I wonder how that would have looked lol

I know Bea was originallty supposed to be Granny, so was Irene originally to be Pearl? I think Irene was on the set for some reason, because Bea suggested she would make a better Granny, so I wonder if Irene was cast as Pearl originally

Casting was ongoing. Paul Henning knew Bea Benaderet and envisioned her for the role, but it seems Irene Ryan blew everyone away in the auditions, including Bea.

I wonder how that would have looked lol

I know Bea was originallty supposed to be Granny, so was Irene originally to be Pearl? I think Irene was on the set for some reason, because Bea suggested she would make a better Granny, so I wonder if Irene was cast as Pearl originally

There seems to be several variations on how Irene got the part of Granny, but all seem to agree on one thing Irene's audition, she hit the ball out of the park and over the passing EL train. Paul Henning was a huge fan of Bea's and wanted her to be part of the series so he created a new role especially for Bea which was not part of the original series treatment the network approved. If Paul had decided to go with Bea in the role of Granny there would have been no Pearl.

There seems to be several variations on how Irene got the part of Granny, but all seem to agree on one thing Irene's audition, she hit the ball out of the park and over the passing EL train. Paul Henning was a huge fan of Bea's and wanted her to be part of the series so he created a new role especially for Bea which was not part of the original series treatment the network approved. If Paul had decided to go with Bea in the role of Granny there would have been no Pearl.

I'm curious to see how Bea would have been as Granny.... Just like just once I'd love to see Eunice and Mama from the Carol Burnett show portrayed as it they were originally intended, Carol as Mama and Vicky as Eunice