People are frequently called a “chicken” when they’re demonstrating a rather notable amount of fear. However, in Bea Arthur’s case, it seems that saying “chicken” only served to generate more fear.

Arthur’s co-star on The Golden Girls and friend, Betty White, shared an anecdote regarding Arthur in her memoir, Betty White: In Person.

“My good friend Beatrice Arthur has a weak spot or two herself. Bea loves animals and gives a tremendous amount on their behalf.”

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There was one animal, however, that Arthur seemed to be less than partial toward, and she was about to be forced to confront her fear head-on.

“One day on The Golden Girls, our script revolved around a piano-playing chicken,” wrote White. “Naturally, I, for one, was delighted that we were getting to work with a live creature. For the first two days, we rehearsed with a toy...the star chicken wasn’t called in until Wednesday. Came the big day, and when “Count Bessie” arrived on the set, Bea turned pale as a ghost...and split!

It turned out that Arthur suffered from a rather “fowl” phobia...she was afraid of chickens! Luckily, the script was adjusted so that the actor had limited interactions with her new feathered friend.

“Since we had several scenes to play together, they had to be staged so that Bea was on one side of the room, and 'Bessie’ and Betty were as far from her as possible,” wrote White.