Golden Girls Forever - New Book by Jim Colucci

Hey does the book confirm that rumor that Bea Arthur defecated in Betty White's shoe?

Every gay man of a certain age has effectively finished his Christmas shopping for 2016. Including me. Picture t....

No e-book edition?

I thought it was a dump on the floor she did?

What did the book say about the mixed blessings episode?

Wow, who would've guessed that horsey, limited-range, 7-foot tall, unfuckable, Bea Arthur would be the bitter one?

[R6] Kaye Ballard.

That's not nice .

Wow for bea to have been shy and timid she sure did let people have it . Getting people fired for chewing gum and wearing there hats backwards is pretty extreme.

[quote] "Rose gets called stupid and dumb, but Betty is all brains. You call Blanche self-centered and a slut, but Rue isn't. All the cracks against Dorothy are about her being ugly or sounding like a man, and it hurts because it's attacking me."

Truth hurts

it's solid; I'm a fan of the show and I'm glad I got it.

Dorothy doesn't get called ugly very often on the show, and Bea actually wasn't an ugly woman. She was comely. And yes, she did look mannish, but that suited her, and with that deep voice and that height she wasn't fooling anyone she was delicate and dainty.

Also, Dorothy was frequently lauded for being smart and shrewd, so she should have felt grateful for that.

People who wear their hats backward deserve what they get.

The rumor was that Bea took a dump in Betty's dressing room toilet and didn't flush. That's all. She didn't shit in shoes or wipe it on the floor or walls. Bea was classier and more passive aggressive than that.

OP= Frank DeCaro!

How ever the story goes it's some truth to it cause rue was asked about it and she said next question.

I want to here more about the the book somebody anybody.

Rue said bea sat in the same seat at rehearsals all the time. Rue said she had to be on the right and Betty and Estelle across from her .

Why would Bea take a dump in Betty's toilet? Why wouldn't she just go in her own? I can't imagine her saying "Betty, can I use your bathroom?" because why would she?

Bea and Betty had their own dressing rooms. Rue and Estelle shared a closet .

I thought it was on the carpeting in the middle of the room.

Please, R6, Arthur was the most talented actress in the crew.

Why didn't the show address the strained relationships they had with their children.

Wow ! Who had a strained relationship with their kids?

The book is a masterpiece. It has everything! My only gripe is, it doesn't mention that Betty and Ru were in Mama's Family together. The book which throws in everything, including the kitchen sink, fails to mention this simple fact for some ridiculous reason. Other than that, it has everything. It's text book size.

Bea Arthur was a fucking nightmare.

The inside of the book features the real kitchen wallpaper. The author got it from the set designer on file.

Omg! I heard Bea was a difficult person.

Gum chewers and back-hat wearers are awful, I now have great respect for Bea Arthur.

Hilarious

I'm pretty sure Bea was on the autism spectrum: the monotone, low voice, the gender dysphoria, the sensitivity to sounds (gum chewing) and tha lack of self awareness.

Or: a lesbian.

I know that gay men love the Golden Girls so I every naively assumed that lesbians did as well. So I asked three lesbians if they watched the show and they said no, it horrified them.

I asked why, and they all said because they didn't want to picture them all naked.

I am a straight women and I get a kick out of DL.

If I was to picture one naked it would be rue she had the best body.

Go away, straight Frau

A lesbian told me that like straight guys, lesbians picture every woman they see on t.v. naked and judge accordingly.

The episode were Blanche and rose pictured Dorothy naked was funny.

Reply {30} that's sounds about right.

I do hope the book receives some sort of award. Even if you're not a fan of a show, it's still a great book to pick up for pop culture historic reasons. It documents just how a show is put together. The never-before-seen photos of the sets without the cast and upclose photos of all the props are amazing. The studio notes, why Lucille Ball didn't do the show, not to mention that every single person who ever appeared on the show, wrote the show, produced the show, episode by episode are interviewed are in it, makes it worth buying. Strange how it was up for digital on Amazon and isn't anymore. I ended up buying the hardback. I'm glad it included a photo of a kitchen set as it was used in a show prior to the Golden Girls in a short-lived Patty Duke sitcom with Helen Hunt.

The book goes into why Coco was cut, including a rare press portrait with Coco and the girls. The actor revealed everything that happened during the taping and after. The writer of the book seems to be on the fence even after talking to the creators and writers and actors that it wasn't a homophobic deletion and reaction to the AIDS crisis at the time.

What does it say about the episode mixed blessings that was my favorite.

R37, learn now to reference a reply in your post.

Bea Arthur is my God.

Bea Arthur's doo doos have been for sale on Ebay before. Obviously she took several shits that were not in a toilet and someone scooped them up and froze them for later resale.

That sounds disgusting.

No one knows if the the rumor is true or not . Rue was asked in a interview about it and she said next question.

Just because I had a tight, sexy, nubile young body, I was automatically branded the 'slut' and that bitch thinks she had it bad being called a man because she was 8 feet tall and had a hump.

The former director Paul bogart said Betty white was not his cup of tea.

There was a Sofia cartoon spin-off in the works. The book goes into detail with the actual sketch. The plot wasn't bad.

[quote]Rue and Estelle shared a closet .

I didn't know they were lesbians. Did they ever come out of the closet officially?

[quote]Also, Dorothy was frequently lauded for being smart and shrewd, so she should have felt grateful for that.

Rose) We all have our "thing." Blanche is the sexy one, Dorothy is the smart one, Sophia is the "old one" and I'm the one everyone likes.

As a dressing room that's was it .

In real life Rue and Betty were valedictorians .

Sofia's daughter in law played by Brenda whatshername was written for Cher who kept asking to be on the show.

Bette Middler's "You've Got To Have Friends" was originally chosen as the theme song.

Estelle Getty hating being on the show is confirmed. She couldn't do it. She couldn't remember anything. They stopped writing Scilly stories because they were too long for her to remember. She would come up with excuses as to why she was forgetful too. Estelle's dialogue was pieced together from multiple takes and rerecorded after the studio audience went home. She wrote her lines on props including fruit. The entire kitchen set was vandalized by her.

Bea was excited to tell the Trudy character that she was ugly. When the writers tried to ditch the line, Bea through a fit.

Now that's some new information about Estelle hate doing the show. Am not surprised Bea threw a fit from what I hear that was her middle name.

I still don't understand how women in their 60 s never wore glasses.

I just finished the book. I thought it was very good, but Colucci included to much extraneous stuff like interviewing people how they felt about the show, drag queen camp versions of the show performed all over the country, GG art forms, etc. A little too much filler. I noticed Bea Arthur wouldn't give him too much information.

bea arthur would hate the book, r56.

R56 There is a podcast devoted to the Golden Girls called Out on the Lanai and they did an interview with Jim Colucci about the book and he goes into to detail about his dealings with Bea Arthur. When he was writing his first book about the Golden Girls back in the early 00s, Bea initially refused an interview saying that she didn't have good memories of The Golden Girls and that it was a bad period in her life. It took weeks of calls between the two before Bea finally agreed (allegedly he blackmailed her by saying that he had already talked to Betty and at this point hers would be the only perspective put into the book). He says that his interview with Bea was tough. She only gave yes and no answers, and much of the initial interview was useless. She did eventually loosen up but got pissed because the interview ran over and she missed watching Judge Judy which apparently was a daily ritual for her.

r58 But in the book didn't he say they ended the interview by sharing a bottle of wine?

r58, that's hilarious. thanx for your post!

Is that really the book cover? Why does Rue's photo get the top billing & Bea's the last - unless it has an "and"?

R59 yes after she berated him for making her miss Judge Judy, they shared a bottle of wine and she gave him a hug when he left. He says that his feeling was that Bea was very socially awkward and often that awkwardness would come out as appearing rude or disinterested.

Bea talked and was nice to who she wanted to. I have seen interviews were she was so nice and lovely she is a affectionate person. Always touching and hugging.

