Hollywood has a long-standing tradition of stars ‘borrowing’ iconic props from their sets. From Bryan Cranston proudly claiming Walter White’s pork pie hat from ‘Breaking Bad’ to Ariana Grande snagging prosthetic ears from ‘Wicked,’ these mementos often become cherished personal keepsakes.
Given this trend, one would naturally assume that Mary Tyler Moore would have immediately secured ‘The Hat’ from the legendary opening sequence of her 1970s groundbreaking series, ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show.’ This particular moment, arguably the most iconic freeze-frame in television history, captures Moore’s character, Mary Richards, exuberantly tossing her patterned tam-o’-shanter into the air amidst a bustling Minneapolis street. It’s an image of pure joy, parodied by shows like ‘Scrubs’ and ‘The Simpsons,’ and even cast in bronze at its original location. Through all seven seasons and countless opening title tweaks, this distinctive hat remained a consistent, joyful symbol.
The question then arises: how did she manage to keep such an invaluable piece of television history?
“You have to remember, she owned the company,” her husband, S. Robert Levine, clarified with a smile. “I believe someone simply placed it in an envelope for her.”
Indeed. As the ‘MTM’ of MTM Enterprises, the production powerhouse responsible for all 168 episodes from 1970 to 1977, Ms. Moore hardly needed clandestine operations to acquire her piece of history. Yet, this woolen cap wasn’t treated as a show-and-tell item or a prized trophy; it wasn’t, for example, something she’d casually display at social gatherings.
“It wasn’t an item we routinely passed around,” Dr. Levine chuckled. The Hat had remained tucked away in a file drawer within Ms. Moore’s office for many years. “I only discovered it when I began sorting through all of her belongings.”
In the eight years following Ms. Moore’s passing at 80, this archival exploration has sometimes been prompted by outside requests. For instance, the director of the 2023 HBO documentary ‘Being Mary Tyler Moore’ asked Dr. Levine to unearth additional ‘personal items’ from his basement for the film. At other times, it’s been part of the more challenging process of, as he described in a recent interview, “discovering what comes next.”
This past spring, Dr. Levine sold the expansive Greenwich, Connecticut estate, where he and Ms. Moore shared their final 33 years, for a notable $16.9 million. Later in June, a Doyle auction showcased 347 items from the esteemed actress’s estate, notably including the iconic golden ‘M’ that adorned Mary’s apartment wall in ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show.’ This piece was acquired by Lena Waithe, producer of the HBO documentary, for $35,200.
“It’s undeniably a significant loss,” the 71-year-old Dr. Levine admitted. “Leaving that beautiful home we built together, and everything within it, is difficult. However, it felt like the right moment.”
While the auction featured an array of luxurious items—from Tiffany and Cartier bracelets to portraits by Leibovitz and Hirschfeld, and substantial sterling silver collections—conspicuously absent were Ms. Moore’s personal wardrobe items, including the famous woolen tam-o’-shanter.
This omission was intentional. By the time the auction materialized, Dr. Levine had already formulated distinct plans for his late wife’s extensive collection of designer garments, featuring works by Armani, Scaasi, and Issey Miyake.
Making It After All
A year following his wife’s passing, Dr. Levine, a retired cardiologist, initiated the Mary Tyler Moore Vision Initiative, a nonprofit organization committed to eradicating diabetes-related vision loss and blindness. Ms. Moore herself lived with Type 1 diabetes and endured years of deteriorating eyesight, becoming almost entirely blind by the end of her life.
Continuing his wife’s lifelong dedication to advocacy – which included her role as international chair of Breakthrough T1D, a leading organization in Type 1 diabetes research fundraising – Dr. Levine began seeking sponsors for the Vision Initiative.
This search led him to Elyce Arons, co-founder of the Kate Spade brand, the late Kate Spade’s closest friend, and a devoted Mary Tyler Moore fan since her childhood. At the time, Ms. Arons was finalizing a memoir detailing her three-decade friendship with Ms. Spade, titled ‘We Might Just Make It After All’—a poignant nod to ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ theme song.
Ms. Arons first met her future business partner, then Katy Brosnahan, in August 1981, on their inaugural day at the University of Kansas. Both aspiring journalists, they soon realized they had chosen their major for the very same reason: the inspiring fictional local TV news producer, Mary Richards.
“Mary was the epitome of a modern woman,” Ms. Arons, 62, recounted recently from the Manhattan showroom of Frances Valentine, the second fashion brand she co-founded with Ms. Spade. “She was single, self-assured, and she empowered women of my generation to believe in our own potential.”
In a unique turn of events, Ms. Arons now finds herself in a business collaboration, intimately connected with Mary Tyler Moore’s legacy.
