Golden Girl Rue McClanahan Wanted to Host "Saturday Night Live"

[Brian Damage]

Rue McClanahan may be best known as television's original cougar, Blanche Deveraux on the groundbreaking 80s sitcom The Golden Girls, which centered on the lives of four older women sharing a house in Miami, but McClanahan's fifty-plus-year career as an actress has been peppered with great roles throughout. She's had her share of heath issues in recent years, but as she celebrates her 76th birthday today, February 21, she's on the road to recovery following recent heart surgery and a subsequent stroke, not to mention the subject of a fan-based effort to have her host SNL along with her former Golden Girls co-star Betty White.

McClanahan was born in Oklahoma, began tap dancing as a toddler, performed in school plays and studied theatre at the University of Tulsa. That early love of performing officially kicked off her now six-decade-spanning acting career in 1957 when she secured a spot studying with respected acting coach Uta Hagen. numerous productions in New York in the late 50s. Among them, the role of Hazel in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.

A decade later, in 1969, Rue co-starred alongside Dustin Hoffman in the musical Jimmy Shine on Broadway. She then starred in The Golden Fleece. Her role in The Golden Fleece garnered her a Best Actress Obie Award.

Television audiences got their first real look at McClanahan in 1971 when she was cast as Caroline Johnson, a nanny with murder on her mind in the popular daytime drama Another World. Like most actresses of the time, McClanahan's early television career consisted of the obligatory single-episode appearances. It was during one such guest spot, when she appeared in a 1972 episode of All In The Family as sexual swinger Ruth Rempley, that series creator Norman Lear took notice.

As fans know, it wasn't long before Rue was cast as Vivan Cavender Harmon in the controversial series Maude. This of course also marked the first time McClanahan would be teamed with future Golden Girl Bea Arthur. After Maude ended in 1978, Rue was cast by Lear once again, this time in the short lived Apple Pie, playing Ginger-Nell Hollyhock. Apple Pie, a depression-era comedy about a hairdresser, didn't enjoy the success of All In The Family or Maude and ran for only eight episodes.

During the late seventies and early eighties, Rue's career was once again relegated to a crop of guest roles, including appearances on Lou Grant, $weepstake$, Supertrain, Here's Boomer, Trapper John, Fantasy Island, Bob Newhart, six episodes on The Love Boat and others.

Her next big role came in 1984 when she was cast as the tightly wound spinster, Aunt Fran Crowley on NBC's Mama's Family during its first two seasons. This too is an important footnote in the Golden Girls legend, as this was the first time she would play opposite Betty White, who co-starred as snooty Ellen Harper Jackson.

No sooner than Aunt Fran's character died by choking on a toothpick at The Bigger Jigger on Mama's Family did Rue, Betty, Bea and Estelle Getty join forces for The Golden Girls. It's been widely publicized that Rue and Betty initially went in to read for Rose and Blanche respectively. After reading the pilot script, legend has it Betty asked if she could read for Rose, having already played sex kitten Sue Ann Nivens on Mary Tyler Moore for years. Side Note: I was fortunate enough to have met Rue and the rest of the Girls during the final season of Golden Girls, having visited the set a couple of times thanks to a friend who worked on the show.

During the course of The Golden Girls, Rue was nominated for four Emmy Awards, taking home one. The Golden years, also allowed Rue to continue appearing in other projects, most notably Agatha Christie's The Man in the Brown Suit, Liberace, The Dreamer of Oz and The Wickedest Witch.

When Bea Arthur decided to leave The Golden Girls after seven seasons, Rue, Betty and Estelle were convinced to star in a CBS spin-off called Golden Palace, in which the remaining Girls sold the house and decided to live in, and run a hotel. The show debuted in September of 1992, but was cancelled after season one.

That same year, Rue starred in a made-for-television production of the musical Nunsense. She would reprise her role as Mother Superior in two subsequent filmed sequels, as well as a return to the stage for the touring companies of the shows.

Rue continued to appear in television throughout the remainder of the 90s, guesting on everything from Murphy Brown to Boy Meets World, as well as in updated versions of Burke's Law, Love Boat and a late 90s Columbo TV movie. In 1997, she was diagnosed with and underwent treatment for breast cancer. NOt slowing down, she appeared in a special primetime episode of the popular kids show, Blue's Clues in which she played Steve's Grandmother. She starred alongside Gregory Harrison in the short-lived series Safe Harbor in 1999.

The 2000s didn't see any slow-down in Rue's career as she once again continued to guest in such TV fare as Wonderfalls, Hope & Faith, Whoopi and even did voice work on King of the Hill.

She reunited with White and Arthur in 2003 for a Golden Girls retrospective that aired on Lifetime. In 2005, Rue returned to the Broadway stage taking over the role of Madame Morrible in the Tony-winning musical Wicked.

In 2007, Rue published her autobiography hilariously titled My First Five Husbands: And The One's Who Got Away. She promoted the release of the book with interview segments on numerous talk shows, including The View and Larry King Live.

In 2008, Rue once again joined her Golden Girls co-stars Betty and Bea once again as they were honored at the annual TV Land Awards. That same year, she returned to series television as she literally breathed life into the character of Peggy Ingram in my friend Del Shores' prequel series to the cult favorite, Sordid Lives, which aired on MTV Networks' LOGO channel. I say she breathed life into the character because in the original 2000 film, actress Gloria LeRoy played Peggy, who was only seen in a coffin, since the character was already dead at the beginning of the movie.

In the years since the untimely demise of Sordid Lives: The Series, Rue starred in the Hallmark Channel original movie Generation Gap, appearing once again with Lou Grant himself, Ed Asner. She was last seen on television in 2009 episodes of Law & Order and Tyler Perry's Meet The Browns.

Rue also joined fellow Sordid Lives cast members on stage last year in a series of live performance events called The Sordid Comedy Affair Tour. During the tour, Rue was featured in stand-up style storytelling segments as were her Sordid co-stars, my friend Jason Dottley; Leslie Jordan, known for his work as Beverly Leslie on Will & Grace and series creator Shores.

Just last month, Rue suffered a stroke following bypass surgery, but that's not gonna stop her. Proving they're still the funniest broads in town, Betty White sent Rue a get well card which included the sarcastically brilliant note: "Dear Rue, I hope you hurry up and die so I can be the last Golden Girl left. NOT KIDDING!"

Both White and McClanahan are also the subjects of internet-based grass-roots efforts to have them host Saturday Night Live.

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[McGillicuddy]

I think it will be awesome if Betty White ends up hosting SNL. It would be beyond awesome if Rue is there with her!!! Hurry up and get well soon Rue!!!!!!!!1

[catlover79]

Rue should TOTALLY host SNL. That would be great!!!!