R58 Bea Arthur hated working on the Golden Girls, that's the sense I always got from her. Maude was far more important to her and I understand that. That show was written specifically for her and she was the star, it was her vehicle. Golden Girls was an ensemble piece of I don't think Bea really liked ensembles - Rue talked about that in her book. I always got the feeling she was a bit bitter that it's Golden Girls that she's better remembered for and the bigger hit.

r63 The operative word being "wanted." I think she was far funnier when she was being nasty.

i would have watched judge judy with her. i hate missing the show too.

r64 Face it, GG was funnier than Maude. GG appealed to a much wider audience, and there was something unlikable about Maude at times. Almost everyone liked Dorothy, so of course she's going to be remembered for GG.

Bea sounds like a nasty old cunt. Bitch.

I had been watching some Maude episodes lately and I think the show was very funny. But when gg came around more people where in to tv. And that's why she is more loved for gg.

R69 Maude had its moments, but GGs is a superior show in that the comedy still holds up almost 25 years after the show went off the air.

I hate gum chewing as well, especially those who crack their gum, chew with their mouths open and blow bubbles. It annoys a lot of other people besides me and gum chewing is not permitted in some offices, like microwaving popcorn, which stinks up the whole place.

[quote]I just finished reading the new book Golden Girls Forever by Jim Colucci.

OP is either Frank DeCaro or his husband, the "author" who obsesses over old television shows. Decaro would basically read through threads on DL and make quotes for his little satellite radio show.

This wasn't a thread by some random DLer. It's a thread by a regular DLer who uses the site to both shill and steal from. Oh, and most of the replies are of the OP/author or his husband attempting to drum-up conversation. They need the cash.

R72 Another crazy DLer with conspiracy theories.

No, R73, it's common knowledge to those of us who've been around here longer than 6 months that you troll here for your "shtick". You've run here making up these "I just read this AWESOME new book!" threads written by yourself before. Nobody buys this shit. Not even the loneliest, most television fanatical 60 year old queen. And if they had, they wouldn't have come here quite so soon to discuss it, an then to have nearly 100 replies.

It's all/mostly you or your boyfriend. You're worse than Josh WhatsHisName ever was. At least Josh could actually write and had a legit business. You two keep attempting to dine out on stereotype and 'campiness' to pay the rent.

I see you girl.

Did the book say anything about Elaine Stritch's claim that she was the original Dorothy? I've always thought that was a lie.

I don't know but I want to hear more about the book.

r74 Well, those sleazy Chaturbate guys advertise on DL all the time under that fake thread, so why not let an author or two plug their book. Colucci's book was very good, and I'm not a relative or friend of his. Who wants to pay to see a bunch of STD ridden scuzzballs whack off on camera, but no one says anything them using DL.

R75 and R76 still = Jim Colucci or Frank Decaro. Just look at the title of the thread. It's like a press release. Ban these queen already.

Smh

r75 here. Sorry, r78, but I am much hotter than either Jim Colucci or Frank DeCaro. Most people are, but still...

I am not even gay just curious about the book .

Ugh. Maude was so much better than Golden Girls. More classy. Golden Girls is like gay ghetto shit.

LMAO!

Well, that's too bad. I always loved Bea Arthur. She and her fabulous voice had that Old Hollywood presence that's long gone.

r82 gay ghetto shit

You mean like West Hollywood?

My dad watched Maude it was his favorite when gg came on he said he did not like it . He said they treated Bea so shitty on that show . And she was more talented than all of them.

I remember Bea Arthur going on the Judge Judy show in real life as a plaintiff (not as part of a sitcom plot or anything). She accused another woman of cruelty to dogs, I think. The judge listened to the case and finally had to tell Bea that, although she sympathized with Bea's point of view, legally she couldn't do anything to punish the defendant. Bea was very upset and either cried or almost cried. That's all I remember of the case, but I do remember feeling sorry for Bea and for how frail emotionally and how vulnerable she seemed.

R85 I mean it's just such a cliched show that ALL GAYS love. Marc Cherry is so common. I find the humor often too obvious and too easy. I don't know, I just can't really even watch it at this point. No offense to fans. If you like it, you like.

Maude was much more interesting to me. More depth of character.

R87 again: I forgot to mention one of my favourite YouTube videos: Seth Rudetsky deconstructs Barbra Streisand and Bea Arthur. I could watch Seth impersonating Bea Arthur's overeager conductor a thousand times and still laugh :)

Maude is great, but noisy. It was very liberal, and Bea was the center and star. GG is very different, but also excellent. Maybe Bea wanted to be a star, but other ladies were so good she couldn't.

Political shows do not sell in foreign countries and have trouble selling in syndication, and that has put [italic]Maude[/italic] at a disadvantage.

As a rule Norman Lear shows did not as nearly as well in syndication as they did on network.

I remember M*A*S*H going through the roof in syndication, while All in the Family kind of laid an egg.

[quote] As a rule Norman Lear shows did not as nearly as well in syndication as they did on network.

The "angry black man" shows did better in reruns than the "angry white woman" shows.

Maybe Bea was both difficult and ultra sensitive. I remember GG special, where Bea was in tears because she ended the show when she left.

Clearly Bea was a complex and vulnerable woman. I think she also got a little spoiled being famous, as many do.

[quote]Did the book say anything about Elaine Stritch's claim that she was the original Dorothy? I've always thought that was a lie.

It included a story about Stritch's disastrous audition. Stritch said, "If you don't mind, I'd like to change a few things. For example, on page seven, where Dorothy says, 'Don't forget the hors d'oeuvres,' do you mind if I say, 'the FUCKING hors d'oeuvres?'" Susan Harris and the other producers/executives weren't amused.

Also, at first, NBC President Brandon Tartikoff didn't want to cast Bea. At the time, she had a really low Q score and people identified her with Maude's liberal politics.

"Golden Girls" was Thursday at the Midnight Sun in the Castro.

r96 Oh my God, don't start that topic on this thread, or the DL psycho "Elaine Stritch never auditioned for the role of Dorothy" troll will come out of his hole. I posted that story, with sources, on another thread, and he went crazy saying it wasn't true. He just wouldn't let up.

It's 100% believable that Stritchie was considered for Golden Girls, but she was never "first choice". Bea was always first choice, and when it looked like she wasn't going to do it, they looked at other actresses.

Elaine kind of exaggerated, seeming to suggest that her big mouth kept her from getting the role, but the fact is that Bea agreeing to do it kept anyone else from getting the role.

I wish iPhones were around in the 80s because from the things I heard about Bea it was worth seeing.

[quote]She wrote her lines on props including fruit. The entire kitchen set was vandalized by her.

So did Lucy. The producers of Wildcat were horrified because a week before the opening Lucy was all like, "OK where are the cue cards."

Maude was a bigger hit from the standpoint of ratings.

Golden Girls was more global that's why it's more popular.

GG also has the Disney machine behind its promotion.

This entire thread is the OP, Jim Colucci bumping his thread.

F&F

I don't like the way they treated Bea on gg all those jokes sometimes were horrible.

R106 it was like all the fat jokes about Tracey Gold on Growing Pains. They actually had her crash through the roof doing jumping jacks once! No wonder she got an eating disorder.

On the last thing Bea did, the Pamela Anderson Roast, Jeffrey Ross really made some awful jokes about her. "So I was takin' a leak next to Bea Arthur". "I wouldn't fuck her with Bea Arthur's dick!"

It made Bea storm off. She hadn't done her bit yet (reading from Pamela Anderson's autobiography) so the producers had to BEG her to come back. She said something along the lines of "Look, I can take a joke, but that was over the line and abusive".

Who in there right mind would disrespect a person in their 80s and a icon like Bea.

Back yet again to say: If someone can deliver, be it a song, a line, a look, a message - That's valuable and they deserve respect for it. Bea could deliver a line like few others.

[quote]Bea was always first choice, and when it looked like she wasn't going to do it, they looked at other actresses.

The network said ABSOLUTELY NO WAY to Bea. The producers wanted Bea, the suits didn't. Her q rating was too low. She was hated in Reagan's America after Maude. Susan Harris convinced them in part by saying that the three other actresses would also be the stars. It wouldn't all revolve round Bea.

