Bea Arthur dies

Bea Arthur has been a fixture in my life for so long that it seems like she's one of the "old ladies" who used to hang around my Granny Jean's kitchen table. From All in the Family to Maude to Golden Girls to a little theater in San Francisco, she's always been there.

She died today (obit here).

It was in that little SF theater where she told the hilarious story of being on Broadway in a production of The Diary of Anne Frank. Anne was played by none other than a young Pia Zadora who was, Bea said, so bad that when the Nazis came knocking at the door, the entire audience rose in unison and yelled, "She's in the attic!"

:-)