The Minneapolis House From ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ Has A New Owner

Kathryn Hopkins

Updated Fri, September 29, 2017 at 1:00 PM UTC

The Minneapolis house that became the U.S.’s most famous bachelorette pad during the Seventies when it appeared on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” has been sold for nearly $1.5 million after five years on the market.

The turreted three-story Queen Anne Victorian property was used as the home of the show’s main fictional character, Mary Richards, who was portrayed by Moore and was American TV’s first single, independent career-driven woman.

So popular was the show that a previous owner told the New York Times in 1995 that the house used to attract around 30 tour buses a day during the summers despite it being almost 20 years after the series ended.

In the same piece, Moore added that the woman who lived there when the show first hit TV screens was so “overwhelmed by the people showing up and asking if Mary was around” that when the camera crew returned at a later date, she “had by way of retribution draped huge ‘Impeach Nixon’ signs all over the house.”

All this fan mania surrounding the property came despite it only ever being used as the exterior of the fictional character’s home, while all inside scenes were shot in a Hollywood studio.

There were also other big differences. In the show, Richards lives in a studio apartment on the third floor, while her best friend Rhoda is in the attic above and landlord Phyllis Lindstrom occupies the space below.

In reality, though, the 1900 property in the upscale Kenwood neighborhood is not divided into apartments and is a seven-bedroom, four-story single family complete with rooftop decks, a music room, an exercise room, a sauna and a large porch.

However, the show’s everlasting popularity didn’t seem to help, as the owners failed to achieve anything close to their original asking price or secure a quick sale.

It was first listed for sale for $2.89 million in 2012 and the price was steadily reduced over the years, last asking $1.69 million. According to property web site Redfin, the final sales price was $1.45 million.

Listing agent Barry Berg of Coldwell Banker Burnet told WWD that the home sold to a local family, who purchased it because it suits their housing needs.

Moore, who died in January at 80, and her long-time doctor husband, lived in a mansion in Greenwich, Conn.

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The Minneapolis House From ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ Has A New Owner

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