Things You Never Knew About 'The Golden Girls'

#1 Everybody Loves The Golden Girls

The Golden Girls came out in the 1980s, but it's still one of the best shows around, from the writing to the cast to, well, the memories. The show that combined Betty White as the dippy Rose Nylund, Rue McClanahan as the southern self-described slut, Bea Arthur as the sassy, smart Dorothy Zbornak and Estelle Getty as the sassier, wise old Sicilian Sophia Petrillo is a classic.

They were the original fab foursome. A group of elderly ladies, still in the prime of their life, living together in sunny Miami, dealing with all of the same issues as women half their age: namely, ex-husbands, sex and cataracts. (Okay, maybe not all of the same issues.) But the girls were beloved and, though the show may have ended 25 years ago, their friendship lives on thanks to that catchy theme song and a never-ending stream of reruns.

#2 Estelle Getty Had Extreme Stage Fright

The woman known for her witty one-liners and cutting jokes didn't do well when it came to acting in front of a live audience. Getty was the most inexperienced actress on the show and often complained she felt like a phony compared to her talented co-stars. Rue McClanahan who played Blanche Devereaux on the show said that Getty had a "black cloud" hanging over her head before the taping of the show and would often freeze up on camera. She told interviewers that working with Bea Arthur scared her.

#3 Rue McLanahan Had her Contract Written So She Could Keep All Of Her Wardrobe

Rue Mclanahan loved her character's sultry nightwear so much that she had a clause put into her contract stating she could keep the clothing Blanche wore on the show, specifically those sometimes revealing nightgowns. She was allowed to take home nearly 500 of the outfits she donned on-camera and even converted a kitchen in her Manhattan apartment to a closet to fit all of those shoulder-padded blazers and pastel-colored two-piece suits.

#4 Bea Arthur Had A Long Time Crush On Sonny Bono

Sophia Petrillo and daughter Dorothy Zbornak dressed as Sonny and Cher for a contest. Later, Sonny Bono would make a cameo on the series as a love interest for Dorothy ... but only in a dream. Bea Arthur convinced writers to give Bono a guest spot after she ran into him at a movie premiere. She confessed her long time crush on the performer, and he agreed to play himself on the show. One of the funniest episodes in the shows history.

#5 Producers Wanted Betty White To Play The Role Of Blanche

It's hard to imagine the lovable actress as anyone other than sweet-natured, slightly ditzy Rose on the popular series, but when White was first cast, she was set to be the temptress Rue McClanahan later made famous. Before "The Golden Girls," White had appeared on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" as the "neighborhood nymphomaniac" Sue Ann Nivens, so casting producers thought she'd be perfect for the role of the group's most promiscuous member. But she didn't want to play the same role again and auditioned for the part of Rose.

#6 Bea Arthur Wanted To End The Show After Season Five

The acerbic voice of reason in the group tired of the show after five seasons. Producers coaxed her into staying for two more before Arthur finally decided to step away from Dorothy for good, causing the series to ultimately end. It seems Arthur had a pattern for ending shows. "Maude," a series she starred on along with Rue McClanahan, also ended when she said her farewells.

#7 Estelle Getty Spent Most Of Her Time In The Make-up Chair

Getty played the oldest character on the show, but in real life, she was over a year younger than her on-screen daughter Dorothy, played by Bea Arthur. It took the makeup team 45 minutes before every taping to transform a youthful Getty into her aged on-screen counterpart. The crew had an even tougher job in Season 2 when Getty came back from a filming break sporting a brand new facelift.

#8 Sophia Nearly Didn't Have A Part In The Show

In the original script, a gay manservant named Coco also lived with the fashionable crew. He was played by actor Charles Levin and named after one of the producers' dogs. He appeared in the pilot episode of the show and the first episode, and was generally liked by the audience, but ultimately those in charge decided to cut his character. After episode one they brought in Getty, who got all of the funny one liners that were written for Coco.

#9 Rue & Betty Grew To Be Close Friends Off Screen

Though once long time friends and coworkers, Bea Arthur and Rue McClanahan didn't get along very well after season one of the show. While Arthur didn't necessarily get along with Rue McClanahan offscreen, Betty White adored her. White and McClanahan especially loved playing word games together. And dancing, obviously! The two spent a lot of their off screen time doing things together.

#10 The Friendships Ended When The Series Ended

While Rue McClanahan and Betty White were close, on and off-set, their co-star Bea Arthur had a rocky relationship with both ladies. After the show ended, McClanahan revealed Arthur's intense dislike for White, recounting a story of a drunken Arthur calling White a "c--t" at a lifetime achievement award ceremony. McClanahan admitted Arthur didn't much prefer her either. "Bea and I didn't have a lot of relationship going on," McClanahan said in an interview. "Bea is a very, very eccentric woman. She wouldn't go to lunch [with me] unless Betty [White] would go with her."

#11 The Golden Girls Had Lots Of GOLD

The show was well-liked by fans but it also pulled in some serious hardware come awards season. Each member of the cast won an Emmy for their performance -- a feat only accomplished by two other shows "All In the Family" and "Will & Grace."

The Golden Girls were nominated for a total of 57 Emmys through it's run. (7 of them for "Best Comedy Series").

#12 Estelle Getty Had A Fear Of Death

While promoting her book "If You Ask Me," Betty White revealed her co-star absolutely hated doing any scene involving death and funerals. "Death frightened her very much," White said. "It was almost a phobia!" Sadly, Getty was the first of the group to pass away. She suffered from Lewy body dementia and died shortly before her 85th birthday.

