Behind the Scenes of Bea Arthur and Betty White’s Feud on “The Golden Girls”
Although countless fans express gratitude to Bea Arthur and Betty White — along with their fellow Golden Girls cast members — for their friendship, the actresses weren’t always as close in reality.
Arthur’s oldest son, Matthew Saks, revealed to Closer in August 2017 that Betty often felt like a nemesis to his mother, someone she rolled her eyes about at work.
From 1985 to 1992, Arthur and White portrayed roommates and best friends Dorothy Zbornak and Rose Nylund, respectively, on The Golden Girls. Their other roommate, Blanche Devereaux, was played by Rue McClanahan, while Estelle Getty completed the ensemble as Dorothy’s mother, Sophia Petrillo.
Despite the series remaining one of the most popular comedies, Golden Girls writer and producer Stan Zimmerman noted to Closer that the strain between Arthur and White was apparent by the show’s conclusion.
“They worked long hours, tempers flare, and you have disagreements over the years,” he contended.
However, McClanahan stated that wasn’t entirely accurate, sharing that White never considered Arthur a major problem. “Betty was a big fan of Bea,” McClanahan told TV Guide in April 2009. “Bea’s feelings about Betty were not mutual. She really did love Bea.”
Continue reading to find out more about the ups and downs of Arthur and White’s relationship:
Neighborly Connection
When the series started, Arthur and White reportedly carpooled to the set and shared lunch breaks. “Bea and I didn’t have a lot of relationship going on. Bea is a very, very eccentric woman. She wouldn’t go to lunch [with me] unless Betty [White] would go with her,” recalled McClanahan during an archived interview from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences via Parade. “She was very reliant on keeping everything constant, and I was quite the opposite.”
The actress recalled that even if White was late, Arthur would wait for her, and they would always sit together during Friday dinner shoots. White confirmed in her 1987 memoir, Betty White in Person, that she and Arthur had lunch together every day.
Personality Conflicts
Despite their lunch camaraderie, White noted in an interview with The Village Voice in May 2011 that Arthur simply didn’t align well with her or her demeanor.
“I don’t know what I ever did, but she wasn’t too thrilled with me,” the Hot in Cleveland star remarked regarding Arthur. “She found me a pain in the neck at times. It was my positive outlook — and that irritated Bea. Sometimes, if I was cheerful, she’d be furious.”
Golden Girls co-producer Marsha Posner Williams shared with Broadcast Beat in 2022 that Arthur and White were polar opposites.
“The thing is, Bea was authentically herself. She disliked wearing makeup, shoes, or washing her hair. She didn’t like being touched either and drank quite a bit of vodka. That was her true self,” Williams recalled. “But when you’re on a hit show, you need to cooperate, and they did.”
McClanahan remarked in her 2009 TV Guide interview that even though White questioned her about why Arthur didn’t like her, she never had a clear answer.
“I’d say, ‘You know how Bea is, Betty. Bea gets a fixation and doesn’t like certain things … and I can’t explain why,’” McClanahan stated. “For instance, Bea wouldn’t like people who wore their baseball hats backward. That really bothered her. There was a time we were interviewing directors, and if someone walked in with a hat on backward, he was out of luck.”
Two Different Approaches
The actresses’ contrasting personalities extended to their performances, largely due to their differing background in acting.
“[Bea] hailed from the traditional school of [television writer] Norman Lear, where sitcoms were filmed as stage plays, utilizing close-up reactions,” Golden Girls Forever: An Unauthorized Biography author Jim Colucci shared with Closer in 2017. “[Betty, on the other hand], came from the Mary Tyler Moore school where every moment is a subtle character point. The humor is gentler.”
Colucci recounted, “Bea would clutch the script until the final moment. Betty, almost by the read-through, would be off-book. She’d adapt new lines just by hearing them, allowing her to interact playfully with the audience.”
Numerous celebrities made guest appearances on The Golden Girls throughout its seven-season run from 1985 to 1992. Join Us as we look back at the stars who shared the screen with Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty’s legendary characters!
McClanahan noted in a 2009 TV Guide interview that Arthur approached acting with a “New York stage mindset. She always maintained what we call the fourth wall. In contrast, Betty had a television viewpoint; she engaged more with the audience, playingfully saying, ‘Hi sailor.’”
According to McClanahan, Arthur would “never acknowledge the audience,” explaining, “I always thought this might have contributed to it. But Bea never shared why she felt as she did about Betty.”
