All Episodes Talk: Picture It. PTer. Today.

[AndySmith]

One of my favorite scenes from the show, and part of I think why the show was so successful. No big storyline or plot happening, just the Girls sitting around the kitchen table, pigging out on leftovers, and just talking and gabbing away, with lots of good, funny jokes thrown in. Yeah, the quality isn't the best, but what're you gonna do...

Edited April 11, 2017 by AndySmith

[mmecorday]

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They recasted Big Daddy

The part was recast because Murray Hamilton (Big Daddy v.1.0) died.

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Was the teacher that wanted to sleep with Blanche to pass a test the same guy who played Gary Tucker who cheated on Blanche with Holly?

Yes. And the dull doctor from the dreadful "Empty Nest" episode also played Isaac Newton.

Edited April 14, 2017 by mmecorday
irksome punctuation mistake

[AndySmith]

The Freda Claxton episode is probably one of my favorites.

 

 

 

[Miss Chevious]

I loved it when the funeral director asked if they were "planning ahead for Mother". And also when Dorothy said "we are bereaved on a budget." That episode was full of great one-liners.

[AndySmith]

Is it just me, or does it seem like Bea and Betty break character in this scene? Estelle too.

[Bastet]

I think it's like the great herring war -- sure, the actors may be laughing, too, but it's exactly how the characters would laugh at Blanche, and at their own remarks, so I don't count it as a character break, because I think it came out just how they intended to film it.

Edited April 19, 2017 by Bastet

[HoboClayton]

Oh I think Bea and Rue totally broke during the herring war. You can tell when Bea looks up at the camera and they decide to just roll with it. But, I do agree that they were supposed to laugh. I'm not really disagreeing with you, I just think they were laughing out of control, but, stuck to the scene. So funny. Betty, as always, is a pro. Andy, I think they broke a little in that scene as well. They just keep it together enough so that it still works.

[AndySmith]

One of the Youtube comments points of that you see Rose reacting, but not as Rose...her smile is more Betty White. I kind of get what they mean.

Edited April 20, 2017 by AndySmith

[mmecorday]

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The Freda Claxton episode is probably one of my favorites.

Definitely in my top 10. A friend of mine asked me what my favorite episode was and I think it has to be "Ladies of the Evening" (aka the girls are arrested for prostitution and miss meeting Burt Reynolds). Rose's Butter Queen story is wonderfully silly and she tells it so well. All the girls are particularly funny in this episode, especially Sophia ("Dorothy, jealousy is a very ugly thing. And so are you in anything backless!").  In light of their being mistaken for prostitutes, Blanche telling one of their "johns" "Everyone who's had [Dorothy] says she's great!" is hilarious.

[Aja]

49 minutes ago, mmecorday said:

Definitely in my top 10. A friend of mine asked me what my favorite episode was and I think it has to be "Ladies of the Evening" (aka the girls are arrested for prostitution and miss meeting Burt Reynolds). Rose's Butter Queen story is wonderfully silly and she tells it so well. All the girls are particularly funny in this episode, especially Sophia ("Dorothy, jealousy is a very ugly thing. And so are you in anything backless!").  In light of their being mistaken for prostitutes, Blanche telling one of their "johns" "Everyone who's had [Dorothy] says she's great!" is hilarious.

Burt Reynolds: Which one's the slut?

Dorothy, Blanche, Rose (in unison): I AM!!

[Madding crowd]

They recycled story lines too many times. Rose has a scare and starts to hang with a wild crowd, Sophia has a scare and hangs with a wild crowd. Sophia, Dorothy, Rose and Blanche have a feud with a sister. Dorothy has a one episode gambling problem and gets help, Rose has a one episode pill addiction and seeks help. Of course lots of great episodes too!

[camom]

And all of them ended up in the hospital at some point (Sophia more than once).

[ShadowSixx]

My top 10 episodes are in no particular order:

Goodbye Mr. Gordon - "I'll ask her tomorrow when I visit her at...the hooome."

