RIP Bea Arthur

Actress Bea Arthur passed away over the weekend at the age of 86. The funny lady started her career in theatre, winning a Tony Award for her performance in the Broadway musical Mame, but was immortalized by her starring roles on the television comedies Maude and The Golden Girls. You have to give the woman credit, as few actresses have found success on two hit series, especially so late in life - Bea was already 50 years old when Maude came to air. Growing up, I was a huge fan of The Golden Girls. I think my grandmother got me hooked on it. In retrospect I have to admit it wasn't a great sitcom - the writing was sometimes lazy and repetitive - but it had its funny moments, and a large part of the credit should go to the actresses. While the writing may have wanted them to be caricatures, Bea, Betty White, Estelle Getty and Rue McClanahan did their best to create three-dimensional charaters out of their roles. Bea Arthur will surely missed, but her work will continue to live one, and we should be happy she gifted us with it.