‘Golden Girls’ Creatives Spill the Tea on Casting Secrets, the Guest Star Who Got Away, and If Bea Arthur and Betty White Really Got Along (Hint: They Didn’t)

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On Wednesday evening, during the 40th anniversary celebration for the popular TV series The Golden Girls, the creative minds behind it opened up with amusing and occasionally candid anecdotes from backstage.

The occasion, taking place at NeueHouse Hollywood during the Pride LIVE! Hollywood month-long festival, showcased a group of writers, producers, and others who were involved in the production of the TV series. This show, which aired on NBC from 1985-92 for seven seasons, was created by Susan Harris. The main cast included Bea Arthur as Dorothy Zbornak, Betty White as Rose Nylund, Rue McClanahan as Blanche Devereaux, and Estelle Getty as Sophia Petrillo.

Joel Thurm played a crucial role throughout the audition process for all four principal actresses. He revealed that Brandon Tartikoff, who was NBC Entertainment’s head at the time, initially opposed the idea of casting Betty White in the show. However, Harris was firm about her choice, as she had previously collaborated with White on Maude, including writing episodes like the groundbreaking abortion episode. Tartikoff’s reluctance to cast White was due to her lower ratings in terms of audience appeal (Q scores).

I stumbled upon a significant challenge, as I wasn’t privy to the deep discussions Susan was involved in, taking place elsewhere. As Brandon put it, my task became locating someone Susan would accept instead of Bea Arthur. In hindsight, I should have suspected that no one else could fill Bea’s shoes for Susan, but at the time, I was too unaware. I thought to myself, ‘Ah, I’ve found a suitable replacement. Her name is Elaine Stritch. She shares Bea’s sharp gaze and biting wit.’ Little did I know…

Thurm recounted that when Stritch arrived for her audition for “Golden Girls”, the entire team wasn’t keen on her. Stritch had to enter a cold office and attempt to bring humor to the situation. Stritch inquired of Susan, ‘May I make a small adjustment?’ To which Susan replied, ‘Yes, but only with punctuation.’ The room held no warmth towards Stritch. I felt deeply for poor Stritch, as it wasn’t her fault. She didn’t deserve this rejection. If I had known that Susan was firm on this decision, I wouldn’t have pursued finding another actress.

Golden Girls co-producer Marsha Posner Williams, however, shared a different view of Stritch.

She mentioned that she had worked on an initial project, and Elaine Stritch appeared as a special guest for only a day,” she added with a laugh. “By midday, we were affectionately referring to her as ‘Elaina Toughie’.

At that time, Getty, a relatively unrecognized actress, walked into her audition and aced it. As Thurm stated, she had done her research and was well-prepared for the role, making her the initial choice among the four main characters to secure the part.

By the way, it was originally planned for Cher to appear as a guest star in an episode centered around Sophia’s son’s death, portraying his wife. However, Cher didn’t respond to the offer, and ultimately, Brenda Vaccaro took on that role instead.

Williams additionally touched upon a subject that’s frequently debated and theorized about: the nature of their relationship between Arthur and White in reality.

During filming when the red light was on, there weren’t any more skilled individuals than those women. However, once the red light went off, they struggled to connect, as if they were burned together in a furnace and still couldn’t warm up,” she joked. Arthur often called me at home, saying he had encountered ‘White,’ using a racial slur, at the grocery store, and he planned to write her a letter. I responded by telling him, ‘Arthur, just get over it already! Just move past it.’

To clarify, the panelists recounted instances where Arthur used a derogatory term for White, specifically the ‘c-word’, on multiple occasions. Williams recalled an instance when they visited Bea’s house for dinner, and the offensive word was used within 30 seconds of entering. Thurm also mentioned hearing Arthur use this term while sitting next to her during a flight. This story was previously shared by him on a podcast, but he was taken aback by the internet’s reaction to his disclosure.

Among the panelists, there were varying opinions regarding the reasons behind the poor relationship between the two individuals. Jim Vallely proposed that it may have stemmed from White receiving more applause during cast introductions prior to recordings, but Williams disagreed with this theory. Williams pointed out that Arthur disliked publicity and had a different background in theater compared to White’s career in television.

She disclosed that the series might have persisted for another seven years. However, their contracts expired, and the management approached the main cast members. Estelle, Rue, and Betty all agreed to continue, but Bea refused, which ultimately led to the show’s termination. Moreover, Betty often broke character during performances, addressing the live audience directly, a practice that Bea disliked intensely.

Script supervisor Isabel Omero recalled a different version of events, stating that the duo often strolled “linked arm in arm” to gather notes following the first of their two recording sessions. Williams playfully added that they did so just in case they were crossing the studio lot and a runaway golf cart appeared, implying that one might shove the other out of its path.

The gathering commenced by playing a recap of significant LGBTQ scenes from the series, such as when Blanche’s sibling announced being gay, Sophia accepting her son’s cross-dressing identity, and a political figure disclosing they were transgender.

Personally speaking as a fan, it’s fascinating to learn about the hidden struggles that Stan Zimmerman faced during his writing journey. Though we were led to believe that things were progressive on set, he pointed out that behind closed doors, there were expectations to remain closeted. He reminisced, “On our first day, Estelle made a beeline for us, whispering, ‘I know your secret, it’s safe with me, you’re one of us.’ I thought she meant Jewish, but she was referring to our sexuality. She wasn’t gay herself, but she might have been the first ally anyone ever had.

Zimmerman mentioned that he had shared with his colleagues about purchasing old sweaters at a garage sale, to which they responded by suggesting he should get rid of them since they might have belonged to someone who passed away from AIDS. “That was the atmosphere back then,” he explained, as people may think it was a highly accepting era for the LGBTQ+ community, but in reality, we couldn’t openly express ourselves as we truly were.

In 2019, Omero, who identifies as transgender, revealed that they had been hiding their identity throughout all seven seasons of the show. They shared that one day, Arthur proposed to gift them an Indian sari which he had bought during his travels.

In my secretive, frightened, anxious mind, all that was clear to me was that at that particular moment, Bea Arthur was giving me a dress to wear at home. I wished I could have spoken up, just to accept the gift and say something, even if it wasn’t used, so I could communicate with someone. But fear and embarrassment were overwhelming,” Omero expressed.

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“In my hidden, scared, worried thoughts, what stood out was that Bea Arthur was offering me a house dress at that instant. I yearned to respond, just so I could accept the gift without using it, to communicate something to someone. But fear and shame dominated me,” Omero explained.

Inquired about why The Golden Girls addressed numerous LGBTQ topics, Vallely stated: “I believe it’s because we realized… we had a gay viewership. They would air [the show] in bars catering to the LGBTQ community nationwide. … It was significant for middle America to witness these characters accepting and embracing the gay lifestyle.

The discussion, including story editor Rick Copp and led by Jim Colucci (a bestselling author like Golden Girls Forever from the New York Times), concluded with a compilation of deleted scenes from the pilot episode. Originally, these scenes included a character named Coco, a live-in gay housekeeper and cook, played by Charles Levin. The role was eliminated because Sophia (initially intended as a recurring character) gained immense popularity, resulting in Getty becoming a regular cast member. Unfortunately for Levin, this shift necessitated the removal of another character from the series.

On Wednesday evening, the panel engaged a fully occupied audience. In attendance were Deena Freeman, an actress known for portraying Dorothy’s daughter Kate in one episode, and Michael Hynes, a renowned production designer. The event, Pride LIVE! Hollywood, is being sponsored by The Hollywood Reporter as its presenting media partner.

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2025-06-19 19:25