The book is really good. The set people discuss every single prop. There's pictures of every piece. Where it was purchased and how it was made are listed. The Florida backdrop was from some old 50s Frank Sinatra film. The table clothes were purchased in Paris and were stored behind the refrigerator. They were color-coordinated to the actresses' clothes.

The plot to the finale was based on a true story: Susan Harris and Paul Junger Witt's marriage. They flew to Rome to meet partner Tony Thomas and tell him they got married as a prank. Instead of getting all shocked, he saluted them and said that their arguments were just out of passion and he always knew that they'd end up together. They had a week left in Rome together and ended up having to think about it and wound up marrying.

In the episode Sofia fakes needing to be in a wheel chair and has a nurse, Estelle was so small, they had to buy a children's wheelchair. The actress playing the nurse really ran over and smashed Betty White's foot due to a table being moved in the wrong place by someone on the set. The scene was kept in the episode.

The book reveals why the microwave reference is deleted from both syndicated and DVD releases of the episode where Blanche needs a pacemaker. Apparently, the whole thing is a myth and Disney doesn't want to perpetuate the lie that people with pacemakers can't be near microwaves. The book tells you have to find the deleted scene on Youtube.

Funny they deleted that, but didn't do anything about the episode where they get condoms for a cruise. It still pisses me off. It's one thing that they wanted to make a statement, but then made a point to say that they were buying lambskin condoms, which don't block the HIV virus. I thought it was incredibly irresponsible.

I'm not sure I'll read the book. I like Bea, and she was a good person who was very pro-gay. The fact that the book maligns her doesn't give me an incentive to read it.

[quote]Apparently, the whole thing is a myth and Disney doesn't want to perpetuate the lie that people with pacemakers can't be near microwaves.

I don't buy that that's why they pulled it; [italic]The Simpsons[/italic] built a whole episode around it and that's still on DVD and in syndication.

Frankly, I don't think anyone cares if the author or someone else started a thread to promote it or allegedly "mine" for content for some radio show....it's a fun thread.

Stop trying to suck the fun out of it, Random Asshole.

But The Simpsons isn't Disney.

Anyone have a link to bea on judge Judy?

Wow, R105 is right about OP talking to himself in this thread.

I'll always be a fan of Bea and she's a certified LEGEND but - before someone jumps on the "Bea was just being 'real' and Betty is a fake bandwagon" - part of being a nice and considerate person actually consists of taking one for the team, so to speak - Like going to work and being nice and considerate to your colleagues, and maybe even having a little fun with them, even if you wake up that day feeling like shit or you're just not in the best mood for whatever reason. A truly nice person genuinely wants to make their environment as pleasant as possible for those around them and tries their best not to let their baggage get in the way. Especially when you have a pretty cushy and well paying job with not even full hours (except on tape day) that most people would kill for.

Just my two cents. Totally getting this book.

Bea was drinking heavily during golden girls . I really don't think it was a happy time in her life. Rue always said Bea was never quite happy doing the golden girls.

R92 the reason why Norman Lear's shows (with the exception of All in the Family) have not done well in syndication is the shows are viewed as being too political. In the 80s there was a deliberate shift away from the more political comedies of the 70s.

R102 Golden Girls was a bigger ratings hit than Maude if you take declining viewership into account. The 80s was the beginning of the cable boom and viewers were tuning into more than just ABC, NBC, and CBS. Ratings have declined steadily with each passing decade as the number of channels and networks have increased. Golden Girls was in the top 10 rated shows for 6 of its 7 seasons. Maude was in the top 10 for it's first four seasons and then dropped out of the top 30 in its final two years.

R120 Bea was an alcoholic, perhaps a functional alcoholic, but an alcoholic nonetheless. There are so many drunk stories about her, even at her memorial when Rue told the now infamous story about calling Betty White a cunt, Rue made it clear Bea was drunk at the time.

Joan rivers tell a story of Bea coming to her house falling on the floor sloppy drunk.

gg was way better than shitty maude. i couldn't stand to watch more than one or two episodes of that shitty maude show. it's so old and shitty like most of the fags here.

Both shows were good just different times and generations. Maude abortion episode is still talked about.

Elaine Stritch once told me a story. (Now it's Stritch, who has been known to stretch the truth about as far as it can go, so take it with a grain of salt).

According to Elaine, she was having lunch with Bea one day. She said, "Now Bea can swear as good as the rest of us, but during this lunch she said, 'That Betty is a fucking cunt. She just puts on that love of animals act because she feels she needs a charity. She doesn't give a shit about animals."

Betty is a dame good actor if she acted like she love animals for 70 years.

[quote]Golden Girls was in the top 10 rated shows for 6 of its 7 seasons. Maude was in the top 10 for it's first four seasons and then dropped out of the top 30 in its final two years.

Not quite

Maude

1972 – 1973t#4t 24.7

1973 – 1974t#6t 23.5

1974 – 1975t#9t 24.9

1975 – 1976t#4t 25.0

1976 – 1977t#31t 19.9

1977 – 1978t#75t 15.2

Golden Girls

1985 - 1986 #8 18.7

1986 - 1987 #5 21.4

1987 - 1988 #5 21.4

1988 1989 #6 19.3

1989 - 1990 #6 18.5

1990 - 1991 #10 15.3

1991 - 1992 # 30 12.0

Maude made it higher (#4) than the GG did and her lowest rating of 15.2 which plunged her down to 75, would've made it nearly a top ten hit in 1990.

He'll Crosby was number 1 five years so does it matter.

Park Overall said Bea told her one time she like a lot of buckin and fucking.

So Bea would only talk to some guest on the 3rd day because the producers were watching.

Cable TV existed but was uncommon when [italic]Maude[/italic] was on the air, so it wasn't yet big enough to take audiences away from network TV.

There's also the likelihood that some of its audience died of AIDS and therefore wasn't around to see [italic]The Golden Girls[/italic] in the first place.

The same person, OP, has bumped this thread at least 25 times

R133, the OP is trying to shill his little book. He's done it before on here, as has his boyfriend/partner.

Even legitimate GG threads on Datalounge don't get this much activity.

Go away Jim Calucci before we start trashing your shitty little self published book all over the web. Go away NOW, troll.

Why buy it when you can check your local library system to see if they have it?

My library system has three copies at three different libraries.

Search the library website for it, go check it out, then return it, free of charge.

It's not self-published.

It was published by Harper-Collins.

Dumbass.

[quote]Cable TV existed but was uncommon when Maude was on the air, so it wasn't yet big enough to take audiences away from network TV.

Wrong but correct. What you probably mean is cable TV channels. Cable TV was common, though not in urban areas, though area like San Diego were already heavily cabled when Maude was on. But back then there were few cable TV channels. Cable TV usually only carried 12 or so channels and would import other independent channels. Like Minneapolis suburbs would have cable and import Winnipeg locals.

Cable TV had a big impact as it was allowing networks like ABC with weaker UHF affiliates to compete on par with VHF. But again these were local TV channels.

So I will assume you mean cable TV channels/networks, as opposed to cable TV itself.

By the time the Golden Girls debuted, even long hold out urban areas like Chicago had been wired with cable

[quote]So I will assume you mean cable TV channels/networks, as opposed to cable TV itself.

Yes; there were far fewer options than there are now, and their original shows got nowhere near the kind of attention or acclaim some of them get today.

I read in the book where they received mail about Bea hair.

The book has an interview with the writer of the episode where Dorothy's friend is gay. The original storyline was was Dorothy's friend's daughter was gay.

The book also has interviews with the creators who revealed that all of Marc Cherry's proposed scripts were (insert story), and it turns out he/she's gay.

I hate Marc Cherry. He's like Bruce Vilanch with a tad more success. Ugh.

Strand them on an island with Ross Matthews. Throw in Ryan Murphy and that fat gay from Modern Family too.

Marc Cherry his writing was horrible on Golden Girls.

Marc Cherry is like the gay Steppin' Fetchit

Bea hated the director and the writers from season 6 and 7.

