Estelle Getty

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Emmy Awards
Estelle Getty
Estelle Getty
Birth name	Estelle Scher
Born	July 25, 1923 (age 83) New York City, United States
Notable roles	Sophia Petrillo on The Golden Girls

Outstanding Supporting Actress - Comedy Series, The Golden Girls, 1988

Estelle Getty (born Estelle Scher on July 25, 1923 in New York City) is an Emmy and Golden Globe Award winning actress (theatre and screen).

1 Biography
2 Emmy Awards
3 Golden Globe Awards
4 Selected filmography
5 External links
6 References

[edit] Biography

Her most important early role was playing Harvey Fierstein's mother on Broadway in the play Torch Song Trilogy; however, she is best known for her role as Sophia Petrillo on the popular 1980s sitcom, The Golden Girls. In it, she played the wise-cracking old Sicilian mother of Dorothy Zbornak, who was the show's main protagonist, played by Bea Arthur. Getty was actually two months younger than Bea Arthur and was heavily made-up to look significantly older.

She was married to Arthur Gettleman (from whose name she adopted her stage name) from 1946 until his death in 2004. Getty has two grown sons: Carl Gettleman, who lives in California, and Barry Gettleman who lives in Florida.^[1]

In 2000, she stopped making public appearances after revealing that she had Parkinson's Disease and osteoporosis. In 2002, it was revealed to the media that she is also suffering from Alzheimer's Disease. It was later discovered that she actually has Lewy Body Dementia, and both the Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diagnoses were incorrect. In 2004 there was a Golden Girls reunion hosted on the Lifetime television network but unfortunately Estelle did not appear it due to her failing health. She currently lives in Los Angeles, California.^[2]

[edit] Emmy Awards

1992 - Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series - The Golden Girls - (Nominated)
1991 - Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series - The Golden Girls - (Nominated)
1990 - Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series - The Golden Girls - (Nominated)
1989 - Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series - The Golden Girls - (Nominated)
1988 - Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series - The Golden Girls - (Won)
1987 - Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series - The Golden Girls - (Nominated)
1986 - Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series - The Golden Girls - (Nominated)

[edit] Golden Globe Awards

1991 - Actress In A Supporting Role - Series, Mini-Series Or Television Movie - The Golden Girls - (Nominated)
1986 - Actress In A Leading Role - Musical Or Comedy Series - The Golden Girls - (Won)
1985 - Actress In A Leading Role - Musical Or Comedy Series - The Golden Girls - (Nominated)