Who Could Turn the World on with her Smile?

I have never really met Mary Tyler Moore. I did come across this bronze statue of MTM in downtown Minneapolis (MN), the hometown of Moore's fictional and tremendously popular fictional character Mary Richards. Actually, 'tremendously popular' really only scratches the surface of Mary Richards (and MTM for that matter).
MTM first became really popular on The Dick Van Dyke Show, but it was The Mary Tyler Moore Show in which MTM became a cultural icon. She was an independent, working woman. She was a vital cog in her workplace, a tv news station. They never had Richards hook up with her boss Lou Grant, which probably would have happened with such a show today. In fact, we never saw much of her love life, although we know she had romances along the way.
There aren't many actors/fictional characters who have statues outside of museums. Moore is definitely deserving of hers and I am glad I got to "meet" it.

Mary Tyler Moore and me in Minneapolis, MN-July 2010.