#13 Betty White Was A Serious Gamer

The actress appeared on the game shows "Password" and "Super Password" before starring on "Golden Girls" and she took that competitive spirit to set. Between takes, White and Rue McClanahan would often entertain each other with word games and riddles to pass the long, tedious hours of filming. She, of course was married to Password host Alan Luden for many years and also did guest spots on games like "Jeopardy", "To Tell The Truth", "$10,000 Pyramid" and "Hollywood Squares".

#14 Bea Arthur Wasn't Always An Actress

Before finding a career in front of the camera, Bea Arthur had a very different job title: United States Marine. Arthur was one of the first members of the Women's Reserve before World War II. She worked for the military as both a typist and a truck driver and on her volunteer application, listed her active hobbies as hunting with a ".22 caliber rifle and a bow and arrow."

#15 There Were Only 3 Chairs At The Kitchen Table

Eagle-eyed fans have noticed over the years that although there were four women living in the Miami house, there were always only three chairs around that famous kitchen table. That was strictly due to the limitations of filmingto avoid either squeezing all four shoulder-to-shoulder or having one actress with her back to the camera. Bea was always given the center chair, both because of her height and also in order to catch her priceless facial expressions.

The placement of the other characters around the table depended upon the particular situation, and which character might need to exit the kitchen. On those occasions when all four characters had to be seated, a tall stool was scooted up to the outskirt of the conclave.

#16 The Famous Kitchen Was A Hand Me Down Set

The main reason for the iconic kitchen's particular design was that it was a set leftover from another short-lived Harris sitcom called It Takes Two. It starred Richard Crenna and Patty Duke Astin as a dual-career couplehe was a doctor, she was a lawyerwith two teenaged children.

#17 Bea Arthur Almost Didn't Get The Role Of Dorothy

Susan Harris actually wrote the role of Dorothy with Arthur in mind, having worked with the actress on several episodes of Maude. But then-NBC president Brandon Tartikoff was against the idea, stating that Arthur's "Q" score (a rating system of a performer's audience appeal) was too lowshe was recognizable, but not "loveable," thanks to Maude's liberal leanings. Broadway legend Elaine Stritch was a contender for the part, but she alienated the producers by improvising her dialogue and dropping an "F" bomb during her audition. They brought in actress Lee Grant who read the part and turned it down because she didn't want to play a grandmother.

After convincing the executives that Bea was perfect, Rue McClanahan gave her reluctant Maude co-star the final push to convince her to give The Golden Girls a try. According to McClanahan, she phoned Arthur and asked her incredulously, "Why are you going to turn down the best script that's ever going to come across your desk as long as you live?"

#18 Blanche's Miami Home Was Actually Located In Los Angeles

Even though the Girls's official address was 6151 Richmond Street in Miami, Florida, the original exterior shots of Blanche's house were of a home located at 245 North Saltair Avenue in Los Angeles, California. According to real estate records, that 2901-square-foot house has four bedrooms and four bathrooms and is valued at a little over $3 million. The house is still there, but is now surrounded by high walls and foliage to discourage curious fans.

#19 Over 100 Guest Stars Graced The Stage In The 7 Year Run Of The Show

Over the course of its seven-year run, the sitcom saw plenty of guest stars stop by for a visit. George Clooney, Quentin Tarentino, Mario Lopez, Bob Barker, Sonny Bono, Julio Iglesias, Bob Hope, Alex trebek and Burt Reynolds all made appearances on the show. Don Cheadle was even cast in the spin-off series "Golden Palace" which only lasted one season before calling it quits. The show had two spin-off shows. The Golden Palace, and Empty Nest. Empty Nest was of course a major hit, starring Richard Mulligan and Kristy McNicol.

#20 The Mary Tyler Moore Connection

While we all know Bea and Rue starred together on "Maude," there is also a show connection to the "Mary Tyler Moore Show." Susan Harris, the show creator, worked on the MTM Show for 3 years, and several of the writers and directors had worked for various shows produced by the MTM Company.

Sophia Petrillo's beloved sister, Angela Vecchio (Aunt Angela), was played by Nancy Walker. Walker had a connection with The Golden Girls: She played Rhoda's mother on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, which also starred Betty White. Harold Gould, who played Rose Nylund's boyfriend Miles Webber on The Golden Girls, also had a role in The Mary Tyler Moore Show with Betty White: He played Rhoda's father.

Another fun fact about Gould and The Golden Girls? In season one, he played a different one of Rose's boyfriends, named Arnie.

#22 The Show Introduced Viewers To A New Word

The Golden Girls introduced a new word to non-Floridian viewers: lanai. Architecturally speaking, a lanai is a porch or veranda with a cement floor and an awning and is sometimes also enclosed by screens. Of course, we can always count on Sophia to simplify matters:

Dorothy: We are throwing a surprise birthday party for Blanche. I want you to go out to the lanai and mingle with the other guests.

Sophia: Check! ...What's a lanai?

Dorothy: The porch!

Sophia: Excuse me, Krystle Carrington!

#23 Bea Arthur HATED Cheescake

Bea Arthur actually hated cheesecake, the show's signature dessert. It was featured in 109 episodes, and in two different episodes the girls consumed more than two cakes! Bea was actually eating mousse when it showed her taking a bite of the cheesecake.

#24 The Show Can Count Royals As Their Biggest Fans

With their racy dialogue and sexual innuendos, it's hard to picture someone as proper as Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother getting down with the girls of Miami, but it seems the show can count the late Queen Mother as its biggest fan. In 1988, the cast was asked to perform live for the Queen Mother and a few guests at the London Palladium. Although Bea Arthur admitted to censoring the dialogue for the live show, it seemed the queen liked dirty humor. One piece of risque dialogue that made the cut was Sophia's response when Dorothy asks Blanche how long she'd waited to have sex again after her husband had died. Sophia cheekily replied, "Until the paramedics came." That line got quite a few chuckles from her Majesty.