Valerie Harper is an American actress of stage, film, and television from Suffern, New York who is best known for her starring role in the hit sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore Show and in its spin-off, Rhoda.
Valerie Harper is best known for depicting the role of ‘Rhoda Morgenstern,’ first in ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ (1970–1974) and then in its spin-offs, ‘Rhoda’ (1974–1978) and ‘Mary and Rhoda’ (2000). The portrayal not only earned her several awards but also helped her gain popular acclaim.
Valerie Harper was born as Valerie Kathryn Harper on August 22, 1939, in Suffern, New York to Her father, Howard Donald Harper, a lighting salesman, and her mother, Iva Mildred née McConnell, a trained nurse. She holds American nationality and belongs to Has English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, and French ancestry/ethnicity. Her belief is Christianity and her zodiac is Leo. She has an older sister named Leah, a younger brother named Merrill (later renamed Don) and a half-sister named Virginia from her father’s second marriage to Angela Posillico(stepmother).
Because of her father’s job, she spent her childhood in various places, moving first to South Orange and then to Pasadena, where she was enrolled at ‘St. Andrews.’ Later, they moved to Monroe and then to Ashland, finally settling in Jersey City, where she remained till the age of 18. She studied at ‘Lincoln High School.’ However, she did not graduate from there. When her family returned to Oregon, she remained in the New York City area to study ballet, ultimately graduating from the ‘Young Professional School.’ She is also a graduate of the Erhard Seminars Training (better known as EST).
Valerie started her career as a dancer and chorus girl while still in her teens, she began acting at the age of 28, as ‘Beth Nemerov’ in the ‘Broadway’ production of ‘Something Different and many others in 1956.’ Two years later, while performing on stage in Los Angeles, she was spotted by a casting agent and was eventually cast as ‘Rhoda Morgenstern’ in ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1970,’ The role not only brought her immediate recognition but also earned her three ‘Primetime Emmy’ awards for ‘Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.’ Her notable film appearances include Freebie and the Bean (1974), and Chapter Two (1979). Later in 2000, she reprised the same role, starring in its spin-off, ‘Rhoda,’ earning both a ‘Golden Globe’ and a ‘Primetime Emmy’ for it. Thereafter, she continued to work both on screen and stage until the age of 27.
In 2009, she was diagnosed with lung cancer. In 2013, she was found to be suffering from leptomeningeal carcinomatosis. In spite of this, she continued to work till 2016. For her role as Tallulah Bankhead in Matthew Lombardo’s Looped, she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in 2010. She competed in the 17th season of Dancing With The Stars in 2013.
Her last appearance on TV was in an episode of ‘Children's Hospital,’ titled ‘Children's Hospital,’ while last film appearance was in ‘Stars in Shorts: No Ordinary Love.’Apart from her acting career, Harper is involved in the ‘Women’s Liberation Movement’ and was an advocate of the ‘Equal Rights Amendment.’
She earned four Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe for her role as Rhoda across the two series. For her role as Tallulah Bankhead in Matthew Lombardo’s Looped, she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in 2010.
In December 1964, Harper married actor Richard Schaal. The couple divorced in January 1978. On April 8, 1987, she married producer and actor Tony Cacciotti. In 1983, the couple adopted a daughter, Cristina.
In 2009, she was diagnosed with lung cancer. On March 6, 2013, it was announced that she had developed leptomeningeal carcinomatosis, a rare condition in which cancer cells spread into the meninges. Although the doctors gave her only 3 months to live, she continues to fight to this day.
American actress Valerie Harper has an estimated net worth of $12 million. Her average salary is estimated to be $30,000 per episode. Harper owns a three-bedroom house in Santa Monica, California worth $765,000 and she accumulated some from her legal settlement against NBC in Sep. 1988 worth $1,820,000. Her's information is not revealed yet.
Valerie Harper stands 5.6feet tall and weighs around 59kg. Her body measurement is 36-27-37(Bust-Waist-Hip). She wears a bra size of 34B. She fits in a dress of size 8(US). She puts on a shoe size of 8.5(US).
Valerie Harper seems very active on social media. She regularly posts her whereabouts. Her facebook profile @valerieharperfans have over 259.7K fans. Her twitter profile@ValerieHarper has over 53k twitters. She is not that fond of Instagram.