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| Golden Girls star Getty dies, 84 | Golden Girls star Getty dies, 84 |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Actress Estelle Getty, best known as sarcastic Sicilian octogenarian Sophia Petrillo in US sitcom The Golden Girls, had died at the age of 84. | Actress Estelle Getty, best known as sarcastic Sicilian octogenarian Sophia Petrillo in US sitcom The Golden Girls, had died at the age of 84. |
| The star, who had advanced dementia, died on Tuesday morning at her Hollywood Boulevard home. | The star, who had advanced dementia, died on Tuesday morning at her Hollywood Boulevard home. |
| Her son, Carl Gettleman, said she was "one of the most talented comedic actresses who ever lived". | Her son, Carl Gettleman, said she was "one of the most talented comedic actresses who ever lived". |
| Apart from the Golden Girls, Getty's credits included films like Mannequin and Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot. | Apart from the Golden Girls, Getty's credits included films like Mannequin and Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot. |
| According to her official website, the actress was born Estelle Scher in the Lower East Side of New York City after her parents emigrated to the US from Poland. | According to her official website, the actress was born Estelle Scher in the Lower East Side of New York City after her parents emigrated to the US from Poland. |
| People have me mixed up with my character Estelle Getty She married Arthur Gettleman at the age of 23, from whom she adapted her stage name. | People have me mixed up with my character Estelle Getty She married Arthur Gettleman at the age of 23, from whom she adapted her stage name. |
| But the actress faced a long struggle for success, working in poorly-paid office jobs to help support her family while she tried to make her big break. | But the actress faced a long struggle for success, working in poorly-paid office jobs to help support her family while she tried to make her big break. |
| "I knew I could be seduced by success in another field, so I'd say, 'don't promote me, please,"' she later recalled. | "I knew I could be seduced by success in another field, so I'd say, 'don't promote me, please,"' she later recalled. |
| After trying her hand at stand-up comedy - later calling it "her biggest mistake" - she began to land a smattering of films and TV roles, including parts in Tootsie and Deadly Force. | After trying her hand at stand-up comedy - later calling it "her biggest mistake" - she began to land a smattering of films and TV roles, including parts in Tootsie and Deadly Force. |
| But it was The Golden Girls which made her a household name. | But it was The Golden Girls which made her a household name. |
| Indomitable | Indomitable |
| The sitcom, which focused on the lives of four older women living in a shared home in Miami, Florida, was developed by US TV network NBC after its programming chief Brandon Tartikoff decided that older viewers were being ignored. | The sitcom, which focused on the lives of four older women living in a shared home in Miami, Florida, was developed by US TV network NBC after its programming chief Brandon Tartikoff decided that older viewers were being ignored. |
| Getty was the last actress to be cast for the series - having failed two auditions because producers thought she did not look old enough to play an 80-year-old. | Getty was the last actress to be cast for the series - having failed two auditions because producers thought she did not look old enough to play an 80-year-old. |
| Actress Estelle Getty as Sophia Petrillo. Video courtesy NBC/Buena Vista Home Entertainment | |
| But the wisecracking Sophia Petrillo won her an Emmy in 1988, and proved so popular that the character was brought back for two spin-off shows - Empty Nest and The Golden Palace - in the 1990s. | But the wisecracking Sophia Petrillo won her an Emmy in 1988, and proved so popular that the character was brought back for two spin-off shows - Empty Nest and The Golden Palace - in the 1990s. |
| Audiences particularly loved the verbal zingers Getty would hurl at her co-stars. | Audiences particularly loved the verbal zingers Getty would hurl at her co-stars. |
| When Rue McClanahan's libidinous character Blanche once complained that her life was an open book, Sophia shot back: "Your life's an open blouse." | When Rue McClanahan's libidinous character Blanche once complained that her life was an open book, Sophia shot back: "Your life's an open blouse." |
| Nonetheless, Getty said she was only "a teensy-weensy bit" like her most famous creation. | Nonetheless, Getty said she was only "a teensy-weensy bit" like her most famous creation. |
| "I think people have me mixed up with my character," she said, while admitting: "I would like to be as sure and magnanimous and feisty and strong and indomitable as she is." | "I think people have me mixed up with my character," she said, while admitting: "I would like to be as sure and magnanimous and feisty and strong and indomitable as she is." |
| After The Golden Girls, Getty secured several memorable film roles - in particular her grotesque comic turn as Sylvester Stallone's mother in Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot - and launched a successful exercise video for older women. | After The Golden Girls, Getty secured several memorable film roles - in particular her grotesque comic turn as Sylvester Stallone's mother in Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot - and launched a successful exercise video for older women. |
| But she was unable to join a Golden Girls reunion in 2004 due to her failing health. | But she was unable to join a Golden Girls reunion in 2004 due to her failing health. |
| The star's husband passed away that same year. Getty died at her home three days short of her 85th birthday and is survived by her two sons, Carl and Barry. | The star's husband passed away that same year. Getty died at her home three days short of her 85th birthday and is survived by her two sons, Carl and Barry. |
| "She was loved throughout the world in six continents," said Carl in a statement, "and if they loved sitcoms in Antarctica she would have been loved on seven continents." | "She was loved throughout the world in six continents," said Carl in a statement, "and if they loved sitcoms in Antarctica she would have been loved on seven continents." |