Grab That Dough - So many funny lines, "Why don't you both shut up and answer this next question."

Questions & Answers - "Blanche you flunked."

A Little Romance - "Shrimp."

Ladies of the Evening - "Hey, there's nothing wrong with being career oriented."

It's a Miserable Life - The woman kicking the coffin at the funeral.

High Anxiety - Dorothy slamming the pizza on the table

Accurate Conception - "She always depended on the kindness of strangers."

Sister of the Bride - "It's a fix! She's dead. She doesn't need that on her mantle. She's on her mantle!"

That's for Me to Know - voting results "Dorothy....Dorothy....Dorothy...Dorothy." Bea's facial expressions were the best.

[Aja]

1 hour ago, ShadowSixx said:

 

Goodbye Mr. Gordon - "I'll ask her tomorrow when I visit her at...the hooome."

A Little Romance - "Shrimp."

 

Love these two! Which episode was it that Dorothy said "I'd go outside, but there doesn't seem to be any SHADY PINES for me to sit under." Hilarious whenever Dorothy threatened Sophia with "the home." :D

A Little Romance: Hello, I'm Dr. Jonathan Newman.

Dorothy: Are you absolutely sure?

[camom]

"Shady Pines, Ma!" was a running joke between my mom and me when she was alive.  Always cut any tension and made us laugh.  

[AndySmith]

"Shady Pines, Rose!"

"This really shouldn't work on me..."

[mishy]

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Which episode was it that Dorothy said "I'd go outside, but there doesn't seem to be any SHADY PINES for me to sit under." Hilarious whenever Dorothy threatened Sophia with "the home.

That's the episode where Sophia goes to be a nun. Which episode is it where Blanche is telling the story and Dorothy thinks she meant she went out with a black guy but Blanche meant he was a Yankee?

[BBHN]

The same episode where Rose was dating the little person. That was a great scene.

[mishy]

@BBHN So funny! Thank you. 

[Snow Apple]

The episode about the girls facing their fears never made sense to me. In Rose's family, it's tradition for the oldest niece to give the eulogy? Huh? Totally random. Not the oldest member of the family or a sibling, child, or best friend, but...........niece?

[BBHN]

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In Rose's family, it's tradition for the oldest niece to give the eulogy? Huh? Totally random.

Well...St. Olaf.

Hey, at least it's the oldest niece who has to give the eulogy, and not say, the family cow or their closest neighbor's chicken.

Edited May 14, 2017 by BBHN

[camom]

And what if there isn't a niece? Or the oldest niece is 4 years old?  Who does it then?  (Maybe that's when the closest neighbor's chicken comes in.)

Edited May 15, 2017 by camom

[Bastet]

Goodbye, Mr. Gordon is an interesting mix of things I hate and things I love in one episode.  The A-story is awful: Dorothy is downright embarrassing in her behavior with and about Mr. Gordon (not redeemed by her final moment), and her high school teacher being played by someone nearly ten years younger than her is just too ridiculous to get past.

But then there's the B-story about "Lesbian Lovers of Miami," which yields absolute hilarity.  I love when Blanche objects:

"Rose Nylund, every man I know is watching this show.  This live show.  This live show about lesbian lovers of Miami."
"Every man you know is watching?  Hey, we could beat The Price Is Right!"

And then, one of my favorite moments of the whole series, Sophia as one of the audience members with questions:

"This is directed to Dorothy's lover.  Do people treat you differently because you're a lesbian?"
"Well, most people don't know."
"Really?  I would've guessed right off.  Next question to Dorothy:  What kind of pain and embarrassment has this lifestyle caused your mother?"
"I really don't know, but I'll ask her tomorrow when I visit her at the home."
"No more questions."

[Miss Chevious]

The plot of Goodbye Mr. Gordon is so implausible.

If he was Dorothy's teacher in her junior year of high school it would be about 44 years  (let's put Dorothy at age 60) since they had any contact. In the meantime, Dorothy changed her name through marriage, probably moved numerous times in New York before settling in Miami.

