Karma
Heart Attack
In memory of Bea Arthur, I thought I'd create a thread about the show that catapulted her to television super stardom. Bea had already been a successfull ON AND OFF Broadway actress, but it was her guest spot on "All in the Family" that would change her career and her life forever!
Maude was a spin off of "All in the family", it starred Bea Arthur as "Maude Findlay", Edith's cousin. Maude was an outspoken, liberal feminist. The first of her kind on Television. The show ran from 1972 to 1978. Many peopld don't know that "Good Times" is a SPIN OFF itself from MAUDE. Florida, the mother on Good Times was Maude's original (and popular) housekeeper for 2 seasons on Maude.
Rue Mclanahan ("Blanche" from the Golden Girls) also co-starred on Maude as "Vivian" and together, she and Bea (Maude) were comedic duo of the '70s...the "Lucy and Ethel" of the '70s many felt.
Maude delt with many political/social issues of the time, including abortion. The two part episode called "Maude's Delimma" was one of the most ground breaking of any tv series in that the lead character (depicted at age 49) found out she was pregnant and opted to have an abortion...though not without lots of deliberation.
Watch the first episode:
Maude's Delimma part 1 , part 2 , part 3
and the conclusion:
Maude's delimma part II, next part , final part
now the idea of a show covering abortion NOW a days might not seem a big deal but at THAT TIME, New York was the ONLY state where abortion was legal. Roe vs. Wade hadnt concluded yet and people STILL didnt openly talk about it, much less admit to having done it (and many who DID seek back alley abortions died in the process) for a show to showcase this topic as it did...was truly bold and handled with care and humour as only Norman Lear could deliver.
on the LIGHTER side though was the sheer comedy of Bea Arthur and Rue Mclanahan on this show. Here's one of the best examples, an episode where Maude and Vivian are convinced that a greek house painter is coming to kill Maude after she rejected his advances, the hillarity ensues:
Maude's Desperate hours
part 2
Anyone else a fan of this show?
Maude was a spin off of "All in the family", it starred Bea Arthur as "Maude Findlay", Edith's cousin. Maude was an outspoken, liberal feminist. The first of her kind on Television. The show ran from 1972 to 1978. Many peopld don't know that "Good Times" is a SPIN OFF itself from MAUDE. Florida, the mother on Good Times was Maude's original (and popular) housekeeper for 2 seasons on Maude.
Rue Mclanahan ("Blanche" from the Golden Girls) also co-starred on Maude as "Vivian" and together, she and Bea (Maude) were comedic duo of the '70s...the "Lucy and Ethel" of the '70s many felt.
Maude delt with many political/social issues of the time, including abortion. The two part episode called "Maude's Delimma" was one of the most ground breaking of any tv series in that the lead character (depicted at age 49) found out she was pregnant and opted to have an abortion...though not without lots of deliberation.
Watch the first episode:
Maude's Delimma part 1 , part 2 , part 3
and the conclusion:
Maude's delimma part II, next part , final part
now the idea of a show covering abortion NOW a days might not seem a big deal but at THAT TIME, New York was the ONLY state where abortion was legal. Roe vs. Wade hadnt concluded yet and people STILL didnt openly talk about it, much less admit to having done it (and many who DID seek back alley abortions died in the process) for a show to showcase this topic as it did...was truly bold and handled with care and humour as only Norman Lear could deliver.
on the LIGHTER side though was the sheer comedy of Bea Arthur and Rue Mclanahan on this show. Here's one of the best examples, an episode where Maude and Vivian are convinced that a greek house painter is coming to kill Maude after she rejected his advances, the hillarity ensues:
Maude's Desperate hours
part 2
Anyone else a fan of this show?
