only Ted Knight died at a fairly young age, 62, of colon cancer.
LOL. Where I work, we cannot wait to get the hell away from each other!
betty white here looks older than she did in the golden girls
Wow they're all gone except for Betty White, who turns 100 in a few months!
I wish she could have seen 100. T_T RIP
Here some mtm trivia did yall know that this last show is the only 1 she turns out the lights when she leaves.
This started a regular trend of other doing series finales 1977 two series from the 1960s had series finales Leave it to Beaver and The Fugitive.
Frank Lorenzo owning WJM Television? Oh wow!
R.I.P.: The Entire Crew of the Mary Tyler Show. 😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢
John Amos is still around. The only one I think.
@@hudsony777 And the actress who played Murray's wife.
@@sw9618 What's her name?
@@hudsony777 Joyce Bulifant age 86
@@sw9618 Ah, yes, thank you.
How did Rhoda not know Lars died? She talked to Mary in the phone all the time.
I wonder if the show was cancelled or they all wanted to move on?
They wanted to move on.
@@hamburg1306 - Before they could be cancelled. ;-)
@@wmbrown6 no! Mary was a top 10 show and only Mary wanted to do another season but producers Brooks and Burns wanted to move on. They felt it was better to end a year early than a year late.
@@hamburg1306 - Didn't it fall out of the Top 30 in its last year, albeit still relatively strong ratings-wise?
@@wmbrown6 I’m not sure my memory was show was still strong ratings wise. It wasn’t close to being canceled. But another year or two things could have changed.
...when I was a Kid, I hated the "Phyllis" character (especially after she forgot to pick up Rhoda on her Wedding Day)....But, now (as an Adult), she's HILARIOUS in her exchange w/ Rhoda! (15:18) ...We all know those Two would NEVER be Friends, but tolerated each other, for MARY... (16:48) ...like, *TRUE* Friends would..... (17:52) ....
I was in love with Mary,the perfect woman.
Vincent Guardino
Gardenia.
Mary needs to get with the program not Tyler Moore because she knows the expression I mean Richards , guys also refer to chicks as well and the head of the station meant her as well when he said he had to let you guys go
She was desperate and trying to hang on to any excuse to stay on.
She knew what the phrase meant. She was looking for a technicality to keep her job. It was pretty obvious when she called to verify and over emphasized the word "guys".
Ted has played the role of a very narcissist person, always in love with himself, does not have any empathy for others, cannot connect with others' emotions and feelings and always always needs validation, and thinks of himself very highly. I'd love to watch other shows played by this handsome man.