R144 some of the funniest stuff is from those seasons, bar none.

i hated the whole end of the show shit where dorothy was married to leslie Nielson. Makes me sad to watch it.

I read in the book the writers did not like the way the show ended Bea said she hated that wedding dress.

Bea was drinking heavily in season 5 you can tell she was reading cue cards because her eyes always cut off to the camera.

R145 It's the cheesiest sitcomy stuff, certainly.

It's a good thing iPhones where not around because I would love to have seen some of the things I heard about Bea.

R149 they did away with the preachy issue shows and just aimed to be funny, which I appreciated.

[quote]Bea was drinking heavily in season 5 you can tell she was reading cue cards because her eyes always cut off to the camera.

Why? She didn't have a studio to run and a son trying to impregnate Patty Duke.

That's new to me I never heard about her son and Patty Duke before.

R152 One thing I don't believe Lucy EVER did was read from cue cards.

[quote]One thing I don't believe Lucy EVER did was read from cue cards.

You can constantly see Lucy reading off cue cards on The Lucy Show. She'll pretend she's trying to think of what to say and she'll look off to the side and then suddenly come out with the line. In some episodes, she really slows down the pace of the scene by doing it. A couple of times Gale Gordon's famous "slow burn" doesn't work because Lucy takes eternity to get her line out.

Any references to the Blanche Devereaux spit takes?

R155 yeah? I guess I'm just surprised because she demanded so much from her co-stars and guest stars. I'm surprised with her ultra professional reputation that she would stoop to cue cards!

[quote]I guess I'm just surprised because she demanded so much from her co-stars and guest stars. I'm surprised with her ultra professional reputation that she would stoop to cue cards!

Sorry, in the above I meant "Here's Lucy." I think once her divorce with Desi was in effect, she found it difficult to keep Desilu running. Yes she had people making business decisions, but she had to show up for DesiLu board meetings, etc. In addition, to rehearsing and making script decisions, I just think it was too much for her. Plus, she had Lucie and Desi Jr to keep an eye on.

Her doing it on Here's Lucy makes more sense, as obviously she was getting older.

Her involvement with Desilu was finished by the time Here's Lucy came around. She sold to Gulf + Western in 1967.

I saw an interview with Lucie Arnaz where she said "As far as mother was concerned, the most important thing on those Fridays (filming day) was to make sure we were eating dinner at Matteo's by 9pm.

Nearly this entire thread is the OP using Datalounge to market his "book". He's done it here before as others have said up-thread. His boyfriend has done it. Many if not all of the replies are him typing out answers to questions he's planting.

You can even tell by the sentence structure that most of this is coming from the same person.

F/F the OP please

R160 what if that IS true? Who cares? It's an interesting discussion. No one is being forced by purchase this book.

Qunin Cummings is currently living the life of an aging hipster in Atwater.

Agreed with r160 somebody is exploiting the board to shill

People need to get a life.

haha R162 was meant for the Family thread. Sorry.

Lucy went to a taping of golden girls they say she was laughing her ass off.

You've bumped this thread 32 times to promote this book, R165, most recently @R166. Perhaps you're the one who needs to get a life

R165 keeps bumping the thread with one line replies. He's clearly shilling his book. FandF him

OP's sad website. The photo is at least 15 years old.

R168 I have absolutely nothing to do with this book. You're mentally ill.

I"m FFing the asshole who keeps derailing this thread with his stupid accusations.

WE DON'T CARE! IT'S A FUN THREAD! FUCK OFF!!!

Though not as good as the "Bea Arthur is a miserable bitch" threads.

If OP is Jim or Frank, we miss you on Sirius. Bring back da Gay channel!!

She was a miserable bitch.

Again, this ENTIRE thread is the OP and perhaps the one sad, ancient Golden Girls troll who keeps littering the site with these threads.

F&F

Perhaps...but we loved her for it!

I love the book it gave out some good details from behind the scenes about Bea and how the episodes came about. I just wish it had more episodes to talk about.

I think 180 episodes was quite enough.

R177 = Freida Claxton

I think ending the show when they did was a good idea. The show was just starting to decline in quality and the comedy wasn't as delicious as it had been in earlier years. It could very well have gone on another season or two but I think it was a good idea to leave while the quality was relatively intact.

Why Betty White maid suing her?

I just don't like the way it ended it look like it was threw together.

I wonder if Arlene Francis was a fan of The Golden Girls.

Am over these old gals.

Did anyone really think the sequel was a good idea? Rue, Betty and Estelle running a hotel?

No I think they should have left it like it was but Betty Rue and Estelle did not want the show to end . It was Bea who was unhappy because she wanted to do Broadway.

R184 Golden Palace was a terrible idea! I always felt the ending of the show was botched because of the fact Bea was leaving and the other three ladies were going to do a spinoff. Because of this the series finale of the Golden Girls was too Dorothy centered. I always thought it would be funny if the show somehow ended with the four ladies in shady pines.

R186 That's a dumb idea. Having them all at Shady Pines. Stupid.

I thought they all should have got married . Rose to Miles Blanche to the guy who made her feel like a lady and Dorothy I guess to Leslie Neilson.

Bea seemed pretty pleased in her TV Academy interview about having Dorothy go out by marrying Leslie Nielsen.

Rue, who was as close to Bea as anyone on the show, said that Bea felt she was the star of GG - and I'm sure Bea's attitude must have been annoying when she was clearly part of an ensemble cast.. But the reality is that Bea - or the Dorothy character as acted by Bea - was the glue that held the cast together. Golden Palace proved that all too clearly.

I think it's kind of funny how Bea used that phrase over and over again to describe her own height, "I'm 5 feet 9.5 inches in my stocking feet," long after women had generally stopped wearing stockings.

I catch myself doing that - using phrases that seem a little out-dated.

Bea needed a man in her real life that's why she was so miserable if she was fucking she would not have acted like that.

Angela Lansbury said when she was on murder she wrote she was going to do it for five years . After they gave her a new contract she stayed. I said to myself her and Bea were just a like.

Ohhh, juicy.

I quite liked Golden Palace. I wish they'd release it on DVD.

It's not on YouTube either .

Carol Burnett did a hysterical parody of Maude.

Check out who's playing Florida. Weezy Jefferson!

BTW I am in no way involved with this book, nor am I talking to myself in this thread.

R188 I didn't like Dorothy getting married and I don't like the idea of all the Girls getting married because I think it plays into the message of a woman must have a man.

R197 Do you really think that's the message? At their age? I think it's more about simple companionship. I mean, yes the girls were there for each other,but they were all straight.

R92 that's not entirely true. In 1987 is was reported that Norman Lear made $30 million off the syndication success of The Facts of Life , which he produced through his production company, ALONE.

Facts entered syndication in 1984.

[quote] I quite liked Golden Palace. I wish they'd release it on DVD.

I tuned in thinking it was a sitcom about a Chinese restaurant. Boy was I surprised it was set in a hotel.

I agree Bea Betty and Estelle were 70 years old when the show ended I think it would have been a good idea for all them to have got married except Estelle.

I did not know Norman Lear produced facts of life.

Someone told a story of Rue getting a massage and they asked if she preferred a man or woman and she said I want a man rubbing my body . Then she said Bea is the one who would prefer a woman.

R203, Bea was not a lesbian - she was a gay man in drag!

Random fact I learned from this book Herb Edelman had worked with Bea Arthur twice before doing the Golden Girls. He did two guest appearances as Maude boss in 1974.

She played his boss.

This guy Larry Randolph have some good stories about Bea like how she would be nice one minute and be a bitch in another.

[quote] It's not on YouTube either .

It used to be, albeit in the edited-by-two-minutes-an-episode Lifetime versions, under some account called "Sverhoven Krispies" which has long since been removed by the YouTube Copyright Police. Interestingly, Disney has been fairly lenient on people posting some of their stuff; you can still find episodes of "Bonkers," the short-lived Disney TV cartoon from the 1990s that came and went around the same time, there.

Check your local library system for this book and read it for free. There's no need to pay full price for it.

There's also ebay.

