Estelle Getty: 1923-2008I am blogging outside my usual territory to pay tribute to Estelle Getty. Given that the Golden Girls is one of my favorite shows of all time and given that most of my friends personally contacted ME to send their condolences when she died (my obsession is well-known), I felt a sense of duty to write about her.
Born in New York City, Getty got her start acting in Yiddish theaters and performing comedy at resorts in the Catskills. She had character roles on Broadway and small roles in 80's movies such as Mask, Tootsie, and Mannequin. But, Getty did not achieve mainstream success until an age when most actresses retire. She was cast in The Golden Girls as Sophia Petrillo, the wisecracking mother to Dorothy Zbornak, played by Bea Arthur. In real life, Getty was younger than Arthur by a year! Getty's character delivered memorable one-liners and is thus a fan-favorite. It is hard for me to narrow down a favorite line, but here is one I adore... In response to her promiscuous house mate Blanche (Rue McClanahan) arguing that she is not secretive:
Blanche: My life is an open book.
Sophia: Your life is an open blouse!
If there are any other Golden Girls fans out there, I encourage you to leave comments. And FYI: Lifetime is doing a GG marathon on Friday night and has a poll to vote for your favorite Sophia episodes. Of course, I am always open to the idea of hosting a Golden Girls marathon at the library...