Plus as a renter, she wouldn't have a phone listing in her name, it would be listed under Blanche Devereaux (in bold print as Blanche liked to remind everyone).

This is the era before everyone and their brother had cellphones, Google and FB so it's not like Mr. Gordon could whip up Dorothy's phone # or other contact information at a moment's notice. 

So it is highly unlikely the phone would ring in their kitchen and it would be Malcolm Gordon on one end and a giggly Dorothy on the other. 

The continuity people or the logic/plain old common sense people were really out to lunch on this one.

[BBHN]

My fanwank: Dorothy kept updating her contact information with her school's alumni association, and he tracked her down that way.

I mean, she graduated high school in NYC and enough of her classmates were able to have a reunion in Miami, so why not? ;)

[BBHN]

Hey guys...vote for The Great Herring War...again!

[Lion18]

On 3/8/2017 at 4:13 PM, dotdot said:

I've read that Rue had it in her contract that she got to keep any outfits Blanche wore. My daughter noticed that often they are each wearing a different color from each other (like Dorothy in Green, Blanche in Red, Rose in Yellow and Sophia in Blue)

I recently saw a segment where Rue left all her golden girl outfits to Betty White

[dotdot]

5 hours ago, Lion18 said:

I recently saw a segment where Rue left all her golden girl outfits to Betty White

I didn't know that. That's really cool!

[Cobalt Stargazer]

On 4/11/2017 at 0:53 PM, AndySmith said:

One of my favorite scenes from the show, and part of I think why the show was so successful. No big storyline or plot happening, just the Girls sitting around the kitchen table, pigging out on leftovers, and just talking and gabbing away, with lots of good, funny jokes thrown in. Yeah, the quality isn't the best, but what're you gonna do...

"I had never......seen a man before."

[mmecorday]

I remember back in the 80s, TV Guide had a story about "The Golden Girls" making people fat because people were following the girls' lead and binge-eating at night. Glad there weren't any episodes about the girls jumping off bridges!

[StaceyNotStacie]

I remember hearing that about the Golden Girls. 

They introduced me to cheesecake. Prior to the Golden Girls, I had never heard of cheesecake (I was elementary school aged at the time). 

[slf]

On 5/4/2017 at 0:17 PM, ShadowSixx said:

Accurate Conception - "She always depended on the kindness of strangers."

Blanche is in top form that episode. "I feel like I'm in the middle of some awful dream, yet I know it can't be a dream because there are no boy dancers." (Does anyone doubt that Blanche's dreams involve boy dancers?) I love her line delivery when Rose is telling the story about her friend getting pregnant while her husband was overseas and she says, "And what did you think Rose?" Her voice is indescribable, like she has endured some stupid-ass St. Olaf stories but this one is really taking it out of her.

But the very best moment is when she says, "I just cannot believe you are actually going to give money to someone like this sperm pusher!" Sperm pusher. Awesome.

(Not from that episode but I love when her daughter is pregnant and visiting because she wants to give birth nearby and Blanche says, "Here, so close to Cuba?" That cracks me up every time.)

[mmecorday]

I get so mad at Blanche for treating Jake the Hunky Caterer like crap. She's dating him, but can't take him to the charity function he's catering because, God forbid, he tuck his napkin into his shirt or push his food around with his thumb in front of polite company! And the guy she ends up going with is such a pretentious windbag. "The food is piccante, yet comforting." He's more Barbara Thorndyke's type.

[Maherjunkie]

I did admire that she was honest with him though.

[Bastet]

The episode when Dorothy's son-in-law cheats on her daughter:

When Rose says that for the first 18 years of their marriage, she and Charlie had sex every night after dinner and every morning, is that supposed to be something true in order to set up the "No wonder you never saw I Love Lucy" joke, or is she just weaving a tall tale to set Blanche up for the "In my experience, those who talk a lot about sex don't actually have it much" snark?

