Former Costars Pay Tribute to Arthur

MTV.com reported that despite her on-screen persona of being loud and sarcastic, Bea Arthur was actually quite shy. Arthur's former Golden Girls costars, Rue McClanahan and Betty White, went on the Today show this morning to talk about their recently deceased friend.

McClanahan first met Arthur in 1972 when they costarred on the series, Maude. She said, "She was very private and rather shy, rather timid. Her emotions were just under her skin . . . she was a sensitive soul."

White, who saw Arthur's 2002 one-woman show, "Bea Arthur on Broadway: Just Between Friends," three times, said, "'Golden Girls' was such a happy time in our lives. But I will also remember her in her one-woman show. To see her get up on that stage and command it as a one-woman show was really mind-boggling."

According to the Seattle Post Intelligencer, the Hallmark Channel will be paying tribute to Arthur with Dorothy-centric episodes in a Golden Girls Memorial Day Marathon, Monday, May 25.