Estelle Getty

After news of the passing of Rue McClanahan, many people have turned online to see what happened to the rest of the cast.  We know that Betty white is enjoying renewed fame, but other Golden Girls have left us, including Estelle Getty.
Estelle Getty death arrived in July 22, 2008 in her home in Los Angeles. She was just three days away from turning 85 when she passed away from natural causes.
At that time Ruth McClanahan said:
“Don’t feel sad about her passing. She will always be with us in her crowning achievement, Sophia.”
Betty White said, “The only comfort at this moment is that although Estelle has moved on, Sophia will always be with us.”
And Bea Arthur in a statement said the following. “Our mother-daughter relationship was one of the greatest comic duos ever and I will miss her.”
Those were the news on Estelle Getty death

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Blanche Devereaux

If you're feeling sad at the news of Rue McClanahan's death and need a hit of her flirtatious "Golden Girls" character, Blanche Devereaux, here's a compilation video of her appearances on the hit TV series.

Does Blanche remind you of anyone, like say, the fabulous modern day uber-cougar Samantha Jones on "Sex and the City?"

There's a good reason for that. All the SATC characters bear some resemblance to the "Golden Girls."

Carrie, (closest to maternal Sophia Petrillo) Miranda (clearly the Dorothy Zbornak) Charlotte, (definitely the ditzy Rose Nyland) and Samantha (a dead ringer for man-crazy Blanche) were clearly inspired by these feisty old "Girls who combined sexy banter, earthy comedy, 'Real Housewives' personality clashes,  rivalry, true friendship and great comic timing.

Which reruns do you enjoy more? "Golden Girls" or "Sex and the City"? And who's funnier? Do you prefer the veiled innuendos of Blanche or the shockingly graphic remarks from Samantha?

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Golden Girls

Rue McClanahan, the Emmy Award-winning actress who played the Golden Girl that got around, died Thursday of a massive stroke, People.com reported.

She was 76 - a fact her alter-ego on "The Golden Girls," the bawdy Blanche Deveraux, would never dream of divulging.

"She passed away at 1 a.m." at New York Presbyterian Hospital, her manager, Barbara Lawrence, told the magazine.

McClanahan "had her family with her," Lawrence added. "She went in peace."


The Oklahoma-born daughter of a beautician and a building contractor, McClanahan was a breast cancer survivor and had been in shaky health. She suffered a minor stroke earlier this year, while recovering from bypass surgery.

The death of the scene-stealing actress leaves Betty White as the last surviving member of "The Golden Girls," which ran on NBC from 1985 to 1992 and remains in syndication.

Last year, McClanahan's co-star Beatrice Arthur died from cancer. The wise-cracking Estelle Getty died in 2008.

White is in the midst of a career resurgence and recently hosted "Saturday Night Live."

McClanahan launched her acting career in New York in 1957 and made her Broadway debut in 1969 in the musical "Jimmy Shine," which starred Dustin Hoffman.

Moving to the small screen, McClanahan was paired with Arthur for the first time in the hit 1970's TV series "Maude."
After that series ended in 1978, McClanahan moved on to the role of Aunt Fran on "Mama's Family" in 1983.

Then, in 1985, McClanahan was reunited with Arthur on "The Golden Girls," which became the first TV sitcom to focus on the lives of aging women.

On the series, in which the four gals shared a house in Miami, McClanahan played a man-slaying Southern belle, a part that won her an Emmy.
Blanche Devereaux, she said in an interview, "is in love with life and she loves men."

Like Blanche, McClanahan was catnip to men. She was married six times and recounted her amorous adventures in her 2007 autobiography, "My First Five Husbands."

McClanahan had just one child - a son, Mark Bish, from her first marriage

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