Mary Tyler Moore quotes
1936 – 2017 · United States, 20th century · Actress, producer and social advocate
About Mary Tyler Moore
Born in Brooklyn in 1936, Mary Tyler Moore rose to fame on The Dick Van Dyke Show and starred in and produced The Mary Tyler Moore Show. She was active as a public advocate and was known for a public persona that emphasized resilience and self‑reliance. She died in Greenburgh, New York, in 2017.
Works: The Dick Van Dyke Show; The Mary Tyler Moore Show
Quotes
“Take chances, make mistakes. That’s how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave.”
Source: McCall's interview, 1980 · Check the source
Disputed attributionWhat we know
- What is documented
- A 1980 McCall's interview quotes Moore saying lines like “Pain nourishes my courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave,” and later collections expand the wording.
- What remains uncertain
- Evidence supports the quote’s substance from the interview, but the exact phrasing widely circulated comes mainly from secondary compilations rather than a verifiable primary transcript.
The line frames growth as something earned by taking risks and learning from mistakes: courage deepens through hardship rather than comfort. It reflects Mary Tyler Moore’s public message about resilience and is traced to a 1980 McCall's interview, though exact wording is partly disputed.