Thelma Harper

Thelma Mae Harper (nee Crowley), also known as Mama, is a fictional character played by American actress Vicki Lawrence. She is a senior citizen who has lived in an unspecified part in the Southern United States for her entire life which is evident by the southern drawl of her speech and her customs. She is an exaggerated version of a prototype middle twentieth century lower middle class grandmother in the southern United States. Vicki Lawrence, the actress who originated Mama, born in 1949, created Mama in the mid-seventies and undoubtedly based Mama on actual grandmother figures she knew while growing up in the 50's and 60's. Mama first appeared as a supporting character in "The Family" sketches on The Carol Burnett Show which aired on CBS from 1967 until 1978. In 1982, Eunice was a made-for-TV movie based on "The Family" sketches characters. Mama's Family (first on NBC, then revolutionized in first-run syndication), and finally in the ongoing Vicki Lawrence & Mama: A Two-Woman Show. With Lawrence continuing to play the role into the present day, the "Mama" character has made numerous other post-television show appearances, such as on Hollywood Squares; The Talk;"Larry the Cable Guy's Christmas Spectacular" (2007); "Betty White's 2nd Annual 90th Birthday" (February 5, 2013); The Queen Latifah Show (May 20, 2014) etc.

Thelma Harper (politician)

Thelma Harper (born December 2, 1940) is an American politician and a Democratic member of the Tennessee Senate for the 19th district, which is composed of a large portion of Davidson County including the urban core of Nashville.

Education and career

Thelma Harper has served as a state senator since the 96th Tennessee General Assembly. She is the secretary of the Senate Government Operations Committee and a member of the Senate State and Local Government Committee.

For eight years Thelma Harper served as a member of the Nashville/Davidson County Metropolitan Council. She was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1980, 1984, 1988, and 1992. She currently serves as a board member for the Nashville Downtown Partnership, an organization focused on the revitalization of downtown Nashville. She possesses a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration/Accounting from Tennessee State University.

Political views and proposals

In 2004, when asked by The Tennessean whether the Tennessee state constitution should be changed to say the right to an abortion is not guaranteed, she replied that the issue should not be written into the state constitution. In 1996, Thelma Harper was one of only two state senators that did not vote in support of a bill to ban gay marriage in Tennessee, instead choosing to abstain. Thelma Harper proposed legislation that would rename U.S. Highway 41 as Rosa Parks Boulevard, which was later successfully passed in both the House and the Senate.