You'll read it once and then it will just sit on a shelf.

I agree I bought the book and read it have not read it since and I was disappointed it did not have some of my favorite episodes in it

R202 Norman Lear produced Facts, Diff'rent Strokes, Square Pegs etc. Through his production company Embassy.

He talks about Facts a bit in his autobiography and refers to it as "my show". He also talks about discovering Geri Jewell (Cousin Geri) and making Facts become the first series with a person with cerebral palsy in the cast

Al Burton, the executive in charge of production during Facts early seasons, also had the same position on other Lear series All in The Family, Maude (where obviously he worked with Bea), Good Times, One Day at a time and Diff'rent Strokes did an interview where he said Norman was always going over the Facts scripts and was constantly telling him that "I don't want this show to be fluff I want it to be issues oriented from a young girl perspective. "

I wonder if Lear took his name off the later kid-centric Embassy shows to trick freepers into letting their kids watch.

I know his partner Bud Yorkin said different strokes was based off Beau bridges who adopted a black son.

The fact that both [italic]Facts[/italic] and [italic]Designing Women[/italic] went on two years without their respective lead actresses may have contributed to the GG writers/producers deciding to do something different when Bea left.

Bea sued the producers of golden girls when they did not pay her when they went into syndication .

Bea gave a interview once and they asked has she ever been with a woman and she said no but she thought about. She realized she was straight.

Marrying Dorthy off at the end undermined the whole point of the show, which was that they were a nontraditional family who had always pledged to stay together. They tried to fix that by having Dorthy marry Blanche's uncle, making them relatives, but it left Rose out. Worse ending ever because it undermined the entire theme of the series. They could have just has Dorothy go off on a long world cruise or something. Certainly, Golden Palace was not worth it.

All of the other suggestions for how to end it are even stupider.

[quote]but it left Rose out

So the time we had sex doesn't count?

Dorothy's been known to make life-changing decisions on a whim before.

R217 They could have ended it with the girls in the kitchen sharing cheescake, Rose starting to tell some long crazy story. END. People would have preferred to think of them together, just living as they had. It wasn't that difficult.

The elevation of the Sophia Petrillo character was the source of Bea's misery during the GG years.

When she signed on, the concept was to have Dorothy as the lead with the slutty Blanche, dim Rose, and fancy man cool as her posse of nuts.

The balding ex Stan & demented mother Sophia as occasional guest state to fuel her angst.

When the Sophia character tested so well with initial focus audiences, the decision was made to elevate her to series regular by replacing the fancy man.

This enraged Bea because having a bitchy, demented, helicopter mom changed the character of Dorothy and dropped her from lead character to straight man in an ensemble.

It didn't help that Estelle was a terrible cast mate with her limited experience, stage fright, and inability to remember her lines.

Within the first dozen episodes, she was already plotting a way to bail.

It's amazing she lasted 7 campaigns!

R221 makes lots of sense

David Leisure from Empty Nest said Bea was so mad at Betty one time that she ran back stage she was going to kill Betty but the producers and cast had to hold her back.

[quote] It didn't help that Estelle was a terrible cast mate with her limited experience, stage fright, and inability to remember her lines.

Interesting stuff. I saw Getty on stage in TORCH SONG TRILOGY in 1982 and she had no problem with her lines. Of course, she was doing the same show over and over each night, unlike television where you learn a new script every week. Fascinating that she still suffered from stage fright after having appeared in front of 500 people every night for a year.

r220 Rose starting to tell some long crazy story. END

God, that would have been the worse way to end it with that overrated Betty White blabbering on about her idiotic, boring life. Just shoot me.

R224:

I think the problems learning a new script each week became the source of the stage fright.

I think she was terrified of screwing up the tapings in front of everyone.

Bea just was miserable doing golden girls she was never happy.

[quote] Bea just was miserable doing golden girls she was never happy

To paraphrase Liberace: She cried all the way to the bank

Here is David Leisure's interview on which he comments on Bea Arthur's hatred of gum and her hate of Betty White:

I read where Park talked about Bea Arthur’s gum chewing phobia, which was true. She had radar that extended out about 100 feet and would walk over to you to have you spit it out. Also that she hated Betty White, which was true, because she felt that Betty was an actor/whore that would take any job, which is also true. But hell, Betty’s still working, and she’s 95!

Bea prided herself on never, and I mean never, blowing lines, no matter who else did. There’s a story that once Estelle kept blowing a line, which happened all the time, but both Rue McClanahan and Bea would do theirs right. Then Rue started blowing her line, and Bea was trying to keep it together. Finally, Bea started blowing her lines. It’s catching, you know? Anyway, Bea said, after blowing it two or three times after everyone else had, “This is going fucking terrible!” right in front of the audience. Betty, who wasn’t in the scene, stuck her head out through some doorway and said to the audience, “Well, I think it’s going very well, don’t you?” The audience started screaming with laughter. But Bea wasn’t laughing. Story goes that she went backstage and was going to kill Betty, and they had to hold her back. Anyway, that’s the story.

Dinah Manoff said Bea asked her to spit her gum out she told her no and she said Bea stormed off.

Yep that's the story!

Lmao Bea was crazy for real!

Here's Bea best performance ever

Yes! She killed the Urkel dance I did not know she could move like that.

R225 You missed the point I was making because the asshole inside your brain was talking. It should have ended with them just doing something routine, and it fades to black of the camera pans away. Let the audience imagine them being a family until the end and having a happy ending. THAT'S my point.

I remember when Bea went on Arsenio Hall show she kissed him on the lips.

I find it odd that people would prefer to believe she hated Betty White. rather than that they were all just co-workers and not really friends.

There are stories that back that up and a non-denial confirmation by Rue

If Bea confronted an occasional guest star from a spinoff over chewing gum, it's not hard to imagine a seething rage toward a 7 year costar who she saw as fake & acquiring more popularity than her.

Betty was an inferior talent (according to Bea), has never been a lead, came from a game show panel past, but she knows how to market herself to the masses.

She has been a regular scene striker for 60+ years.

That must have made the eclectic, socially awkward, Bea see red.

She knew deep down she would never be the type who would be asked to host SNL as a 90yo

GG could've easily gone for another two seasons if Bea had stayed. I, too, didn't see the need to marry Dorothy off. To this day, that two-part series ender are the only episodes I routinely skip. It was truly the end of an era.

Bea not liking Betty has been confirmed by both Rue and Betty as well as many others who worked on GG. It's not a rumor.

Bea did host Saturday night live once Betty was optimistic and Bea was pessimistic and that don't mix. Betty loved to engage with people Bea did not care to like no one.

David Leisure also said when Bea got drunk she was a different person he say he sat in Bea lap one time and Joan Rivers told a story how Bea came to her house and fell on the floor she was do drunk.

R237 It's very well documented now that Bea did not like Betty. Pretty much everyone involved with the show from the actresses to writers to producers have openly stated it. Even Betty is now on record as saying "Bea was not that fond of me." The question is how much did Bea really hate Betty? There are tons of rumors fueled my a story that Rue told at Bea's memorial service where a drunk Bea met Rue's last husband for the first time. When he introduced himself as Rue's husband Bea leaned into him and said "Rue I love, Betty White's a cunt." There's even an urban legend that Bea once defecated on Betty White's dressing room floor.

Most people involved with the show basically say that rather than outright hatred there was more of an underlying tension. David Leisure said that Bea thought Betty was an acting whore who'd take any job. That seems in line with something Bea once said to Marc Cherry. According to Mark Bea once said to him "Betty while die at work."

Don't forget she was going to to beat Betty up but they stopped her.

The only person who can confirm that she 'hated' Betty is dead. A 'non denial confirmation from Rue' is ludicrous. And Better never claimed this until recently, she'd always said that Bea made people wait for her so they could all go to lunch together.

I think you are in denial.

R248 No, just not presuming things.

How is that presuming when people have came out and said Bea did not like Betty I don't think every one as the same story.

