Lena Waithe has purchased a special piece of television history.
The Emmy Award winner has purchased the gold-painted "M" that adorned Mary Richards' apartment wall on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. The sale took place on Wednesday, June 4, at Doyle’s "The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore" auction.
The humble prop was the highlight of the auction, receiving a ton of interest due to its prominence in the background of a beloved sitcom, which aired from 1970 to 1977.
Original estimates had the piece going for anywhere from $5,000 to 8,000. The piece far exceeded expectations, opening at $14,000 and ultimately selling for a stunning $35,200.
In a statement about the sale, Waithe shares, "I will cherish this piece of television history for the rest of my life. I feel honored to have custody of it until it’s time to pass it along to someone else."
courtesy of Doyle's Auctions
Other Mary Tyler Moore items garnered impressive sales. A colorful portrait of Moore by Peter Max sold for $15,360. Original Al Hirschfeld drawings capturing Moore's roles in The Dick Van Dyke Show ($6,080) and The Mary Tyler Moore Show ($7,680) also exceeded expectations.
Moore began leading The Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1970, not long after her starring role on The Dick Van Dyke Show. The show was produced by her company, MTM Enterprises, which was behind many successful TV series.
Her TV alter ego, Mary Richards, was not that different from the real Moore, the late actress once told PEOPLE in 1974.
“I never went the actors’ studio route. I'm not an actress who can create a character. I play me. I'm scared that if I tamper with it I might ruin it,” she shared, noting her single girl character happened, in part, because she didn’t want to play married again, and CBS didn’t want her character to be divorced.
She ended up with eight Emmy nominations and four wins for her work on the series.
