how old were the golden girls supposed to be

How Does PTO Work for Salaried Employees? According to the math, Blanche was 53 at the start of the series. October 8, 2022 According to evidence presented by the ladies themselves during the first year of the show, Sophia is 80 years old, Rose is 55 years old, and Blanche is 50 years old. Rue McClanahan, Estelle Getty, and Betty White reprised their roles in the 1992 spin-off series The Golden Palace (Credit: CBS). Writer and producer Linda Bloodworth-Thomason created a sitcom with this kind of image as a "four women" show, which became Designing Women on CBS. On November 15, 2005, Warner Home Video released The Golden Girls: A Lifetime Intimate Portrait Series on DVD which contains a separate biography of Arthur, White, McClanahan and Getty, revealing each woman's background, rise to stardom and private life, which originally aired on Lifetime network between June 2000 and January 2003. Rose Nylund is a character from the sitcom television series The Golden Girls and its spin-off, The Golden Palace. Thats also the same reason why she refused to reprise her role in the spin-off series The Golden Palace, which featured Betty White, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty. It was popular for addressing a demographic that rarely saw the spotlight on television or in Hollywood: senior women. Social norms regarding women in their fifties have also changed since Golden Girls premiered. Golden Girls Forever: An Unauthorized Look Behind the Lanai. In order to try and determine the real ages of the Golden Girls, we need to look at other sources of evidence. At the age of 86, Bea Arthur passed away from lung cancer in April 2009. The women's ages were usually not explicitly stated, although some deductive work gives a pretty safe estimate of how old each Golden Girl was at the start of the series. The Golden Girls will always be remembered as a show that put a spotlight on senior women in a way no other show had done before. At some point, they would gather around the kitchen table and discuss the problem, sometimes late at night and often while eating cheesecake, ice cream, or some other dessert. For instance, in the series finale, it is revealed that Blanche was born in 1931, which would make her 54 at the beginning of the show. 2023 Wording Vibes - WordPress Theme by Kadence WP, Although the womens ages were rarely disclosed, some deductive work may be used to, The Golden Girls began in 1985 and concluded in 1992, both in real life and in the fictional realm. In an interview with The Village Voice in 2011, White stated that Arthur found me a pain in the neck sometimes. [32], Getty, who went through a three-hour transformation to become Sophia, wore heavy make-up, thick glasses, and a white wig to look the part. "[38] Both actresses had dramatically different training and acting backgrounds; Saks commented on White's habit of breaking the fourth wall to engage and joke with the studio audience during breaks between filming, which Arthur found unprofessional. The Golden Girls was a highly-acclaimed and rated, well-received, popular American situation-comedy/sit-com television series that aired on NBC originally from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Kathy Speer and Terry Grossman were the first head writers of the series, and wrote for the show's first four seasons. The adventures of Dorothy (Bea Arthur), Blanche (Rue McClanahan), Rose ( universally beloved Betty White) and Sophia (Estelle Getty) -- four older women who lived in a Miami home together -- took audiences by storm and provided representation to a group generally overlooked by television of the time. This means that she was 63 years old by the time the show premiered in 1985. This would mean that Dorothy, who was born in 1938, would have been around 47 when the show started. 1. She is passionate about Princess Diana, the Titanic, the Romanovs, and Egypt amongst other things. Some episodes featured flashbacks to previous episodes, flashbacks to events not shown in previous episodes, or to events that occurred before the series began. Carl Gettleman, one of her two sons, says the co-star of the TV show "The Golden Girls" died early Tuesday, July 22, 2008, at home in Los Angeles. Click Registration to join us and share your expertise with our readers.). How Old Was Rose Nylund On Golden Girls? On the other hand, the women in And Just Like That dress in a trendy, modern style. The owner of the house is a widow named Blanche Devereaux (McClanahan), who was joined by fellow widow Rose Nylund (White) and divorce Dorothy Zbornak (Arthur) after they both responded to an ad on the bulletin board of a local grocery store a year before the start of the series. Hurwitz later created Arrested Development for Fox and later for Netflix. Crypto Wallet Development: Types, Features, and Popularity, 5 Ways AI is Detecting and Preventing Identity Fraud. In order to try and determine the real ages of the Golden Girls, we