Here's the real reason why Laura Petrie wore pants on The Dick Van Dyke Show
We've all seen our fair share of gasp-inducing television moments, but remember a few decades ago when the most shocking thing on television was Mary Tyler Moore in pants?
If you remember Laura Petrie of The Dick Van Dyke Show in her capri pants, you might also remember the strange uproar surrounding it. Women wearing pants? Unheard of!
However, Mary Tyler Moore explained in an interview with The Patriot-News that her attire didn't affect the viewers; rather, it was the network that took issue with it.
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"There was a lot of opposition at first," she said. "Some people said they were too tight. Other people said I shouldn't wear them at all." Luckily, Carl Reiner, creator of The Dick Van Dyke Show, was pro-pants and wasn't afraid of voicing his opinion. "Carl Reiner, our producer, was on my side," she said. "So I held out against the opposition and you know, the mail from viewers was in our favor, too. I decided to play the part honestly."
Ultimately, Moore explained that the decision to wear pants wasn't due to any desire to make a big social statement. Rather, Moore wanted Laura Petrie to reflect how Moore and other women actually lived.
"I wear pants at home, all my friends wear pants at home," she said. "I wore pants on the show...I'm playing myself. An average young housewife who is in love with her husband and son. It's an ideal situation. And I get paid for it, too!"
Luckily, Moore wasn't willing to let the network stand in the way of her business. The actor was as determined as the characters she played, and no one would convince her to change.
"You need goals and have to point towards them," she said. "Otherwise, you get stale and stodgy. I suppose that's true of anyone in my field, however."
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