The '70s sitcom "Rhoda" boasted high viewership from its first episode, while Episode 8, "Rhoda's Wedding," had the second-highest viewership of any TV episode at the time. The first season of the "Mary Tyler Moore Show" spin-off was so successful, CBS was already looking at one of its characters, Rhoda's sister, Brenda Morgenstern (Julie Kavner), for yet another series. The biggest indication of how unstoppable "Rhoda" seemed was the pay dispute between lead actress Valerie Harper and CBS. "We painted ourselves into a corner creatively," one of the producers told the Dispatch about the first two seasons. Harper herself later told the Herald-Times that the network had heavily restricted the sort of storylines married Rhoda could have.