Estelle Getty’s lesser know side…

Zimmerman shared that while her character delivered zingers on camera, in real life, she had a motherly quality about her. He recalled: “She had that very motherly quality. And even years after, when I was not writing Golden Girls, we would talk on the phone. And she’d always like to know, like, ‘who you’re dating? Where you working?’ And, you know, and not shy about giving advice about any of that.”

And while Estelle played the oldest Golden Girl, she was younger than both Bea Arthur and Betty White! As a result, the makeup team would have to make her appear older through the use of makeup.

Stan recalled a funny story about this: “She had to put on old age makeup. And then I think between season one and 2 or 2 and three, she went and got a facelift.
And then, like [the makeup team were like] ‘Estelle, now we need to do your makeup. Why are you looking better?’ But I think she was just so excited to be in Hollywood. And can you imagine your whole life you strive for something and never reaching it and you know, and probably many times you thought of giving it up,” he says.

Sadly, Zimmerman also recalls seeing his friend deteriorate. At the time they didn’t know what was going on with her. The writer recalled: “We didn’t know at the time that she was, experiencing early onset dementia. And I think that with, the anxiety she had of performing in front of a live studio audience, knowing she was starting to forget lines really troubled her.”

He recalled taping nights: “And so Friday night tapings were anxiety filled for her. And I know she worked really hard to get through that, but all three of the women were very protective to make sure, you know, that she was in
the best state mentally to get through it.”