Remembering Bea Arthur

I was totally not expecting to go online yesterday afternoon to hear about this. And like every other fan, I had no idea that she had cancer.

I have not seen much of Maude, but what I have seen I’ve enjoyed a lot; and I can’t imagine anyone else playing her. It was great that her potential was seen on All in the Family for her own show. To make us laugh. To tackle the serious issues. To make an impact.

As I’ve mentioned before, The Golden Girls is one of those shows that I can watch many times and enjoy seeing it as much now as the first time. Bea’s portrayal of Dorothy was one of the biggest reasons why, and she was my favorite character. So full of razor-sharp wit. So full of stamina. I loved her sarcasm. I remember her saying on the Lifetime reunion special a few years back that she considered not doing another sitcom after Maude. I’m so glad she changed her mind.

There’s something else regarding her that really caught my attention. In 1985, she appeared on the Today show for an interview back when The Golden Girls was brand-new. And considering how demo-obsessed television is today, one of the things she said really stuck out. When the subject came up, this is one of the things she said: “I think the success of the show is simply due to the fact that it’s funny and bright and witty and wonderful and I don’t think the age group matters at all. I think we could be babies or we could be where we are now.” That will always stick with me.