When I watch it in reruns, it always amazes me how many bit players, in one shot parts, later went on to be quite successful in their own right.
For example
Helen Hunt - Murray Daughters
John Ritter - Priest that married Ted and Georgette
Henry Winkler - Rhoda's date
Fred Grandy - Reverend at the Teddy Awards
Bernie Kopell - Mary's date
Craig T Nelson - Mechanic
Louise Lasser - Bank clerk (totally stole the scene)
Beth Howland - Separated wife of man Mary Dates
Isabel Sanford - Mother to a coworker Mary interviews
David Ogden Stiers - Station manager at WJM
Gordon Jump
Dabney Coleman - Congressman
Mary Frann - Mary's anti-Semitic friend
Joseph Campanella - Mary's date
Mary Kay Place - Mary's neighbor at her new flat (along with established Penny Marshall)
Gordon Jump - Tried out for sportscaster
Mackenzie Phillips - Mary's "little sister" in the "little sisters" program
Jeff Conway - An ice skater used to make Lou jealous
Richard Kline - Attorney attempts to prosecute Mary for not revealing sources
Any others? I mean those who later became stars but had not had significant stardom prior, like Penny Marshall, Beverly Garland, Sheree North, Bill Daley and others like that.
by Anonymous | reply 41 | January 3, 2022 11:05 PM |
Young Bruce Boxleitner is introduced to Murray's other daughter (not Helen Hunt), much to Murray's chagrin.
by Anonymous | reply 1 | November 7, 2015 3:59 PM |
Do I count? I was unknown as an actress, anyway.
by Anonymous | reply 2 | November 7, 2015 4:01 PM |
Nancy Walker
by Anonymous | reply 3 | November 7, 2015 4:08 PM |
Brett Somers as Aunt Rose
by Anonymous | reply 4 | November 7, 2015 4:09 PM |
That's all you've got OP?
by Anonymous | reply 5 | November 7, 2015 4:16 PM |
Beth Howland played dual roles.
I think the episode OP references is the one where Beth and Bert Convy are a married couple and Mary's best friends. They announce to Mary that they are separating and Mary begins dating Bert some time later. She starts to feel guilty and visits Beth who says it is NOT okay for her to be dating Bert. (I thought Mary crossed the line as well and that it was a bit slutty for her to date her friend's ex, especially since not much time had passed i.e. it occurred in the same episode!).
Several seasons later, Beth made a re-appearance as a woman who Mary finds in her boyfriend's (played by Ted Bessell) apartment (this time Beth was the slut). Skip to 20:28.
by Anonymous | reply 6 | November 7, 2015 4:17 PM |
Carole King!
Offsite Link
by Anonymous | reply 8 | November 7, 2015 4:23 PM |
Sheree North was already a name actress, whose stardom had already peaked in the 1950s. She was 20th Century Fox's back up Marilyn. Whenever Monroe was unavailable to do a picture, they'd bring in Sheree. That is, until Jayne Mansfield came along and usurped her position on the Fox lot.
by Anonymous | reply 9 | November 7, 2015 4:34 PM |
Barbara Sharma. It confused me as a kid, seeing the MTM show where she played the waitress Rhoda called a 'feeb'. Then Rhoda moves to NYC and the feeb is now her friend Myrna.
by Anonymous | reply 10 | November 7, 2015 4:54 PM |
If you put Barbara Sharma and Edie McClurg in a ring, who would win?
by Anonymous | reply 11 | November 7, 2015 5:09 PM |
Not sure she would be considered unknown at the time, but Doris Roberts had a small part as employment counselor to Phyllis.
(During their meeting, she came across a fantastic job and ran off to apply for it herself, abandoning Phyllis.)
by Anonymous | reply 12 | November 7, 2015 6:45 PM |
Barbara Colby, who played the prostitute cellmate when Mary was jailed for refusing to reveal a source. Barbara then went on to co-star on "Phyllis", but is most famous for being murdered after only several episodes were shot. Oh yeah, she was also once Ethel Merman's daughter-in-law.
by Anonymous | reply 13 | November 7, 2015 6:52 PM |
Stow it, you dingy!! Vic Tayback played a police officer.
by Anonymous | reply 14 | November 7, 2015 7:21 PM |
R3 Nancy Walker was a movie star in the '40s.
