Valerie Kathryn Harper

Harper played Rhoda Morgenstern on the CBS sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore
Show (1970-1977) and on the spin-off series Rhoda (1974-1978). She earned
four Emmy Awards for her role as Rhoda across the two series. Her career in
roles began as a dancer and chorus girl in various Broadway productions
and made her big screen debut in the 1956 feature Rock Rock Rock!
  
On March 6, 2013, Harper announced that tests from a hospital stay revealed
she has a rare condition in which cancer cells spread into the meninges, the
membranes surrounding the brain. Last year Harper said she was responding
well to chemotherapy treatment.