How Old Were the Golden Girls Supposed to Be?
The Golden Girls' ages were never quite revealed on screen. However, with some detective work, audiences can figure them out.
The classic NBC comedy The Golden Girls broke boundaries with its cast of four older women, a representation that was previously lacking on television. The women’s ages were usually not explicitly stated, although some deductive work gives a pretty safe estimate of how old each Golden Girl was at the start of the series.
The basic facts to work with are that The Golden Girls began in 1985 and ended in 1992, both in real life and in-world. For simplicity’s sake, each season is considered a separate year, as the show ran for seven seasons.
How Old Was Rose Nylund On Golden Girls?
Rose’s age is the easiest to track down, thanks to Dorothy openly saying it in Season 1, Episode 22, “Job Hunting.” During a conversation where Rose discusses her difficulty finding a new job after losing her previous one at the grief counseling center, Dorothy reveals that Rose is 55. Going off the idea that Season 1 takes place within the same year, Rose would have been 55 at the start of The Golden Girls as well.
How Old Was Dorothy Zbornak On Golden Girls?
None of the other Golden Girls outright state their ages, so Dorothy is where the deductive work begins. Dorothy states she is a Leo in Season 4, Episode 10, “Stan Takes a Wife,” placing her birthday either in late July or early-to-late August. Then, in Season 3, Episode 5, “Nothing to Fear But Fear Itself,” Sophia tells Dorothy the story of the night Dorothy was conceived. Sophia states it happened in 1931, making it likely Dorothy was born sometime in 1932, judging by her sign. In the end, the math adds up to Dorothy being 53 at the start of the series.
How Old Was Sophia Petrillo On Golden Girls?
Sophia was never afraid to admit how old she was, often using it to her advantage over the other women in the house. Ironically, the actress who played Sophia, Estelle Getty, was a year younger than Bea Arthur, who played her daughter, Dorothy. The clever use of makeup and a wig aged Getty to match her character’s age. Season 2, Episode 25, “A Piece of Cake,” reveals Sophia celebrated her 50th birthday in 1956, putting her at 79 at The Golden Girls‘ beginning
How Old Was Blanche Devereaux On Golden Girls?
Saving the most difficult to track down for last, Blanche Devereaux’s age had been a mystery, and recurring joke, throughout most of The Golden Girls. Rose went so far as to search through official records to find out, only to learn it was “deleted by authority of the governor.” In Season 2, Episode 1, “End of the Curse,” Blanche believes she is pregnant, and states she’ll be 65 by the time the child graduates high school. Assuming her child would graduate at 17, that would make Blanche 48 in 1986 and 47 at the start of the series.
However, Season 3, Episode 25, “Mother’s Day,” confirms Blanche was 17 in 1949, when she and her mother reminisce about one of Blanche’s dates. Going by the math, that makes Blanche 53 at the start of the series. Considering how easily Blanche lied to her housemates about her age (and that Sophia immediately called her out and said she’d be 70 when the kid graduates), it’s safe to assume that 53 is her actual age going into The Golden Girls.