R250 Look, Jim, I get it...peddling the book. But gossip is just gossip. These folks barely knew Bea. She's the only one who can say if she hated Betty, and she's gone. Maybe she was indifferent towards Betty, or found her annoying at times. There's a difference. Either way, what does it even matter? Rose and Dorothy were a family. That fictional family is more fun. Who cares how they felt off-set?

This queen is STILL using DL to shill this damn "book" ?

Go away troll! 98% of this thread is the OP/Jim Calucci attempting to sell his book.. F&F

R251 These stories did not start with Jim Colucci it's been known for years! In fact it was Bea Arthur who really started the rumors that she hated Betty by calling Betty a cunt on more than one occasion added to it in an interview with A&U magazine when asked about Betty White Bea's answer was an eye roll and saying "Next question"

Yep she told another magazine she could not stand her but she was drinking.

I heard Bea bullied Betty on set and was scared to take up for herself and that made Rue mad.

My friend was an intern with Witt-Thomas back when this show was running and she can attest to how much Bea hated Betty, she had it ALL OVER HER HANDS and it took a whole afternoon with a wet vac in Betty's trailer to get rid of Bea's 'hatred'. Betty had to set up shop in Rue's dressing room for the week while they 'aired' her's out.

Omg so this story is legit ? How they Knew Bea did it?

How did it get all over her hands?

Who here is denying that Bea disliked Betty? She just did! At Bea's funeral, Rue quoted Bea as calling Betty a "cunt" behind her back.

I heard she was always cursing Betty out.

Bea Arthur's doo doos were on sale on Ebay at one time. People actually bought them. They came frozen, shipped with dry ice.

Who in the hell would save Bea shit and keep it for 30 years.

I think the Bea and Betty feud has been blown out of proportion. It makes for good press if there's a big feud between two stars. Not saying there wasn't tension, but it was always established that the Golden Girls set was a rather calm and peaceful one compared to others. Rue had said that guest stars would come on and be surprised at how easy going the production ran.

And according to Rue, Bea always went to dinner with Betty when they were on the set together. Even if Betty was running late, Bea would wait for her. Why would you do that for someone whom you flat out hated?

[quote]David Leisure said that Bea thought Betty was an acting whore who'd take any job.

And how would he know? He did one episode of Golden Girls. Bea appeared once on Empty Nest.

I don't know but every one dead except Betty she the only who know the real truth and she did say Bea did not like her . It as been stories since 1987 how Bea hated Betty and this guy Larry Rudolph one of Bea's friends say she would go Betty white on him.

R258, she tried to pick it up with a paper towel, but apparently it had the consistency of what my dad calls when he's curbing our dog, a 'grass comber', because you basically need a comb to scrape it out of the grass when picking it up. Things spiralled quickly and she went through like a roll of paper towels before one of the sanitation guys told her she needed to get a wet vac.

This ENTIRE thread is the OP asking questions over and over and over....and then answering them.

[quote]Marrying Dorthy off at the end undermined the whole point of the show, which was that they were a nontraditional family who had always pledged to stay together. They tried to fix that by having Dorthy marry Blanche's uncle, making them relatives, but it left Rose out. Worse ending ever because it undermined the entire theme of the series.

Agreed, what kind of loser writes a lame ass ending that destroys the entire premise of the series

I find this story a little absurd so they caught her taking a dump in Betty's dressing room?

[quote]One thing I don't believe Lucy EVER did was read from cue cards.

Lucie Arnaz confirms this, at least by the time she was on Here's Lucy. She said her mother would read off cue cards, but would never allow Desi Jr or her to do so.

" Maude was so much better than Golden Girls"

Yes. For reasons having nothing to do with Bea Arthur.

GG was like a wknd with your fun granny & her nutty gal pals...

Maude was like a lecture from the 50yo virginal librarian...

I liked Maude and golden girls but I think Bea liked Maude .

Maude was much better written than Golden Girl, and had many dramatic as well as comedic highlights.

Golden Girls is like stepping in a puddle of HIV.

R273 if you mean OVERwritten then yes.

Bea looked ten times better during the latter GG years than she did on Maude. On Maude she was...yeeesh!

R275 Bea had a breast reduction and lost a lot of weight between Maude and GG. Also rumors are that Bea had a facelift shortly before the Golden Girls.

R263 I agree with you on this. The Bea/Betty thing has been played up over the years and there was no huge feud between them. Bea found Betty annoying and there was an underlying tension there. Some people like Chris Lloyd and Marc Sotkin have said they thought some of Bea's dislike of Betty came from resentment that Betty was personally popular with the crew and audiences and Betty was the first to win an Emmy.

Betty for her part seemed to be a fan of Bea's. In Rue's book, Rue talks about how Betty was hurt from time to time by Bea's attitude towards her and would ask Rue "Why doesn't she like me?" Betty went and saw Bea's one woman show twice and Bea never acknowledged her presence in the audience. However when Rue attended Bea called pointed her out to the audience. In her book, Rue expressed disappointment that Bea never explained why she felt that way about Betty.

Bea no acknowledgement of Betty at her show sounds like she did not like her to me I just think some people want to believe they were the people they played on tv and they were not. I have heard Bea can be a real bitch on and off tv.

I went to a "Golden Girls" taping (the Mangiacavallo Curse episode) and one thing I noticed was that, during scene breaks, Bea would go off by herself (perhaps to go over her lines or to just relax) while the other actors would socialize with each other.

R279 how bad was Estelle with her lines? BTW Mangiacavllo's Curse is one of my fav. episodes.

Jim, I would love to pound one out in your big round ass.

Bea Betty and Rue wanted Estelle fired cause she could not remember her lines but the producers said no.

"Golden Girls Forever"

I like to think it of it more as a finite thing.

[quote]David Leisure also said when Bea got drunk she was a different person he say he sat in Bea lap one time and Joan Rivers told a story how Bea came to her house and fell on the floor she was do drunk.

Who exactly is the drunk here?

[quote] GG was like a wknd with your fun granny & her nutty gal pals... Maude was like a lecture from the 50yo virginal librarian...

Girls, girls, GIRLS! You BOTH changed TV history for the better!

Bea Arthur hated everyone on Maude too. It's not just coincidental.

Would it be blasphemous to suggest [italic]Maude[/italic] was closer tonally to [italic]Designing Women[/italic] than to GG?

R282 Never heard of this. R286 At least she was promoting dvd of Maude with her screen daughter few years ago. If Bea hated her, she would not have done it.

Hell no Maude was better than Desinging Women. Maude was a good show for its generation. When gg came out times had changed more younger audience that's why people like it more than Maude. It's not fair to compare the 2 they were different shows but Maude was Bea favorite every one knows that.

[quote] Bea Arthur hated everyone on Maude too. It's not just coincidental.

That's not true. She got along very well with Rue McClanahan on both shows.

Rue was sort of the glue that held them together, and I really think having worked with them both separately helped that.

Bea wasn't mean or obnoxious--she could just be cold and standoffish if she didn't like you. But by all accounts she liked Rue and Estelle, and was very civil to Betty.

Because she looked like a drag queen, Dataloungers always want her to have behaved like a drag queen; but that just wasn't so.

And she loved Conrad Bain she we to some Different Strokes tapings.

Bea viewed Maude as the pinnacle of her career and I don't blame her for that. The show was created and written specifically for her and she was the undisputed star. I think she also liked that Maude dealt with more topical issues than GG. Bea appeared to get along well with her Maude co-stars too. I think her relationship was touch and go with Bill Macy from time to time and in her interview with the Archive for American Television she didn't seem to think highly of Ester Rolle.

As for Betty White, Bea didn't like her but I don't think it was a huge deal. In her interview with the Archive for American Television when asked about working with Betty, Bea said: What about her? What can I say? She was brilliant in that role, wonderful. The whole thing was wonderful."

Bea said Esther did not have a funny bone they just wrote her funny lines but she did up with her own show so somebody thought she was funny.

[quote]That's not true. She got along very well with Rue McClanahan on both shows.

Only because Rue was a doormat when it came to Bea, and most other people, and let everyone walk all over her.

