The Golden Girls stars Betty White and Bea Arthur's feud brought to light by writer Barry Fanaro

Back from the 90’s, The Golden Girls, a beloved American sitcom starring Betty White and Beatrice Arthur, is again in the talks as the makers have recently spilt some tea from behind the sets. The Golden Girls: 40 Years of Laughter and Friendship — Special Edition of 20/20 is an ABC News special that aired on Nov. 11 at 10 p.m. ET to celebrate 40 years of The Golden Girls. It will stream on Wednesday on Disney+ and Hulu.

According to reports by People, the makers have opened up about the long-time rumors of a feud between Betty White and Bea Arthur during the special edition. What viewers see them on screen, the dynamics between Betty White and Bea Arthur in reality were far different. Marsha Posner Williams even said that she “used to get calls at home from Bea complaining about Betty,” with writer Barry Fanaro mentioning that they have “heard yelling backstage,” and “they were having a fight.”  

In the show, Betty White played Rose Nylund, a sweet but naïve woman from St. Olaf, Minnesota, known for her funny and absurd stories, whereas Bea Arthur played Dorothy Zbornak. The Golden Girls stood out because it showed that women over 50 could lead interesting, humorous, and emotionally rich lives, something “rare” in TV back then.

What is the Betty White and Bea Arthur fued from The Golden Girls all about

The writer Barry Fanaro opened up about how things got heated up during the filming of the Christmas episode, "'Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas." He said, 

"It kind of boiled up. We heard yelling backstage. And we all sort of crept out. They were having a fight. It was the only time ever. The next day you could feel the tension in the air a little.”

To lighten the mood,  the stagehands had put funny, naked photos of themselves dressed up as firemen and horse riders into the fake calendar used in the episode.

Fanaro added, 

"They had taken naked pictures of themselves, riding horses, in saddles, as firemen. So they had planted them in the calendar, and that immediately broke any tension. It was all over. They were hugging each other."

Even when Barry Fanaro and Mort Nathan joined in a Disney D23 special interview (held to celebrate 35 years of The Golden Girls), he spoke about the rumor that Bea would often get irritated when Betty White would talk to the audience during filming (via Showbiz CheatSheet). 

He said, 

“It was the only kind of friction at all on the show and that was between Bea and Betty,” Fanaro said. “Betty was a TV person — she was a really good actress, I think an underrated actress, she was amazing. But she also had done gameshows and other sitcoms. She would do anything, she liked to perform. And she would perform to the audience."

He continued, 

"Bea was an animal of Broadway — that was, you came out, you stayed in character, you said your lines, you walked off, you got a drink, and you went home. But Betty would always prime it. If she dropped a line, she’d get up and she’d walk to the audience, and make them laugh. And it sort of irritated Bea. Not to the point where they would fight about it, but they were two totally different people and Bea just thought it wasn’t Broadway to go and break character. The audience, of course, loved it because she is really funny off the cuff.”

Marsha Posner Williams remembered that "Whatever was going on between them, the minute that red light went on, there were no more professional people than those actresses."

Even though Bea Arthur and Betty White had their differences, the team saw that once filming started, they both gave their best performances. Everyone agreed they were incredibly professional and talented.

According to the show’s writers and producers, the tension between them primarily stemmed from their different personalities and work styles. This conflict between Betty White and Bea Arthur was also once discussed by Matthew Saks (Arthur’s son), who said to Closer Weekly,

“It would make my mom unhappy that in-between takes Betty would go and talk to the audience. It wasn’t jealousy. It was a focus thing.” 

From the team’s point of view, both actresses were brilliant, but just different. Bea valued structure and focus, while Betty loved connecting with people and having fun on set. Despite that, when the cameras rolled, they were complete professionals who made The Golden Girls unforgettable.