need to look at other sources of evidence. "[45], Estelle Getty's stage fright, which affected her from the beginning of the show, grew worse as the show went on. But what made the show golden were its stellar cast and the beloved characters they portrayed. She received her Bachelors of Arts in history and her Masters of Arts degree in history both from the University of Western Ontario in Canada. After the retirement home where Dorothys mother, Sophia Petrillo, lived burned down in the pilot episode, the three were joined by Dorothys 80-year-old widowed mother, Sophia Petrillo. Cast alongside Rue McClanahan, she impressed the producers of The Golden Girls with her recurring role as Ellen in Mamas Family. The basic facts to work with are that The Golden Girls began in 1985 and ended in 1992, both in real life and in-world. According to the calculations, Dorothy was 53 at the start of the series, according to the, Blanche was 17 in 1949, according to Season 3, Episode 25, , Blanche lied to her housemates about her age so easily (and Sophia promptly called her out and said shed be 70 when the kid graduated), its reasonable to, Fun Things to Do for Mothers Day Filled With Activities, Hilarious Thanksgiving Puns for Your Friends and Family, 60 Sweet Merry Christmas Wishes for Mothers 2021 Update, Applauding Employee Appreciation Quotes Befitting for Hardworking Staff, Heart Warming One Month Anniversary Wishes Latest Update 2021, Adorable Thanks for Birthday Wishes Messages to Send Someone. New York: Scribner. In Season 2, Episode 1, "End of the Curse," Blanche believes she is pregnant, and states she'll be 65 by the time the child graduates high school. From left to right- Estelle Getty, Rue McClanahan, Bea Arthur, and Betty White in The Golden Girls. RELATED: The Golden Girls: How the Classic Sitcom Ended. The women's ages were usually not explicitly stated, although some deductive work gives a pretty safe estimate of how old each Golden Girl was at the start of the series. "[62], Bea Arthur had a preference for wearing loose-fitting clothing, like slacks and long sweaters, along with sandals, because she hated wearing shoes. Blanche (played by Rue McClanahan) was thought to be around 47 years old in the first season of Golden Girls. Their regular writer declined, so Witt asked his wife, Susan Harris,[24] who had been semiretired since the conclusion of their ABC series Soap. Unlock new opportunities and expand your reach by joining our authors team. Covering the hottest movie and TV topics that fans want. Required fields are marked *. Blanche Devereaux, a widow, was joined by Rose Nylund, a fellow widow, and Dorothy Zbornak, a divorced woman after they both answered a room-for-rent post on the bulletin board of a local grocery shop. Actors How old were The Golden Girls supposed to be? Though Harris had created the character of Dorothy with a "Bea Arthur type" in mind, Littlefield and the producers initially envisioned actress Elaine Stritch for the part. Estelle Getty, Rue McClanahan, Betty White, and Bea Arthur as the beloved main cast of the 1985 sitcom The Golden Girls (Credit: NBC). Space was limited on the soundstage, so when the kitchen was off camera, it was usually detached from the rest of the set and the space used for something else. In 1989, Marc Sotkin, previously a writer on Laverne & Shirley and a producer on another Witt/Thomas series, It's a Living, assumed head writing responsibilities, and guided the show (to varying degrees) during what were its final three seasons. An instant ratings hit, The Golden Girls became an NBC staple on Saturday nights. Initially, the producers wanted Betty White to play Blanche because she had been famous for playing promiscuous characters in the past. [28], The pilot included a gay houseboy, Coco (Charles Levin), who lived with the girls. That was the case. Sophia, Dorothy's straight-talking mother, was the oldest character in the Golden Girls' house. [73], In 2013, TV Guide ranked The Golden Girls number 54 on its list of the 60 Best Series of All Time. Their fears were allayed when the preview screening garnered a standing ovation and the program was instantly renewed for 12 more Golden Girls episodes. [11], Ideas for a comedy series about older women emerged during the filming of a television special at NBC Studios in Burbank, California, in August 1984. She loves spending quality time with her friends, family, and puppy Luna! [63] Much of Arthur's wardrobe was custom-made because at the time, finding off-the-rack clothing that was flattering for a taller woman was difficult. In "The Golden Girls", Rose is 55, Dorothy is 53, Blanche is 47 and Sophia is 79. 