Sue Ann Nivens is a fictional character portrayed by Betty White on situation comedy The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

[2] White played up Sue Ann Nivens' cheerful, home-and-hearth loving persona — a sharp contrast to the character's backbiting, sexually voracious true nature.

[3] Her first appearance in episode one of season four[4] was intended to be a one-time guest role, but series creator James L. Brooks gave White a friendly post-show warning: "Don't make too many plans.

"[5] Sue Ann Nivens is the relentlessly perky star of The Happy Homemaker on fictional station WJM-TV in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

She is a perfectionist, remarking in a season four episode titled "The Dinner Party" that she'd rather flush her Veal Prince Orloff down a toilet than serve it reheated.

After being assigned a series of menial positions (recording station break announcements; appearing as a foil for a contentious pair of kids' show puppets), Lou coerces Mary into hiring Sue Ann as a production assistant on the Six O'Clock News.

[8] White gives a great deal of credit for the role's success to the scripts, speaking of being "blessed with the kind of writing on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and [the later series] The Golden Girls".