1970’s beloved actress Valerie Harper, who portrayed Rhoda Morgenstern on the The Mary Tyler Moore show, died today (8/30). She was 80.
Harper, who collected four Emmy Awards and one Golden Globe for her role on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and then on her own spinoff series Rhoda, died after a courageous fight with cancer, her family told KABC-TV.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Valerie was told by doctors in January 2013 that she had leptomeningeal carcinomatosis, an incurable condition in which cancer cells spread into the membrane surrounding the brain. She was given as little as three months to live, but eight months later, she revealed that her cancer was near remission.
Harper is survived by her husband Tony Cacciotti and her daughter, Cristina.
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareBEVERLY HILLS, CA - OCTOBER 05: Actresses (L-R) Valerie Harper, Cloris Leachmen, and Mary Tyler Moore arrive at the celebration for Cloris Leachman's 60 years in show business at Fogo De Chao restaurant on October 5th, 2006 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Vince Bucci/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareActress Bebe Neuwirth, (L) actor B.D. Wong, actress Susan Lucci, actor Joel Grey, actress Michele Lee, actress Valerie Harper, actress Bernadette Peters, and actress Betty Buckley join in with Broadway stars and cast members September 28, 2001 to rally support for Broadway and tourism by recording "New York, New York" live in Times Square for the "Let's Go On With The Show" campaign in New York City. (Photo by George De Sota/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareNEW YORK - NOVEMBER 2: (U.S. TABS AND HOLLYWOOD REPORTER OUT) Actress Valerie Harper arrives at the "CBS At 75" celebration at the Hammerstein Ballroom November 2, 2003 in New York City. This special event commemorates CBS Network's 75th anniversary. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - MARCH 7: Actress Valerie Harper, actor Ed Asner and actress Cloris Leachman pose backstage at the 2nd Annual TV Land Awards held on March 7, 2004 at The Hollywood Palladium, in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - MARCH 7: Actress Valerie Harper and actor Ed Asner attend the 2nd Annual TV Land Awards held at The Hollywood Palladium, March 7, 2004 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frank Micelotta/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - AUGUST 07: (L to R) Actors Valerie Harper, Gavin MacLeod, Betty White, Mary Tyler Moore, Georgia Engel, Cloris Leachman and Ed Asner pose at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences celebrating Betty White's 60 years on television at the Leonard Goldenson Theatre on August 7, 2008 in No. Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - AUGUST 07: (L to R) Actors Gavin MacLeod, Cloris Leachman, Mary Tyler Moore, Betty White, Valerie Harper and Ed Asner pose at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences celebrating Betty White's 60 years on television at the Leonard Goldenson Theatre on August 7, 2008 in No. Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - MARCH 13: Actors Carol Channing (left), Valerie Harper and Cloris Leachman (right) pose at 'TV Cares: Ribbon of Hope Celebration 2004' on March 13, 2004 at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareBEVERLY HILLS, CA - OCTOBER 05: Actresses Valerie Harper (L) and Mary Tyler Moore pose at the celebration for Cloris Leachman's 60 years in show business at Fogo De Chao restaurant on October 5th, 2006 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Vince Bucci/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareBEVERLY HILLS, CA - OCTOBER 05: Actors (L-R) Gavin McLeod, Valerie Harper, Cloris Leachmen, and Mary Tyler Moore arrive at the celebration for Cloris Leachman's 60 years in show business at Fogo De Chao restaurant on October 5th, 2006 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareLOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 28: (L-R) Actors Betty White, Gavin MacLeod, Cloris Leachman, Mary Tyler Moore, Valerie Harper, Georgia Engel, and Ed Asner present the Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series award onstage at the 13th Annual Screen Actor Guild Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium on January 28, 2007 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareLOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 28: Actresses Valerie Harper (L) and Betty White arrive at the 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium on January 28, 2007 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Vince Bucci/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - AUGUST 07: (L to R) Actors Gavin MacLeod, Cloris Leachman, Mary Tyler Moore, Betty White, Valerie Harper and Ed Asner pose at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences celebrating Betty White's 60 years on television at the Leonard Goldenson Theatre on August 7, 2008 in No. Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - AUGUST 07: Actors Mary Tyler Moore (L) and Valerie Harper pose at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences celebrating Betty White's 60 years on television at the Leonard Goldenson Theatre on August 7, 2008 in No. Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - AUGUST 07: (L to R) Actors Mary Tyler Moore, Ed Asner, Cloris Leachman and Valerie Harper arrive at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences celebrating Betty White's 60 years on television at the Leonard Goldenson Theatre on August 7, 2008 in No. Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareNEW YORK - FEBRUARY 11: Valerie Harper attends backstage during The Heart Truth Red Dress Collection Fall 2010 during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Bryant Park on February 11, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Heart Truth)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareNEW YORK - JUNE 13: Actress Valerie Harper attends the 64th Annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall on June 13, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareBEVERLY HILLS, CA - JANUARY 20: Actress Valerie Harper and actress Cloris Leachman arrive to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Hall of Fame Committe's 20th Annual Induction Gala on January 20, 2011 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareBEVERLY HILLS, CA - JANUARY 20: Actress Valerie Harper and actress Cloris Leachman arrive to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Hall of Fame Committe's 20th Annual Induction Gala on January 20, 2011 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareWASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 16: Valerie Harper discusses and signs copies of her book "I, Rhoda" at McGowan Theater on April 16, 2013 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Kris Connor/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareLOUISVILLE, KY - MAY 03: Valerie Harper and Tony Cacciotti attend the 2013 Barnstable-Brown Derby gala at Barnstable-Brown House on May 3, 2013 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - DECEMBER 01: Actress Valerie Harper (L) and daughter Cristina Harper arrives at the 82nd Annual Hollywood Christmas Parade on Hollywood Blvd. on December 1, 2013 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images for Hollywood Christmas Parade)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareHOLLYWOOD, CA - DECEMBER 01: Actress Valerie Harper attends The Hollywood Christmas Parade Benefiting Toys For Tots Foundation on December 1, 2013 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Imeh Akpanudosen/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareSAN MARINO, CA - JANUARY 11: Actress Valerie Harper (R) and her husband attend Hallmark Channel & Hallmark Movie Channel's 2014 Winter TCA Party at The Huntington Library and Gardens on January 11, 2014 in San Marino, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareBEVERLY HILLS, CA - FEBRUARY 02: Actress Valerie Harper arrives at the AARP The Magazine's 14th Annual Movies For Grownups Awards Gala at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel on February 2, 2015 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Valerie Macon/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareNEW YORK, NY - MAY 09: Actress Valerie Harper speaks onstage during The Survivor Mitzvah Project: A benefit for Holocaust survivors at Webster Hall on May 9, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images for The Survivor Mitzvah Project)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareNEW YORK, NY - APRIL 17: Actress Valerie Harper visits "FOX & Friends" at FOX Studios on April 17, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images)
Actress Valerie Harper Dies
ShareNEW YORK, NY - MAY 13: Kellie Pickler and Valerie Harper attend the American Lung Association's LUNG FORCE national media kickoff event at Houston Hall on May 13, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for American Lung Association)