2. It won three Golden Globe Awards for Best Television Series and two. We can also look at other clues from the show itself. Sophia was never afraid to admit how old she was, often using it to her advantage over the other women in the house. When Arthur first received the script for The Golden Girls, she loved the concept of having senior women as the stars of the show. In Southeast Asia, Rewind Networks began airing reruns of The Golden Girls on its HD channel, HITS, in 2013. Exploring the World of Knowledge and Understanding. Did Rue McClanahan have a Southern accent? Initially, White was considered for the role of Blanche Devereaux, which eventually went to Rue McClanahan. (season two, episode five). The basic facts to work with are that The Golden Girls began in 1985 and ended in 1992, both in real life and in-world. Subscribe [58], The kitchen set seen on The Golden Girls was originally used on an earlier Witt/Thomas/Harris series, It Takes Two, which aired on ABC from 1982 to 1983. There are no tricks. Sophia then recounts to Dorothy the account of the night Dorothy was conceived in Season 3, Episode 5, Nothing to Fear But Fear Itself. Sophia claims it happened in 1931, so Dorothy was most likely born in 1932, based on her sign. [107] When that idea was not well received, Harris retooled the series as a vehicle for Richard Mulligan, and the following year Empty Nest debuted, starring Mulligan as pediatrician Harry Weston, a widower whose two adult daughters moved back home. Betty White was actually the oldest Golden Girl. Rose was probably closer to 51 than her stated age of 55, and Sophia was likely closer to 79 than her stated age of 77. Advertise Sophia, Dorothys straight-talking mother, was the Golden Girls houses oldest figure. [50] She had reportedly started to show signs of the dementia during the filming of the television series, when, despite more than three decades of theater work, she began to struggle to remember her lines, and in later seasons of the show, had to rely on cue cards. Bea Arthur as Dorothy Zbornak in the 1985 sitcom The Golden Girls (Credit: NBC). The golden girls trivia is the most exciting series we have created for those who love comedy. One, while the characters ages on the show appeared to be quite. [24] Though her vision of a sitcom about women in their 60s differed from NBC's request for a comedy about women around 40 years old,[27] Littlefield was impressed when he received her pilot script and subsequently approved production of it. The Golden Girls was part of a series of Brandon Tartikoff shows that put an end to NBC's ratings slump, along with The Cosby Show, 227, Night Court, Miami Vice, and L.A. Law. Rose Nylund was 55 years old when the show premiered, as Dorothy stated in the Season 1 episode Job Hunting.. [109] The production ended because the producers failed to secure the rights and received a cease-and-desist order by the creators of the original television show. Sophia was supposed to accompany her, but she ends up staying in Miami with the other females, which leads to the spin-off series, The Golden Palace. Blanche Devereaux, Dorothy Zbornak, and Sophia Petrillo managed the single life as seniors in Miami for seven seasons. Dorothy was likely in her late 40s, rather than her early 50s. Based on the assumption that Season 1 and Season 2 took place in the same year, Rose would have been 55 at the start of The Golden Girls. [6], The show features an ensemble cast and the plot revolves around four older single women (three widows and one divorce) sharing a house in Miami. The oldest character in Golden Girls is Sophia (Estelle Getty), who is thought to be about 80 years old at the start of the series. However, Season 3, Episode 25, "Mother's Day," confirms Blanche was 17 in 1949, when she and her mother reminisce about one of Blanche's dates. -- Thirty years ago today, "The Golden Girls" premiered on television. But one of the questions that has always been asked is: how old were the Golden Girls characters supposed to be? The series also ranked among the Nielsen ratings' top ten for six of its seven seasons. While RTL initially chose to cut some scenes for time, some of the gags remain incomprehensible for their broadcast and all subsequent reruns, only to be restored partially for the release of DVD in 2005. Vicki Lawrence as Thelma Harper and Betty White as Ellen Harper-Jackson in the 1983 sitcom Mamas Family (Credit: NBC). Both the Hallmark Channel and WE tv picked-up the reruns in March 2009. Sophia was never ashamed to confess her age, and she often took advantage of it to get an advantage over the other ladies in the home. [4] In 2014, the Writers Guild of America placed the sitcom at number 69 in their list of the "101 Best Written TV Series of All Time". She'd be walking around like Pig-Pen, under a black cloud. She expressed that she would not continue if changes were not made, but changes were made and jokes regarding Dorothy's physique appeared less often. As of December 1, 2021, every episode was made available to stream on Disney+. As a result, new viewers are becoming aware of the show. How old was Sophia Petrillo on The Golden Girls? [29][30], Walt Disney, NBC Studios and the creators were named in a federal copyright infringement suit filed by Nancy Bretzfield claiming the show was based on a script rejected by NBC in 1980. ", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Golden_Girls&oldid=1139544706, "Thank You for Being a Friend" (instrumental), "I was running all over the house grabbing anybody who would listen. In Season 4, Episode 10, Stan Takes a Wife, Dorothy declares that she is a Leo, indicating that her birthdate is in late July or early-to-late August. As of 2019, every episode is available for streaming on Stan. Bea Arthur was not a part of the main cast but did guest star in a double episode, reprising her role as Dorothy.