Actress Mary Tyler Moore has died at the age of 80 at the Greenwich Hospital in Connecticut. In a statement, her family confirmed her death was caused by cardiopulmonary arrest after contracting pneumonia.
Moore is best known for her iconic televisions roles in sitcoms, The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-1977) and The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961-1966) and in films such as Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) and Ordinary People (1980), which garnered Moore an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. In her long career, she was recognized with numerous awards, including six Emmy Awards, three Golden Globes, and two Tony awards.
Moore portrayed two beloved characters, Mary Richards and Laura Petrie, that spurned the traditional view of women’s roles in the home and workforce, inspiring a generation of women.
Not only was she an actress, but a producer creating her own company, MTM Enterprises, alongside her former husband, Grant Tinker. MTM Enterprises produced hits like The Mary Tyler Moore Show, its spin-offs: Rhoda, Lou Grant, Phyllis, The Bob Newhart Show, The Texas Wheelers, WKRP in Cincinnati, St Elsewhere and Hill Street Blues.
Moore was also a fearless activist. As International Chairman for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, she used her celebrity to help raise funds and awareness for type 1 diabetes – an illness she herself was diagnosed with at the beginning of The Mary Tyler Moore Show‘s run.
She fought tirelessly for animal rights working alongside Farm Sanctuary to raise awareness about factory farming and promoted the compassionate treatment of farm animals. She co-founded Broadway Barks, an annual animal adopt-a-thon held in New York City. Moore and friend Bernadette Peters worked to make it a no-kill city and to encourage adopting animals from shelters.
She will be missed.
