Last year ended terribly with the death of beloved television iconBetty White. The news came as White was preparing to celebrate her 100th birthday this month, and because so many of us really felt like she would be here forever, the news came as a big shock for many. Feeling emotional about her passing, BossLogic has created some new digital artwork imagining White in the afterlife, back together again with the cast ofThe Golden Girls.
While she was the oldest, White was also the last surviving member of the cast. With White as Rose Nylund, the series also starred Bea Arthur as Dorothy Zbornak, Rue McClanahan as Blanche Devereaux, and Estelle Getty as Sophia Petrillo. Getty died in 2008 at age 84, Arthur died in 2009 at age 86, and McClanahan died in 2010 at age 76.
Created by Susan Harris,The Golden Girlsaired on NBC from 1985-1992. The series followed four mature women sharing a friendship and home in Miami, Florida, as they navigate life and love in their golden years. The acclaimed sitcom was tremendously popular at the time and earned all four of its lead stars Emmy awards, one of very few comedy shows to pull off this feat. It is now widely considered to be one of the very best sitcoms of all time.
“I can’t believe I’m the only one left because I [was] the oldest!” White previously toldOK Magazine.
“We showed up for the readthrough [and] it was like batting a tennis ball over the net," she also said of starting the series with the ensemble. “It was so exciting to be with four people with that chemistry — I’ll never forget that first read. It was like we had been working together forever! I still get goosebumps thinking about it.”
WhenRue McClanahan passed in 2010, White said, “We adored each other. It hurts more than I even thought it would, if that’s even possible. She was everything, as far as a friend is concerned."
“You can’t work that closely together and not become a family,” White related. “I hear these horror stories about series where they don’t speak off camera. How do you do comedy if you’re not speaking to each other?”
AfterThe Golden Girlsended its run, Betty White joined Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty in the spinoff seriesThe Golden Palace. While Bea Arthur had moved on, she returned for a special appearance in the show’s single season. With the new setting and one major member of the cast mostly gone, the show didn’t strike quite as well as its predecessor at the time, but it has become more appreciated byGolden Girlsfans in more recent years.
The Golden Girlsis streaming on Hulu if you want to watch some classic episodes in honor of Betty White. If you want to check outThe Golden Palace, it was announced by Hulu shortly before White’s passing that the series would also become available to watch on the streamer on Jan. 10.