[106]. Although the four main stars appeared to have good chemistry onscreen, there was some tension on the set between Betty White and Bea Arthur, whose personalities clashed during filming. [9], The pilot was taped on April 17, 1985.[10]. It won three Golden Globe Awards for Best Television Series and two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Comedy Series. How Old Was Rose Nylund On Golden Girls? [41], The show was the second television series to be produced by the Walt Disney Company under the Touchstone Television label, and was subsequently distributed by Buena Vista International, Inc. (which holds as the ownership stake in Disney Channel Southeast Asia, now DisneyABC Television Group). It was my positive attitude, and that made Bea angry sometimes.. As of February 2013, WE tv's rights expired and Viacom networks' TV Land, home to Betty White's last series Hot in Cleveland, purchased them,[79] as did Logo TV. Arthur's son, Matthew Saks, later spoke of tension between the two actresses, stating that his mother, "unknowingly carried the attitude that it was fun to have somebody to be angry atIt was almost like Betty became her nemesis, someone she could always roll her eyes about at work. Styles Arthur was born on May 13, 1922, making her the second oldest actress in the main cast. Blanche Elizabeth Marie Devereaux (ne Hollingsworth) is one of the four, fictional, main characters on the highly-acclaimed, revered, and well-received 1985-1992 NBC situation-comedy/sit-com TV series, The Golden Girls, and its spin-off, The Golden Palace. The Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons. As of September 8, 2021 all 7 seasons of The Golden Girls were made available to stream on Disney+ in Canada. In the pilot episode, the three are joined by Dorothy's 80-year-old widowed mother, Sophia Petrillo (Getty), after the retirement home where she has been living has burned down. Fans of all ages still enjoy The Golden Girls and its actors today. Blanche (played by Rue McClanahan) was thought to be around 47 years old in the first season of Golden Girls. McClanahan was 51 years old by the time The Golden Girls premiered, and she was 58 when it concluded. [36] Once the show was picked up for a first season, new director Paul Bogart felt exactly the opposite, insisting that McClanahan use a Southern accent. In the hour-long series finale, which aired in May 1992, Dorothy meets and marries Blanche's uncle Lucas (Leslie Nielsen) and moves to Hollingsworth Manor in Atlanta. Similarly, Estelle Getty, who played Sophia, was 79 when the show began and 83 when it ended. : Extreme Stunt Show attraction, later replaced by Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge. The series starred Stephanie Hodge and a set of other young nurses. Their hair also hasnt greyed (or is colored), and they style their hair in a more contemporary way. Sue's personality as the perky housewife host on a fictional television station of the show . Susan Harris developed a spin-off centering on the empty nest syndrome. Airing from 1985 to 1992 with seven seasons in total, The Golden Girls was a smash hit during the entirety of its run. Discover all about The Golden Girls cast from their names, ages and how old they were supposed to be in the showwho was oldest & youngest, and more. "[60] Anna Wyckoff of the Costume Designers Guild wrote, "Evans took the direction from the producers to create a vibrant look for the four mature leads, and ran with itredefining what 'dressing your age' looked like. By the end of the series, Rose was 62. Eager not to be typecast, they took the suggestion of Sandrich and switched roles at the last minute. Born on January 17, 1922, Betty White was the oldest of the four main stars. By tape day, she was unreachable. The Golden Girls is one of four live-action shows, along with All in the Family, Will & Grace, and Schitt's Creek, where all the principal actors have won at least one Emmy. Although the women's ages were rarely disclosed, some deductive work may be used to approximate how old each Golden Girl was at the commencement of the series. After learning this tidbit, its clear that the only difference between the Golden Girls and the Sex and the City ladies is how they style their hair. Estelle Getty as Sophia Petrillo in the 1985 sitcom The Golden Girls (Credit: NBC). Sophia is to join her, but in the end, she stays behind with the other women in Miami.