Lifetime Thanks Estelle for Being a Friend

Illustration by Glen Hanson

In honor of to the late great Estelle Getty, Lifetime (Television for Women and Gay Men™) will air a special marathon of Sophia-centric episodes of its signature series The Golden Girls this Friday.

Ten episodes will be broadcast starting at 12 noon EST, and viewers get to vote for their favorite one, which will air last.

And for more Sophia memories, watch this video tribute.

Estelle Getty: 1923-2008

Very sad news today: Estelle Getty, beloved star of The Golden Girls, passed away this morning at the age of 84.

Getty won an Emmy (out of seven nominations) and a Golden Globe for her indelible portrayal of the feisty Sophia Petrillo on the classic sitcom. Her character was so popular, she made guest appearances in the role on Blossom and Nurses and co-starred in the Girls spin-offs The Golden Palace and Empty Nest.

Outside of television, she originated the role of Arnold Beckoff's "ma" in Harvey Fierstein's Torch Song Trilogy on stage and also appeared in the movies Mask, Mannequin, Stuart Little and the infamous Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot.

Rue McClanahan paid tribute to Getty in a statement released this afternoon: "Estelle always wanted to be an actress and she achieved that goal beyond her dreams. Don't feel sad about her passing, she will always be with us in her crowning achievement, Sophia."

When the Boys You Used to Hate You Date ...

Sure, The Facts of Life went to Paris, but did they ever go to Oz?

If so, perhaps Mrs. G and her gals ran in to the Golden Girls and the Sweat Hogs ...

Awards Watch: TV Hall of Fame

The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has named this year's inductees into their Hall of Fame. The honorees are:

• Bea Arthur, the Emmy Award-winning deadpan artist of Maude and Golden Girls legend.
• Larry Gelbart, the man behind M*A*S*H.
• Merv Griffin, the late host of his eponymous talk show and creator of the game show classics Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune.
• Daniel Burke and Tom Murphy, former CEOs of Capital Cities/ABC.
• Sherwood Schwartz, creator of such boomer favorites as The Brady Bunch and Gilligan's Island.