Obituaries - Dec. 1, 1999

Hazel Frederick; Mary Tyler Moore’s ‘Co-Star’

Hazel Frederick, 91, the curious onlooker who watched Mary Tyler Moore toss her beret into the air in the opening scene of one of television’s best-loved sitcoms. Frederick was shopping in downtown Minneapolis one day in 1969 when a camera crew filmed Moore in the here-I-come hat toss for the opening of her long-running “Mary Tyler Moore Show.” Frederick’s puzzled reaction was caught on film as she stood in the background in a green coat with fur collar and matching scarf. A neighbor spied Frederick on the first episode of the show and word was spread among Frederick’s family. Alerted by a daughter, Frederick finally saw her widely televised image on the third episode. She remained largely anonymous to the watching world until 1996, when Moore was in her area for a book signing. Moore invited Frederick to join her on stage and introduced her to 5,000 people as “my co-star.” On Sunday in Brooklyn Center, Minn.

Robert Theobald; Anti-Consumerism Writer

Robert Theobald, 70, futurist and writer who warned of excess success. An independent author, lecturer and broadcaster, Theobald argued that blind confidence in economic growth, technology and materialism destroys the environment. “We’ve halved the size of our families, doubled the size of our houses and have to fill four times as much space with stuff,” he said in an interview two years ago. He said history is littered with cultures that collapsed under their own success by destroying their ecosystems. In his latest book, “Reworking Success,” Theobald urged fundamental change for the coming millennium: “If we do not change direction rapidly, the impact of technology will deprive many people of the possibility of earning a living and will lead to despair and disruption. In addition, rampant technology will leach the meaning out of life.” On Saturday in Spokane, Wash., of cancer.