Bea Arthur

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Biography

Recent Role:
Self on Back to the Grind
Gender:
Female
Born:
5-13-1922
Died:
4-25-2009 (Cancer)
Birthplace:
New York, New York
Birth Name:
Bernice Frankel
AKA:
Bea Arthur
Beatrice Arthur, is an American actress and comedienne with a distinctive deep voice, acid wit, and height, standing almost 5 ft 10 in. Her notable television roles include the title role on the popular sitcom Maude in the 1970s and a starring role on The Golden Girls in the 1980s.


In the former she played Maude Findlay, an outspoken "limousine" liberal living in Tuckahoe, Westchester County, New York; the show was a spinoff from All in the Family, on which Arthur had appeared in the same role, playing Edith Bunker's cousin, whom Archie couldn't stand.








More In the latter she played the character Dorothy Zbornak, a middle-aged woman who lived in a Florida house with two room mates (Betty White and Rue McClanahan) and Dorothy's short-tempered yet hip old mother, played by Estelle Getty. One of the most ironic things about casting Getty in this role was that she is actually two months younger than Arthur, so Getty was heavily made-up to seem significantly older.


On stage, her roles include as "Lucy Brown" in the 1954 Off-Broadway premiere of Kurt Weill's Threepenny Opera, "Yente the Matchmaker" in the 1964 premiere of Fiddler on the Roof on Broadway, and a 1966 Tony Award-winning portrayal of "Vera Charles" in Mame. In 1981, she appeared in Woody Allen's The Floating Lightbulb; two decades later she toured the U.S. in a one-woman show which opened in Broadway in 2002 as Bea Arthur on Broadway: Just Between Friends. In real life, Arthur is good friends with legendary actress and former co-star Angela Lansbury, and in real life Arthur did not get along with Betty White for most of the time that they worked together on Golden Girls, but possibly they have since mellowed out, especially in light of their mutual friend, Estelle Getty's health woes.


Arthur was born in New York City, but she grew up in Maryland. She became a medical technologist before World War II, when she volunteered for the U.S. Marine Corps, becoming one of its first female recruits.


She was married for many years to her second husband, director Gene Saks, with whom she adopted two sons, but the marriage ended in divorce.

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  •  
    10 Perfect
    Her Amazing Performances & Excellent Comedic Timing Makes This Woman One's of Our Favorites hide show

    Bea Arthur... Just that name makes me think of all the funny stuff she has done on television. Whether it's her noticeable voice, her catchphrase "God'll get you for that" from "Maude", or her possibly best known performance as Dorothy Zbornak from "The Golden Girls". She is truly one of my favorite female actors, and I got my reasons.

    First, she has great timing for comedy. Maude and The Golden Girls are AMAZING examples. Her facial expressions and great sharp tongue make me laugh out loud! Seriously though, they're both amazing shows.

    Anyways, all I can say is that this woman has excellent comedy, and we're missing here since her passing... I hope she's making people laugh up there as she did to the people down on Earth!

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  •  
    8 Great
    Good actress. hide show

    Well, even though I was a Golden Girls fan, at all, I must say I respected the actress Bea Arthur. She was talented as also funny in her own, dry way. I guess I remember her best on the show with fellow old women. She was pretty good at being the stern, mobile character that was always the one to be the punisher of the bunch. She will be appreciated for her work as an actress because she was one of the better actresses around at her age. Overall, I must say that I respected her and her work during that time. Thank you.

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    10 Perfect
    a true great hide show

    I don't remember Maudeas a kid, but as a teen the reruns were great, and then just a few years later I was treated too one of my all time favorite shows Golden Girls, and Bea as Dorothy was the most perfect casting ever, she is among my all time fave Tv charecters, strong,smart, I loved dorothy and still do

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    10 Perfect
    Timing is everything hide show

    Only a few people in this world has the special gift of comedic timing. Bea Arthur is one of them. I have been following Bea for over 20 years and 8 years religiously. It has been a wise decision for me to pick one person to follow and learn more about and that person to be Bea. After learning so much about her and meeting her a couple of times, there are still so many unanswered questions that I have about this lady. However, that is part of the fun of Bea. I don't want all the answers to be answered and I doubt she would let that happen anyway! Sure, she gets poked at, at times, but that is because she is original and nothing in the industry comes close to her unique talents. There is so much for me to say about Bea, but the most important thing that I want to convey, to people reading this, just learning about her, is to give her a chance. Study her actions and reactions and you will soon see the brilliance before your eyes. Thank you Ms. Arthur for all the years of joy and thought provoking words you have offered the world... and your never tiring of giving us more.

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