Breaking Character & Pulling Focus
Williams claimed to Broadcast Beat in 2022 that Arthur “despised” White, partially due to White’s interactions with the audience on set.
“When the cameras shifted to the next set, Betty would break character to engage with the audience. Bea hated that,” Williams recounted, joking, “Those two couldn’t have warmed up to each other even if they were cremated together! But when that red light was on, it was as if they were the best of friends.”
Saks echoed this sentiment regarding how his mother felt about White’s on-set behavior. “It would irk my mom that in-between takes, Betty would chat with the audience. It wasn’t jealousy; it had to do with focus,” he told Closer. “My mom unwittingly maintained that it was enjoyable to have someone to be irritated with.”
Award-Winning Drama
McClanahan suggested in her 2007 memoir, My First Five Husbands … And the Ones Who Got Away, that Arthur’s grievances with White might have started when White won an Emmy for the series before Arthur did. She mentioned in her book how “awkward” it felt to be vying against one another year after year for the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, sensing that Arthur wasn’t pleased that White was the first to win the honor, particularly given Arthur’s higher pay due to her background in Maude.
White recounted in her 1995 memoir, Here We Go Again: My Life in Television, that the ambiance was chilly following her Emmy victory in 1986. “Estelle gave me a big hug and kiss — but she did this outside, before we got into the studio,” White noted.
She wrote, “The crew was wonderfully warm and friendly, but the well-wishes were all whispering.” However, after the rest of the cast started winning their own Emmys, White added, “The initial coolness was never replicated. We celebrated!”
The C-Word
During a June 2025 event celebrating the show’s 40th anniversary, Williams alleged that Arthur often referred to White disparagingly. “Bea used to call me at home and say, ‘I just ran into that [C-word] at the grocery store. I’m gonna write her a letter,’” she stated, according to The Hollywood Reporter. “And I said, ‘Bea, just get over it already.’”
“I recall my husband and I dining at Bea’s a couple of times, and within 30 seconds upon entering, that C-word was mentioned,” Williams shared, and casting director Joel Thurm also mentioned hearing Arthur use that term while seated beside her on a flight.
Rocky Goodbye
Williams claimed at the June 2025 anniversary event that Arthur was the reason The Golden Girls came to an end. “The show could have continued after seven years,” she said. “Their contracts expired and … the executives approached the women, and Estelle said, ‘Yes, let’s keep going,’ and Rue agreed, ‘Yes, let’s continue.’ Then Betty said, ‘Yes, let’s carry on.’ And Bea countered with ‘no f***ing way,’ leading to the show’s cancellation.”
White, Getty, and McClanahan then continued the show without Arthur, resulting in the short-lived spinoff The Golden Palace.
Thank You for Being a Friend, Sort Of
Despite the tales of tension off camera, both Arthur and White had positive things to say about one another in their roles. They also expressed gratitude for each other during their Emmy acceptance speeches.
“It was a remarkable professional collaboration, everyone,” Arthur noted to E! News in 2002. “Everyone was a strong link in that chain.”
White similarly stated that there were no issues on set among the cast. “I don’t even want to imagine what The Golden Girls set could have been without our mutual support and respect,” White detailed in her memoir, Betty White in Person. “The fact that we also genuinely cared for one another was an unforeseen bonus.”
The Proposal star continued, “Right from the start, we were all impressed by the professionalism of each other. No one needed to be propped up; whatever one of us produced was reciprocated in kind … or even better.”
Betty White’s fellow Golden Girls castmates frequently teased her about her affection for animals — and once even convinced her that a homeless cat had gotten stuck in the wall. “They had a crew member hide a tape recorder in a wall on the set,” one of Betty’s friends recalls. […]
McClanahan echoed White’s sentiments in her book, stating, “What truly mattered to each of us individually and as a collective was: the chemistry was there. We were incredibly funny. And we did it together. That counts most in the end.”
“I adored both Bea and Betty and thoroughly enjoyed my time with each of them,” McClanahan added. “While their relationship wasn’t everything I hoped for, it never hindered their performance.”
Though White was five months older than Arthur and the eldest among the Golden Girls cast, she ultimately outlived them all. Getty passed away in July 2008 at age 84, Arthur in April 2009 at age 86, and the youngest, McClanahan, in June 2010 at age 76. White died in December 2021, just 17 days shy of her 100th birthday.