Because -- please.  Even setting aside the fact no one actually wants to have sex every 12 hours for 6570 days in a row, there are reasons even someone who did want to wouldn't.  We can start with the fact she gave birth to umpteen children and thus was out of commission for a time with each, add in the fact her husband went on business trips, and take it from there down the "Um, no" list.

So it should be the latter, but she doesn't behave as if she's just pulling Blanche's leg and got her good.

[LilWharveyGal]

Yeah, that story is a bit bizarre. And it doesn't quite jive with it being 5? years before she knew what made your eyes roll back in your head.

[mmecorday]

Bastet, I really dislike that episode. I don't like Kate v.2 and I don't believe that Rose wouldn't know what "I Love Lucy" was. I'm sure she caught a rerun while waiting to salute the flag at the end of the broadcast day. She wasn't that stupid. After all, she watched "LA Law."

[Bastet]

19 minutes ago, LilWharveyGal said:

And it doesn't quite jive with it being 5? years before she knew what made your eyes roll back in your head.

Heh, good point -- bad enough for it to take five years of sexual activity before her first orgasm (sadly, she wouldn't be the only woman in that club), but five years not just with the same man, but with the man with whom she was having sex twice every 24 hours?  That would be a serious lack of skill/effort/compatibility.

23 minutes ago, mmecorday said:

Bastet, I really dislike that episode. I don't like Kate v.2 and I don't believe that Rose wouldn't know what "I Love Lucy" was. I'm sure she caught a rerun while waiting to salute the flag at the end of the broadcast day. She wasn't that stupid. After all, she watched "LA Law."

"How close to the TV were you sitting when you watched La Law?"

Yeah, the whole thing is stupid; I'm just trying to figure out where they were going with it.  I'd like to think they meant Rose to be saying something so utterly ridiculous as an elaborate set-up to zing Blanche, but it just doesn't play that way to me -- it seems more like they meant Rose to be truthful in order to continue their "what's I Love Lucy?" joke.

And I don't like the recast of Kate (or her husband, Dennis), either.  It's not as if either original actor had gone on to be a regular on another series or hit upon a movie career that I'm aware of, so it's odd they couldn't/didn't get either one of them back. 

[Snow Apple]

20 hours ago, Bastet said:

Heh, good point -- bad enough for it to take five years of sexual activity before her first orgasm (sadly, she wouldn't be the only woman in that club), but five years not just with the same man, but with the man with whom she was having sex twice every 24 hours?  That would be a serious lack of skill/effort/compatibility.

Yikes! Five years before her eyes rolled to the back of her head, and with a man that a bull would be jealous of. 

[Cobalt Stargazer]

On 6/5/2017 at 11:15 PM, Bastet said:

"How close to the TV were you sitting when you watched La Law?"

Yeah, the whole thing is stupid; I'm just trying to figure out where they were going with it.  I'd like to think they meant Rose to be saying something so utterly ridiculous as an elaborate set-up to zing Blanche, but it just doesn't play that way to me -- it seems more like they meant Rose to be truthful in order to continue their "what's I Love Lucy?" joke.

Well, she did admit she never understood why Susan Dey didn't have a French accent.

Also, in the episode where Blanche asks Rose how many boyfriends a "naive farm girl" could have in one year, Rose comes right out and says fifty-six.  She does say that it's possible to have a boyfriend without going all the way (and Blanche's indignant "You cannot!" always makes me laugh because its just so Blanche) but fifty-six guys in one year makes it sound like Rose was some crazed speed dater as a teenager.

[BBHN]

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Yikes! Five years before her eyes rolled to the back of her head, and with a man that a bull would be jealous of. 

Apparently, size doesn't matter...

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Also, in the episode where Blanche asks Rose how many boyfriends a "naive farm girl" could have in one year, Rose comes right out and says fifty-six.  She does say that it's possible to have a boyfriend without going all the way (and Blanche's indignant "You cannot!" always makes me laugh because its just so Blanche) but fifty-six guys in one year makes it sound like Rose was some crazed speed dater as a teenager.

