Bea Arthur was an American actress, comedian, singer, and animal rights activist. Furthermore, Bea Arthur began her stage acting career in 1947. She was also an Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress who appeared on the TV shows ‘Maude’ and ‘The Golden Girls.’

Quick Facts

Bea Arthur Biography

Bernice Frankel, better known as Bea Arthur, was born on May 13, 1922, in New York City, New York, USA. She is an American citizen. Furthermore, she is a Taurus with a mixed ethnicity of Austrian-Polish-American.

Her parents are Philip Frankel (father) and Rebecca Pressner (mother). In terms of siblings, she has two sisters whose names are unknown. During the 1930s Great Depression, her parents relocated to Cambridge, Maryland, and opened a clothing store.

Bea Arthur Education

In terms of education, she attended the ‘Linden Hall School for Girls’ in Lititz, Pennsylvania, and graduated in 1941. She spent two years at ‘Blackstone College for Girls.’ She later attended the ‘Franklin Institute of Science and Arts,’ where she earned a degree as a medical laboratory technician.

She participated in high school theater and aspired to work in the entertainment industry. In 1947, she persuaded her parents to allow her to study acting at New York City’s ‘Erwin Piscator’s Dramatic Workshop of The New School.’

Bea Arthur Height And Weight

This actress is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs approximately 65 kg. Furthermore, this elderly lady has dark brown eyes and grey hair, and there is no information about her other body measurements.

Bea Arthur Death

She died of cancer on April 25, 2009, at the age of 86, in her Brentwood home. She donated $300,000 to the ‘Ali Forney Center,’ a New York-based homeless LGBT youth support group. She had a long history as an animal activist with PETA, and the organization honored her by establishing the ‘Bea Arthur Dog Park’ in her honor.

Career

Bea Arthur, one of the first active-duty women in the ‘US Marine Corps,’ volunteered and served in the ‘Marine Corps’ as a truck driver and typewriter during ‘World War II.’ She grants an Honorable Discharge in September 1944.

During her first stint as a lounge singer, she was mocked for her tall stature and husky voice. Furthermore, her large stature and husky voice landed her main roles at Piscator’s workshop. She made her Broadway debut as a member of the speaking chorus in ‘The Dog Beneath the Skin’ at the ‘Cherry Lane Theatre’ on July 21, 1947.

She received widespread acclaim for her performance as ‘Lucy Brown in Kurt Weill’s classic ‘The Threepenny Opera’ off-Broadway production in 1954. The play was quite long, and she was praised for both her singing and acting abilities.

‘Nature’s Way,’ her first Broadway comedy, premiered on October 16, 1957, at the ‘Coronet Theatre.’ Although she was cast in a minor role, her performance astounded critics. Her next role was as a domineering brothel madam in the off-Broadway ‘Rooftop Theatre’ production of James Joyce’s classic novel ‘Ulysses,’ which premiered on June 5, 1958.

Soon after, she took a break from theater, returning on September 22, 1964, to play ‘Yente the Matchmaker’ in the musical ‘Fiddler on the Roof.’ Her most well-known stage performance was as ‘Vera Charles,’ in the critically acclaimed musical ‘Mame,’ in 1966.

Bea Arthur, who had previously appeared in minor roles on various television shows and was a regular on ‘Caesar’s Hour,’ made her feature film debut in ‘That Kind of Woman,’ starring Sophia Loren, in 1959. Norman Lear, a fan of Bea Arthur’s early stage performances, asked her to appear as a guest star on ‘All in the Family,’ which she did from 1971 to 1972.

Her portrayal of an outspoken liberal feminist named ‘Maude Findlay’ in ‘All in the Family’ was so popular that CBS based her show on the same character. The show, titled ‘Maude,’ became a smash hit and lasted six seasons, from 1972 to 1978.

In 1974, she reprised her role in her husband’s film adaptation of ‘Mame.’ She also starred in a number of films, including ‘For Better or Worse’ (1995) and ‘Lovers and Other Strangers’ (1970). In 1978, she appeared in the ‘Star Wars Holiday Special,’ performing the song and dance routines.

She also hosted ‘The Beatrice Arthur Special’ in 1980. In 1983, she starred in the sitcom ‘Amanda’s.’ She starred as ‘Dorothy Zbornak’ in the 1985 television series ‘The Golden Girls,’ which followed four older women who live in a house in Miami, Florida. It was one of the first TV shows with a large cast of over 40 characters.

Bea Arthur Net Worth And Awards

In 1966, he won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance as Vera Charles in the original Broadway production of Jerry Herman’s musical Mame. On June 8, 2008, she received the Pop Culture award at the Sixth Annual TV Land Awards. In one of her final public appearances, she accepted the award alongside McClanahan and White.

She has made a lot of money in her career as a popular American actress and singer. Furthermore, her net worth was estimated to be around $25 million at the time of her death.

Bea Arthur Husband, Marriage

In terms of her personal life, she has married twice. In 1947, she married Robert Alan Aurthur. The couple divorced in 1950 after three years of marriage, but Bea kept his surname. After meeting Gene Saks, a fellow student at the ‘Dramatic Workshop,’ in 1949, she married him on May 28, 1950.

Their two sons, Matthew and Daniel, were adopted and raised by them. While Matthew chose to be an actor, Daniel chose to be a set designer. The couple divorced in 1978. She was not involved in any controversy or rumors until her death.

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