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Despite her success on The Golden Girls, some people didn't recognize Bea Arthur in public
Even TV royalty gets overlooked.
Many classic TV fans know Bea Arthur, right? Whether you remember her from The Golden Girls, Maude, All in the Family, Soap or Empty Nest, her legacy has given fans plenty to enjoy.
That said, even someone as successful as Arthur knew how fleeting fame could be.
According to a 1990 interview with the Calgary Herald, Arthur was already feeling the effects of no longer being the star of a current hit series as The Golden Girls approached the end of its run.
"Just a couple of years ago I was in New York doing a Tony Award show and my darling friend Hal Linden was also there," Arthur said. "One day after rehearsal we were going down in the elevator together and an older man got in. He gasped when he saw Hal. Just fell on the floor. Never paid the least bit of attention to me."
"The following day I saw the same man at the newsstand in the lobby and was beaming with recognition," Arthur said. "I thought, 'Well, it's high time.' He came over to me and said, 'You were in the elevator with Hal Linden. Isn't that wonderful?'"
While plenty of people would have recognized Arthur on sight, she knew what it felt like to go unnoticed. Before her success on television, she recalled feeling out of place because she didn't fit the image she had of herself.
"Instead of the small, beautiful blonde I longed to be, I was this tall, dark-haired girl who felt awkward and out of place," Arthur said.
She eventually found her place with The Golden Girls. And even if not everyone recognized her in an elevator, the people who did often felt a deep connection to the series, her character and Arthur herself. The show helped change how audiences viewed older women.
"They're seeing for the first time older women who look good, dress well, live well and who are bright," Arthur said. "And we have our teeth! We've changed the public's image of seniors. We're not nursing home inmates. We're visible, interesting women who are very much in the world."
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