[quote]Bea said Esther did not have a funny bone they just wrote her funny lines but she did up with her own show so somebody thought she was funny.

I have nothing against Rolle, but she was not funny. On Good Times she wasn't even as funny as James. Clearly Wilona and JJ were the funny ones, even little Michael's rants about social injustice in the ghetto were better comic material than Rolle.

This isn't to say she wasn't needed, she was, but she was the straight man to these funny people.

In her Archive of American Television interview, Bea said "Esther Rolle: I don't do windows and I don't do comedy".

However, she says she adored Rue, Conrad, and Bill on Maude. She didn't think Adrienne Barbeau was very good. She said Marcia Rodd was better in the pilot.

I don't think Rue was anybody's doormat I think Bea just did not consider her an equal. Rue stood her own when she was on golden girls she ran off with Blanche. Blanche and Vivian where two different characters.

Where did Bea get off having such an ego?

She was a one note performer

The only person Susan Harris had in mind when she wrote gg was Bea and I think she thought the girls were going to play off her instead every one became a star. I think that made Bea mad because Betty was the first to win the Emmy then Rue and she was last and I think she held some bitterness about that.

[quote]She didn't think Adrienne Barbeau was very good.

There are worse things she could do.

R267 The ending of Newhart worked because the first show had been the better and more beloved show, and the episode was beautifully written. The ending of GG was a complete train wreck.

There have been worse finales.

Bea's doo dooooooos were selling on Ebay right into the 2000's. Bea shit and they scooped it right up and SOLD Bea's shit.

I don't think Rue was anyone's doormat. If you watch her TV archive video, she seems pretty tough and a bit cranky.

Bea liked professional people. And, she was a theater trained actor and really only respected other professional, theater trained artists with talent. If you met her high standards, you were ok in her book. People like Rue and Conrad Bain hit all the marks.

Adrienne Barbeau was theater trained but not a very good actress. Esther Rolle was theater trained but not good at comedy. Bill Macy was a theater actor with comedy skills but he could be unprofessional. Betty White was from TV Land and while she is a professional, her sunny "let's have fun while working!" attitude obviously did not sit well with Bea's more serious and sedate work ethic.

R307 if thats true (that Betty's attitude didn't sit well with Bea), I think it's kind of silly. After all, they're working on a freaking sitcom, not curing cancer. Or even, say, working on a very serious, or very arty, movie or theatre project. To me it's kind of like Robert Reed picking apart the lines of The Brady Bunch like someone had forgotten to tell him that he wasn't doing Chekhov. As long as you get the work done, why not make it a little fun along the way, and make the effort to make others (ie guest stars) feel comfortable as well? Taking the serious actor I never break character route does not make the product better (in this instance), and clearly it makes those around you kind of miserable, so really what's the point, except to be a bit of a pain in the neck?

Why do people think a film/tv set is a mirror of the characters being portrayed? The Golden Girls were all pals so the actresses MUST be pals in real life!

It's a work environment with all types of personalities on hand. Some people are fun loving and others are quiet and serious. It's really not any different than working anywhere else. There are people at your job you like, some you don't like and most you don't pay much attention to. There's probably a couple you can't stand. Depending on your age and how long you've been at the job, there might be a couple people from your job you consider friends and socialize with to some degree. Maybe. And, it might not even be immediate work peers but someone from a different part of the company.

But, mostly you do your job for 8 to 10 hours and go home to your family and real friends.

Weren't the knife wounds on the back of Betty's neck due to Bea?

Bea Arthur sounded like an unyielding cunt

Bea just was not a happy person when her husband left her she never got over it . She became bitter and the cast felt her wrath and Betty being the first to win Emmy did not sit well with her she was use to being the lead. All of a sudden she is just part of a cast.

Bea would get mad when the writers when they called her a man or make fun cause she could not get a date. One writer said she was so mad one time he was cleaning out his desk thought he was going to get fired. She was tired of being the ugly one the butt of jokes.

The fact Rue did Mama's Family and got her part demoted and SHE STILL DID IT, alone shows what a doormat she was.

She was a whore, for any acting part.

R314 Rue stated clearly in her book that she only did Mama's Family because originally Aunt Fran was supposed to be a much different character but once they got to the pilot they turned her into a mousey character. Rue was contractually obligated to the show. When Mama's Family was cancelled Rue was offered the Golden Girls very shortly after.

Rue got sick doing Mama's Family that's when they killed her character . Shortly after her agent sent her the script for gg and that's how she got the role.

R316 Not true. Mama's Family was cancelled by NBC in 1984. It was gone. The following year (1985) Rue started in Golden Girls.

It wasn't until 1986 that Mama's Family came back in syndication. There was a two year gap between seasons 2 and 3. In that time, Rue took the Golden Girls job and was simply unavailable to come back to Mama's Family. It's very possible that had she not gotten Golden Girls, she would have returned with the rest of the cast.

The first episode of season 3 of Mama's Family takes place after Aunt Fran's funeral and is titled "Goodbye Frannie".

Interestingly, while Carol Burnett declined to come back and play Eunice during the syndicated years of Mama's Family, Betty White did return to play Eunice's sister Ellen, and this was while she was still doing Golden Girls.

That is so true about Bea liking you if you from the theater .

Are they still selling Bea Arthur's doo doos on Ebay? I'd like to pick up a set.

Lmao!

Bea was a very affectionate person she was always touching and hugging no matter what color you were gay or straight if she liked you she liked you.

The only reason I visit this thread is to see if it's still being bumped by the same person, and it is, 84 times.

🤔 😂

💩💩💩💩💩💩

👀 🙏🏿

People complain about Dorothy getting married but conveniently forget Sophia's marriage to Max Weinstock; they tried to have Max living with all four of them and it didn't work out.

Each and every one of them had at least one marriage proposal and both Petrillo broads actually got married.

That belongs on the other thread about inconsistencies in this show...

Did Bea Arthur ever do a broadway play? She had a good voice and presence for the stage if she studied. I have only seen maybe 20 episodes of Golden Girls. Pretty basic. Bea and the fat southern one are funny, fully realized characters. The old one and the dumb one with dimples are pretty sketchy. My grandmother use to watch the show, but she died.

Unfortunately, Bea Arthur was desperate for something she never had the talent to make happen - a stellar, award-winning career as a Katherine Hepburn or Bette Davis. Her ego could never accept the fact that Golden Girls was not only the best thing she was capable of doing, but the best thing she ever did.

And then there's Maude!

Am sick of you bitches talking about Bea ! Bea has more comedy Emmy nominations second to Mary Tyler more she only won twice but she as been nominated for her work.

The 'hate' stuff simply isn't true. They were all just co-workers. Bea and Rue had a history, and were friendly. But they all had friends and family of their own...they were not the Golden Girls. Bea didn't hate Betty, they just really meant nothing to each other. They worked together, and when it ended, that was that. When Estelle died there were articles about how none of the Golden Girls attended her funeral. But they hadn't worked together in years. That's all they ever were...co-workers.

Ru attended Bea's memorial. That's where she told the "Betty is a cunt story."

What bullshit R332. Complete and utter nonsense.

Rue said they had different friends Bea hung out with Charles Pierce and her theater friends and Angela Lansbury. Betty hung out with Mary Tyler Moore people more in tv business.

I hear there was tension between Bea & Betty

R328 "Did Bea ever do a Broadway play?" Turn in your gay card, bro.

Bea singing really sucked.

R338 she was a wonderful singer, for what she did. She was no Patti LuPone, but she could carry a tune, and had an interesting technique. And of course, superior comedic timing in comedy numbers like above.

Thanks R337. What show was that? Looks like the lady from Murder She Wrote. My granny liked that show too, but she died.

Rue said Bea always wanted to sing and dance but tv paid the bills .

I thought drag paid the bills...

Bea was an awful, awful singer. I hate those old tough broad voices, yuck.

She had a lot of nerve thinking she cold make a living singing professionally.

[quote] Bea was an awful, awful singer.

Compared to Lucy? Seriously?

Bea Arthur and that Elaine Strich woman killed theater. Scared people off, too blousy, broadsy, and big mouthed.

