24 Rare, Iconic Photos of Bea Arthur Through the Years

Born Bernice Frankel, actress Bea Arthur — famed for her work in The Golden Girls — enlisted as one of the first members of the United States Marine Corps Women’s Reserve during World War II. It was only once she eventually started performing in theater that she changed her name. A Broadway success, winning a Tony Award for her role in Mame, she made the move to television in the 1970s, when she starred in All in the Family as Maude Finlay, a role that she reprised in the successful spinoff sitcom Maude, for which she won an Emmy in 1977.

Still, despite all those credits, she’s best known for playing Dorothy Zbornack in The Golden Girls, also winning an Emmy for that role in 1988. Arthur continued to rack up TV and stage credits (and more Emmy nods) right up until her death in 2009. Here, take a look back at Arthur's legendary career through the years.