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CBS, which was home to Mary Tyler Moore's two greatest television triumphs, will honor the actress with an hourlong special on Thursday.

"Mary Tyler Moore: Love Is All Around" (8 p.m., CBS/Ch. 2) will "mine CBS' vast archives to present the story of the pioneering actress' life and career." Gayle King will host, and the special "will include interviews with Oprah Winfrey, newsmakers, admirers and others expressing their thoughts about Moore's profound impact on acting and how women were portrayed in the media, as well as her work outside of entertainment."

CBS aired both "The Dick Van Dyke Show," in which Moore co-starred as Laura Petrie from 1961-66, and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," in which she starred as Mary Richards from 1970-77. The network also aired three of her less successful projects, "The Mary Tyler Moore Hour" (1979), "Mary" (1985-86) and "New York News" (1995), as well as several specials.

Among the many tributes for Moore, the one that most tugged at my heart was a tweet from Dick Van Dyke himself:

"There are no words. She was THE BEST! We always said that we changed each other's lives for the better."

I had a chance to interview Moore several times. I remember her confirming the story that CBS had nixed the original plan for her sitcom, which was to make Mary Richards a divorcee — scandalous in 1970 — and instead have her coming off a broken romance.

The network hated the idea that people would think Mary Richards was divorced, "and, worse yet, that she was divorced from Dick Van Dyke!" Moore said.

And then there was this story she told about the "Chuckles Bites the Dust" episode of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show":

"It really appealed to me because it was so unheard of. I don't think there had ever been that much giggling about the death of a, if not beloved cast member, certainly one that was known and recognized," Moore said. "Jay Sandrich, who had been our regular director, decided not to direct that episode, he was so fearful."

And there were unexpected visitors to the set during rehearsals.

"A friend that I hadn't seen for a while showed up to watch us go through our paces, and he had some people with him," Moore said. "And I said to him, 'Who are those people?'

"And he said, 'Oh, um, Mary, those are my aunt and uncle who are here because we just put our cousin to rest. And I thought I'd bring them over to lighten their day.'"

After 27 years of writing about TV, there are only a few stars who awe me. Mary Tyler Moore was one of them.

Not because she was anything other than kind and patient and charming. Simply because she was a TV legend. I grew up watching her on TV, and "Dick Van Dyke" and "Mary Tyler Moore" remain two of the best comedies in television history.

Those shows will live on forever, a fitting tribute to the woman who could indeed turn the world on with her smile.