Bea Arthur

Bea Arthur or Beatrice Arthur is a former American actress, singer, and comedian. She is one of the few actresses whose professional career boasts of roughly seven decades. Arthur’s portrayal of Maude Findlay and Dorothy Zbornak bestowed her with two Emmy Awards. Born as Bernice Frankel to Rebecca and Philip Frankel in the city of New York Click to look into! >> Read More... , she completed her schooling at Linden Hall School for Girls and graduated from the Blackstone College for Girls, Virginia, where she discovered her passion for drama and the theater. Arthur has also served her nation in times of war, where she was a typist and a truck-driver for the United States Marine Corps Women’s Reserve during World War II.

After being presented with an Honorable Discharge, in the year 1947, Arthur attended the Dramatic Workshop of the New School, New York. Her Broadway career took off at the Cherry Lane Theater where she portrayed the roles of Lucy Brown in “Threepenny Opera,” Nadine Fessler in Nature’s Way, Yente in “Fiddler on the Roof,” and Vera Charles in Angela Lansbury’s “Mame.” Beatrice pocketed a Tony Award in 1966 for her role as Vera Charles. The year 1971 saw Arthur play Maude Findlay in the soap-opera “All in the Family” produced by Norman Lear.

The role of Maude catapulted Arthur’s television career and presented her with her TV show titled “Maude” produced by the CBS networks, who were impressed with her acting skills at the age of 50. She was presented with an Emmy Award in 1977 in the category of Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series and was also the recipient of various Golden Globe Award nominations. At a time when discussing various social issues were considered as a taboo, Arthur boldly projected those through “Maude” such as drug use, the Vietnam War, alcoholism, the Nixon administration, gay rights, spousal abuse, and abortion. Due to the gravity of the situation in those times, most of the TV stations refused to telecast certain episodes, fearing a backlash from the mob. After nearly six months of the incident, the show was reinstated for a re-run which garnered a viewership of roughly sixty-five million. In 1978, Arthur was cast in the cult classic television film Star Wars Holiday Special, and also hosted the Beatrice Arthur Special in the following year.

In 1985, Arthur’s role as Dorothy Zbornak in “The Golden Girls” fetched her several Emmy Award nominations and an Emmy win in the year 1988. In the years that followed, Beatrice appeared in brief roles in movies such as Mame, “Lovers and Other Strangers,” History of the World: Part One, and For Better or Worse. She also featured in cameos in television serials such as Malcolm in the Middle, Futurama, and Curb Your Enthusiasm. Beatrice Arthur passed away on 25th of April, 2009 as the consequence of cancer.