Hey at least the Continuity Fairy was awake that day and remembered Rose was supposed to a virgin until she married Charlie...

[BitterApple]

Ugh, I'm going to bitch again about the lousy editing. I saw a TV Land rerun epi where Rose's date dies in her bed, and they edited out all the parts where she reveals that her husband Charlie died in the same manner. So of course, none of the following jokes had any context and they lacked that comedic punch. They really do a hack job on this show. Thank God for Hulu where I can see the full episodes.

[Bastet]

Sister Rose and Sister Blanche collecting lingerie for needy sexy people, and "Oh, Jesus!" followed by Blanche's "Please protect us in this, our hour of need" save will never not be funny, but tonight I thought as I sometimes do -- that is a decidedly non-sexy bra she's holding.  It was harder then to find pretty bras in larger sizes (all the cute ones on the racks in A through C cups, and then those ugly-ass things in boxes on the back wall for D and up), but Blanche is averagely endowed.  They should have had her flinging around something better than plain beige.

"Where am I supposed to sleep?"
"On the floor like any other dog."

[Stan laughing]
"Stanley, if you're doing what I think you're doing, you're in big trouble."

"You leave me no choice, I'll have to pull out the big guns."
"You're wasting your time, Stanley, I'm familiar with the big gun."

I also love the way he just nods when Sophia crawls between them and tells him to think of her as the Berlin Wall -- try to climb over her, and he'll know what barbed wire between his legs feels like. 

[Snow Apple]

On 6/11/2017 at 11:18 PM, BitterApple said:

Ugh, I'm going to bitch again about the lousy editing. I saw a TV Land rerun epi where Rose's date dies in her bed, and they edited out all the parts where she reveals that her husband Charlie died in the same manner. So of course, none of the following jokes had any context and they lacked that comedic punch. They really do a hack job on this show. Thank God for Hulu where I can see the full episodes.

I'm just watching the episode with baby Emily. Rose ask what's a yoohoo(sp?) and they cut out Dorothy's sarcastic line "A chocolate soft drink!"

TVLand is merciless regarding jokes and punch lines. Grrrrrrrrrrrr

[mmecorday]

Oh, but TVLand has to heavily edit "The Golden Girls" so that it can constantly show commercials for "Younger," dontcha know?

One episode that gets chopped to death on TVLand is the one about the leaking roof/Jasper de Kimmel. I watched this one over the weekend and the girls' meeting with the artist was taken out, so a first time viewer would just have to take the girls' word for it that Jasper de Kimmel was a vile and repulsive man. They should take out the auction scene where it appears Dorothy and Blanche sampled some of Rose's idiot pills.

[LucyEth]

On 6/17/2017 at 6:28 PM, Snow Apple said:

I'm just watching the episode with baby Emily. Rose ask what's a yoohoo(sp?) and they cut out Dorothy's sarcastic line "A chocolate soft drink!"

TVLand is merciless regarding jokes and punch lines. Grrrrrrrrrrrr

About the baby Emily episode.  How old is Emily supposed to be anyway?  The dad returns the next day and says his wife had twins?  Emily certainly was not at least 9 months old.  They really played fast and loose with details about ages on the show.

[BBHN]

Here is a Youtube video featuring an interesting edit from the DVDs...

[Blakeston]

On 7/7/2017 at 9:57 AM, LucyEth said:

About the baby Emily episode.  How old is Emily supposed to be anyway?  The dad returns the next day and says his wife had twins?  Emily certainly was not at least 9 months old.  They really played fast and loose with details about ages on the show.

Clearly the triplets were the result of a sister-wife situation.

[Cherpumple]

On 7/10/2017 at 3:06 AM, BBHN said:

Here is a Youtube video featuring an interesting edit from the DVDs...

Wow, thanks for this! I always thought the "who's for popcorn?" line didn't make any sense and felt out of place, and now we know why.

[Snow Apple]

Whenever the audience laughs for no reason at all, I figure something was cut. I remember a lot of the cuts but not all and it drives me crazy not knowing what they are laughing about.