Now theater's dead, Bea's dead, etc..

R344, Lucy never pretended to be a great singer. Bea though she was. Too much!

R345 has a secret brassy broad fetish

When she sung with Melba Moore she had a decent voice .

Theater is dead because of her, and here you are joking about it.

It's dead, DEAD!

[quote]Lucy never pretended to be a great singer.

The least she could have done was tried.

Imagine bothering to buy nice clothes, get in the car or subway, and risk your life going out at night to the theater to hear these old brassy broads bellow bucolic bylines better burped by babies.

RIP theater, you were a goodin.'

Has Howard Stern done a fake funeral mass for the theater yet?

I guess no one on here went to see her one woman show.

354 replies and no one has posted a link to "Taps," in honor of the death of theater.

Someone in this thread thinks he's very funny. But he isn't, and therefore has killed this thread with utter lack of wit. He's quite boring to top it off.

......

"Hair" was the death knell for theater when those dirty hippies got naked on stage with ungroomed pubes. Yuck!

More schtick. Please. Stop. My sides hurt.

Bea was such a nasty old cunt. Why take it out on Betty because her husband left her? What a miserable old twat.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who didn't like Bea's singing voice.

She was a way better dancer than than singer.

If you can't appreciate everything about that Bosom Buddies/Mame clip from the 1989 Tonys, you must be a joyless gay. Bea it utterly fabulous in that clip- singing, dancing and comedic timing. Lansbury is at the top of her game, too. Two 60+ year old women having a blast.

Am not even gay but I love DL .

R354 I did! I even have the CD!

Having grown up with the show, then watching the Lifetime reruns, then watching them now somewhat sporadically when I catch GG on one of the channels, I've actually ended up enjoying season 7 the most on rewatch.

R322 - It's been bumped nearly 100 times by the same person, and we know who that is?

It's this Jim Colucci queen who's taking a page out of the Josh book of self marketing, hoping to sell his tired book about a subject even the most ancient of gay men no longer care about.

Seriously, there is no where near 200-plus people on Datalounge remotely interested in talking about the Golden Girls. It's been over for decades. It's been discussed, laughed at, deconstructed.

Colucci and his husband have used the DL for years to market their radio show, their failed podcasts, their failed attempt at doing stage shows...

Enough Ms. Thing. Stop hijacking the site to shill your stupid self published piece of garbage. Get a job, pay your rent and your bills and stop making a nuisance of yourself.

I like seasons 5 and 6 Bea looks good in those seasons.

Is R367 channeling Raye Birk as the flouncy wedding planner for the Weinstock-Petrillo affair?

It's that bitch Ann Coulter !

R367 Let me guess you met Jim Colucci you tried to hit on him but even he didn't want you. For someone who claims to hate Golden Girls and Jim Colucci you do seem to spend a lot of time on this thread. Just hit the ignore button and you'll never see it again ... eat dirt and die trash.

You are a golden girls fan you sure know the lines.

They were all enormously gifted.

r373 Bless you. The voice of reason in hundreds of threads.

Here's to Bea, Elaine and all the rest...

I don't mind Jim bumping it. I mind the constant BS about Bea that he's trying to stir up.

R334 And you know that HOW, cunt? Cut it out Jim!

Rue saying that at Bea's funeral was Rue's sense of humor. And Bea's.

I read that Bea husband Gene Saks say he was sucicidel when he was with Bea.

Not surprising, given what a miserable old cunt she is. They said that the Freda Claxton episode was modeled after Bea. A nasty crabby old bitch.

Frank DeCaro, if you are reading this, I miss you.

The book was a let down.

DL is funny. Bea loved gay men, they were her closest friends. She donated a huge sum too help homeless gay kids in her will. So, of course, DL hates her. Amazing.

The book is kind of a letdown to a big GG fan like myself. Very detailed account of most episodes, but with that many, it was an odd choice to not include all episodes. And maybe more about the inconsistencies. And a family tree or history of the characters. I would have preferred that to the chapters on the drag productions, etc. Really enjoyed the indepth accounts of the episodes. Should've just been that for all episodes.

They didn't discuss every episode?

I assumed it was all episodes and didn't realize until halfway thru it is a selection. Maybe I missed something at the start.

My favorite episode was missing from the both. The author didn't state at the beginning of the book that all the episodes would be covered. I incorrectly assumed that every episode would be mentioned because the book reads like an episode guide. Not what I was expecting at all. I've read it once, set it down, and haven't flipped through it since.

Rue wins all the marbles because when she was starring on Broadway with a younger Brad Davis, she would take him home and fuck his brains out night after night. She wrote that her neighbors complained about all the noise they would make as they did it in her back yard.

There is a "bloopers" vid that shows Betty and Bea doing a scene where Betty fucks up and Bea calls her on it. Betty says something funny and Bea laughs out loud in response. Betty is shown interacting with the studio audience which Bea did not approve of at all. Betty was a TV baby, she knew where her appeal was situated. As has been mentioned, Bea was "theatah" all the way.

I never understood why they just didn't bring in another "Dorothy" and just go on with GG as it was. Let Debbie Reynolds bring her talents to the show or even that actress who played the second sister. The restaurant idea sucked big time.

Rue fucked Benson to she said she had a crush on him .

Did anybody know if Bea dated after her divorce you never herd of her being with anybody?

A couple of years back I went to an event where Susan Harris was a guest speaker and I remember her saying that Bea was the type of person who would point out ten bad things before she'd point out one good one where Betty was always happy.

Bea was a negative cunt. So happy she's dead. And Betty is still alive and admired! Fuck you old cunt Bea.

R391 Hi Betty White! How have you been lately?

[quote]but conveniently forget Sophia's marriage to Max Weinstock; they tried to have Max living with all four of them and it didn't work out.

He kept trying to sell them Cracker Jack.

[quote]Rue took the Golden Girls job and was simply unavailable to come back to Mama's Family.

Yet Betty White did it, and said she would've done more, but they never again asked her to.

[quote]Betty White did it, and said she would've done more, but they never again asked her to.

Because she was such a cunt.

Betty is a work horse she hardly turned anything down. That's why Bea could not stand her. She hated her energy and enthusiasm .

How come Miles was in the witness protection program and his daughter Caroline was able to visit him and have lunch at the girls house?

Bea was the type of person who would point out ten bad things before she'd point out one good one.

Wow that sounds like me!!!

Yeah, cunt...

Wow. Interesting thread, to say the least. Anyway, I've been on a GG kick lately, so please forgive me if I bump a thread or two,

R394 Rue's character in MAMA'S FAMILY was killed off, so there was no reason for Rue to return.

R263 David Leisure was in two episode of GG. His first appearance was in that godawful Rita Moreno "Empty Nests" episode, but his character was called 'Oliver. In his second appearance, the JEOPARDY! episode, he guest-starred as the Charley Dietz character from EMPTY NEST. In fact, he shares a lengthy scene with both Betty and Bea because they were all contestants on the game show in a dream sequence. He was also betwixt them, so who knows what was muttered in between shots.

R140 I don't understand. Marc Cherry's proposed scripts were (what)? And who turned out to be gay?

BTW: I have not yet read the book, but it sounds interesting. I love behind-the-scenes stuff. Not necessarily gossip, but how they go about and put on a show.

[quote]How come Miles was in the witness protection program and his daughter Caroline was able to visit him and have lunch at the girls house?

Miles told his daughter to play along with the rouse, against the wishes of the program.

[quote]Yet Betty White did it, and said she would've done more, but they never again asked her to.

She showed up once in syndication when Ellen was in the hospital.

[quote][R140] I don't understand. Marc Cherry's proposed scripts were (what)? And who turned out to be gay?

They meant to imply that everything he wrote ended up being a coming out story. One wonders whether he's projecting his own coming out experience onto the characters in doing so. At least here it doesn't feel shoe-horned in.

Bump. Whoo!

I too wish the book covered all the episodes. As a huge fan it would be nice to get in depth on each episode.

I've always thought that Bea was the most attractive one, in all seriousness.