by Anonymous | reply 15 | November 7, 2015 8:03 PM |
R8 see R2.
by Anonymous | reply 16 | November 7, 2015 8:04 PM |
Why didn't Dick Van Dyke ever do a guest appearance??
by Anonymous | reply 17 | November 7, 2015 8:09 PM |
He didn't but Jerry Van Dyke did.
by Anonymous | reply 18 | November 9, 2015 11:57 PM |
I don't remember any of the other Van Dyke show regulars making guest shots. And interestingly, except for Richard Deacon, Jerry Paris, and Morey Amsterdam, they're all (Carl Reiner, Rose Marie, Ann Guilbert, Larry Mathews) still alive.
by Anonymous | reply 19 | November 10, 2015 6:05 PM |
Wow. That casting director must have had quite an eye for talent.
by Anonymous | reply 20 | January 9, 2021 2:30 AM |
Not sure why but prior to Three's Company John Ritter also played a recurring Reverend on The Waltons. He just doesn't scream reverend to me.
by Anonymous | reply 21 | January 9, 2021 2:42 AM |
No one ever mentions Benjamin Chulay, who was in dozens of episodes as "Pete," the young blond guy who worked at the desk behind Mary in the newsroom. His father, John Chulay, was the assistant director on hundreds of episodes of MTM and earlier, The Dick Van Dyke Show.
by Anonymous | reply 22 | January 9, 2021 3:03 AM |
R22. THANK YOU! He always caught my young gayling eye. I think they even threw him a line or two each season.
by Anonymous | reply 23 | January 9, 2021 3:15 AM |
Leonard Frey on the episode titled "Ted Baxter's Famous Broadcaster's School," airing February 22, 1975. Frey played the role of Lawrence
by Anonymous | reply 24 | January 9, 2021 3:19 AM |
Peter Strauss, the younger man Mary dated; she was self conscious about the age difference. Rhoda was hilarious! It was one of best shows.
by Anonymous | reply 25 | January 9, 2021 4:08 AM |
Valerie Harper
by Anonymous | reply 26 | January 9, 2021 4:46 AM |
Eileen Heckart as Mary's aunt
Irene Tedrow as Congresswoamn Geddes in the dinner party episode (same one with Henry Winkler)
by Anonymous | reply 27 | January 9, 2021 10:18 AM |
Congresswoman
by Anonymous | reply 28 | January 9, 2021 10:19 AM |
Buck would've never been a bit player on 'MTM'.
by Anonymous | reply 29 | January 9, 2021 10:51 AM |
Paul Sand played the IRS agent who falls for Mary.
by Anonymous | reply 30 | January 10, 2021 5:50 AM |
[quote]I don't remember any of the other Van Dyke show regulars making guest shots. And interestingly, except for Richard Deacon, Jerry Paris, and Morey Amsterdam, they're all (Carl Reiner, Rose Marie, Ann Guilbert, Larry Mathews) still alive.
Not anymore.
by Anonymous | reply 31 | January 10, 2021 6:01 AM |
What are we -- chopped liver?
by Anonymous | reply 32 | January 10, 2021 6:01 AM |
Johnny Carson in the dark.
by Anonymous | reply 33 | January 10, 2021 6:24 AM |
[quote]Buck would've never been a bit player on 'MTM'.
Buck never would have done sitcom television.
by Anonymous | reply 34 | January 10, 2021 6:36 AM |
Benjamin Chulay, as "Pete," the cute blonde guy often in the background at WJM.
by Anonymous | reply 36 | January 3, 2022 10:46 PM |
Mary Kay Place won an Emmy for writing on of the MTM episodes.
by Anonymous | reply 37 | January 3, 2022 10:51 PM |
Bernie Kopell had dozens of credits, and was a regular/recurring character on Get Smart, That Girl, and The Doris Day Show prior to appearing as a guest on MTM, and he was currently in the cast of When Things Were Rotten at the time of that guest shot.
by Anonymous | reply 38 | January 3, 2022 10:52 PM |
SJP played Murray’s Girlfriend
by Anonymous | reply 39 | January 3, 2022 10:56 PM |
Greg Mullavey
by Anonymous | reply 40 | January 3, 2022 11:03 PM |