To generate funds for the foundation, Ms. Arons and the Frances Valentine team are developing a capsule collection for Fall 2026. Its designs are directly inspired by two of Ms. Moore’s most beloved early characters: Laura Petrie from ‘The Dick Van Dyke Show’ and, naturally, Mary Richards.
The very confidence and spirited essence of Ms. Moore, which profoundly influenced both Ms. Arons and Ms. Spade, will soon be accessible to contemporary women – especially those who wish to embody it through chic cigarette pants, mock turtlenecks, plaid jackets, and ribbed knits. A significant twenty percent of the net sales from this collection will directly benefit the Mary Tyler Moore Vision Initiative.
This past March, Dr. Levine traveled from Connecticut to the city to personally assess the brand. Clearly impressed by what he observed, he extended an invitation to Ms. Arons to visit his Greenwich home and explore his wife’s wardrobe. She accepted without hesitation.
“I instantly thought, ‘When can I be there?’” she recalled with enthusiasm.
During the visit, Ms. Arons expressed immense delight, a reaction perfectly understandable for someone granted unrestricted access to her idol’s closet. Footage from that day captures her twirling in various outfits, reminiscent of a glamorous makeover montage. “It felt like Christmas morning,” she exclaimed, though the joy was bittersweet, shadowed by the absence of her dear friend with whom she longed to share the experience.
“I desperately wanted to call Katy and tell her, ‘You won’t believe where I am right now,’” Ms. Arons shared, “because she absolutely should have been there by my side.” (Ms. Spade passed away in 2018.)
Her thoughts then turned to how she could extend this extraordinary experience with Ms. Moore’s garments to a broader audience.
“Our team unanimously agreed these pieces belong in a museum,” Ms. Arons stated. “Whether it’s the Met, F.I.T., or the Smithsonian, they deserve a prominent and significant display.”
‘Perhaps We Were a Bit Naïve’
The Frances Valentine showroom occupies the historic Beaux-Arts Building, an early 20th-century structure overlooking Bryant Park, once home to the studio of Jazz Age artist Florine Stettheimer. One warm Wednesday morning in late July, Dr. Levine and Ms. Arons sat together in the sunlit space, surrounded by design sketches and photographs of Mary Tyler Moore’s iconic looks that fueled their inspiration.
And there, prominently displayed, was The Hat: a compact, saucer-shaped woolen cap, featuring concentric rings of black, indigo, and forest green. Its midnight blue pompom, after decades nestled in a Manila envelope, perhaps yearned for a gentle fluffing.
In an interview, Dr. Levine shared his aspirations for the future of Ms. Moore’s extensive wardrobe. While he couldn’t specify the exact number of garments his wife owned, he humorously recalled her insistence on 100 linear feet of closet space when designing their Greenwich residence: “You can be assured that she had that all well filled.” Although Ms. Moore’s will didn’t contain specific instructions for her clothing, Dr. Levine expressed a desire for the collection to reside in a major institution, possibly as a permanent exhibition. There’s a universal consensus, particularly regarding The Hat, that it truly belongs in a museum.
A stunning visual journey through Mary Tyler Moore’s personal style, featuring exquisite selections from her legendary wardrobe:
It’s evident that the search for a permanent home for these treasures has progressed slower than initially anticipated.
Upon contacting the Fashion Institute of Technology, Dr. Levine and Ms. Arons were informed by Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of the Museum at F.I.T., that her institution wasn’t “the right venue to accept MTM’s garments.” As Dr. Steele later explained via email, “It’s not our mission.” She suggested exploring alternatives like the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens or the Paley Center for Media instead.
Ms. Arons also mentioned discussions with the Costume Institute, the esteemed fashion conservation arm of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, known for its annual Met Gala. “Our conversations with them are quite recent,” Ms. Arons noted. “I believe they’ve shown interest in certain pieces.” A representative for the Costume Institute, however, refrained from commenting on these discussions.
According to Dini von Mueffling, a publicist collaborating with Ms. Arons, a significant obstacle has been the lengthy planning horizon of prestigious institutions, where major exhibitions are typically scheduled two to five years ahead. “Perhaps it was a bit naïve of us to assume, ‘They’ll surely want it immediately—it’s Mary Tyler Moore!’” she reflected.
Was it naiveté or simply profound optimism? Dr. Levine observed a spark of his wife’s own exuberance in Ms. Arons’s distinctly “positive, positive energy.” This recognition perhaps made it easier for him to grant access to his wife’s treasured wardrobe to someone he had only just met.
“What other option was there?” he pondered. “Considering the best course of action for Mary’s belongings, it felt right to share them. It’s a way to share a part of her with the world, allowing people to discover yet another facet of who Mary was.”
While he’s set aside a few personal items—including a magnificent Givenchy shawl—he has largely accepted that his wife’s wardrobe deserves a new life beyond the closet, destined for public display. “That’s what it truly deserves,” he concluded. “It needs to have a life of its own.”