[Chefelf]

Bea Arthur: Goodnight, but not Goodbye

I was sad to learn of Bea Arthur's passing this afternoon. My first instinct is to pay a loving tribute to Dorothy Zbornak (née Petrillo). After all, this is how most of my generation learned of Bea Arthur. Maude was a little too early for me to truly appreciate. I have vivid memories of watching The Golden Girls with my parents every Saturday night. I didn't realize at that young age that Bea Arthur always played the same type of character: an exceptionally sarcastic woman designed to cut down nitwitted and slutty older women. Well, maybe that was just her character on The Golden Girls.

In tribute, I'd like to bid farewell to Ackmena, her character from The Star Wars Holiday Special.. She steals the show in this film (not that there was much to steal) and I have long argued that her performance is one of the few truly great moments in the special. Watch it now and see if you don't agree. (You will definitely agree. It's fantastic!)

View Video @ YouTube.com

Goodnight, Bea Arthur, but not goodbye!

[Vesuvius]

Not to discredit her acting ability in the least, but I did fast-forward this part of the Holiday Special... along with others.

[J m HofMarN]

I remember checking out a few Golden Girls episodes when I was a kid and there wasnt much on. Still, when I was reading the news, I kept wondering "hmmm who would dare to mention the holiday special"

I guess thats always what i think of just cuz i wasnt old enough for maude. It seems like i missed a lot

[civilian_number_two]

"That old compromisin', enterprisin', anything but tranquilizing,
Right on Maude!"

Probably the only character in a sitcom to have an abortion (definitely the first), Maude was the counterpart to Archie Bunker: a knee-jerk liberal who often made a fool of herself by not exactly understanding her own politics or by going too far with them.

I was in grade school when that series was on, and don't remember it well. I remember All in the Family better, probably because Maureen Stapleton put on a funny voice. Or maybe because my parents watched it more.

I was also in grade school when the Star Wars Holiday Special aired, and I did see it then. I couldn't really believe what I had seen, and the only things I talked about at school the next day were the water planet stuff taken from the Marvel comic and the bit where Maude did a song and dance in the Tatooine bar.

[barend]

...and then there's Maude, and then there's Maude.

Maude had many repeasts in the 80s here. I remember it as well as the Golden Girls. She was also on a game show down here once, and she was awesome with Agro (A fury deviant puppet on Australian TV in the 80s and early 90s).

[Despondent]

Not to nitpick, but the day after the SWHS aired, was a Saturday.

God Bless Bea Arthur. And God rest her wardrobe.

[civilian_number_two]

Lol. I'm 40. I remember talking about it in school after I saw it, but no way do I remember what day of the week it aired!