Did Bea Arthur have plastic surgery?

Bettyboy72 said: "So I really only knew Bea from Golden Girls and her Broadway show as well as some later TV appearances.
I feel like I only remember her as being statuesque with an angular face with striking features.

I started watching Maude. To me Bea looks like a different person. Her face is round and to me she looks older on Maude than she did on The Golden Girls. Very frumpy. Did she alter her appearance with surgery? "

Ask her.

She may have had surgery...I dunno. But I always attributed the change in look to a change in her eye make up.

Her "Maude" eye makeup made her eyes look small and beady. Her after "Maude" make up was applied in such a way the "opened" up her eyes..

That's my take.

Bettyboy72 said: . Did she alter her appearance with surgery?"

A more interesting question, Betty, have you?

A Director said: "Bettyboy72 said: . Did she alter her appearance with surgery?"

A more interesting question, Betty, have you?"

Believe me, I’m not judging. I haven’t yet, but if I wanted to I would. I find no shame in it. I just started watching Maude and thought she looked very different. I know there are a ton of Bea fans on here who probably know her life well, so I asked . I’m loving Maude. It’s very relevant with today’s political climate. The show had to be very ahead of its time, groundbreaking and controversial

I've always assumed she did, and for some reason though it was public knowledge.

But perhaps that's because MUADE has a (double) episode where Vivian gets a facelift - one of the many taboos that show talked openly about.

And yes, plastic surgery was common then in Hollywood and it's as common now, though there are less intrusive procedures like botox and filler, as mentioned. Those latter two are so widespread, even for those in their 20s, it's barely worth discussing.

There was an episode of TGG where Dorothy reveal to the girls that she had her eyes done. Not that that proves Bea did in real life but an interesting coincidence.

BrodyFosse123 said: "soulmistin said: "Pretty much everybody has plastic surgery lol. Most likely a good deal of botox. No shame in it."

Botox wasn’t introduced and readily available until the early 2000s. THE GOLDEN GIRLS ended its run in 1992. Also, Botox doesn’t remove wrinkles, it numbs the facial muscles to avoid making facial wrinkles. Plastic surgery (aka face lift) and the use of fillers (those plump faces you see) remove wrinkles from faces. Many women refuse to have any surgery so they overdo the fillers.

"

Not to argue over semantics because you were absolutely right in the point you were making, but botox can definitely get rid of wrinkles and not just prevent them. I've been getting it since I was 18.

I'm surprised the Patti Murin brigade hasn't come for this thread yet!

soulmistin said: "BrodyFosse123 said: "soulmistin said: "Pretty much everybody has plastic surgery lol. Most likely a good deal of botox. No shame in it."

Botox wasn’t introduced and readily available until the early 2000s. THE GOLDEN GIRLS ended its run in 1992. Also, Botox doesn’t remove wrinkles, it numbs the facial muscles to avoid making facial wrinkles. Plastic surgery (aka face lift) and the use of fillers (those plump faces you see) remove wrinkles from faces. Many women refuse to have any surgery so they overdo the fillers.

"

Not to argue over semantics because you were absolutely right in the point you were making, but botox can definitely get rid of wrinkles and not just prevent them. I've been getting it since I was 18."



It’s not getting rid of wrinkles it’s preventing them from ever forming that’s why we start botox in our 20s or 30s while we’re young. There’s so much that can be done now without doing an invasive surgery, like chemical peels Laser resurfacing and Vampire facials etc. But the one’s who overdo the Botox because they refuse to age gracefully or start late in life and are trying to reverse what’s already started are the ones who lose all facial expression by freezing their face.


This thread is silly, but it is fascinating that Maude had a Facelift and Dorothy had an eye lift. It makes me assume that she probably did have both and was transparent and open about it which is why they wrote it into the shows? How many people deny their work or hope no one would notice when it’s clearly obvious they had stuff done.

i’ve loved the golden girls since the first broadcast. i watch the reruns every nite, and laugh out loud even though i know a lot of the dialogue. i’ve seen each episodes 50+ times. this is something i’ve noticed and wondered about. the first 4 seasons bea arthur did not look glamorous the way that blanche and rose did. but starting with season 5, she looked glammed up. was wondering if she had plastic surgery when they went on break? with each proceeding season she looked more and more glamorous with hair, makeup and outfits.

No, bu t she had vocal chord surgery because her voice was becoming falsetto.