Sitcoms come and go. And then there's "Maude," the ground-breaking comedy series created by Norman Lear that was a spinoff of "All in the Family." If you've forgotten how hilarious this classic show was, I've compiled a trivia list with fun facts about “Maude” starring Bea Arthur and Adrienne Barbeau for you to test your knowledge. Enjoy!
“Maude” lasted for six seasons - it revolved around Maude Findlay (Bea Arthur), Edith Bunker's brash, liberal cousin, a very outspoken middle-class woman who wears her liberal politics on her sleeve and shares her home in suburban Tuckahoe, N.Y., with fourth husband Walter(Bill Macy); her divorced daughter, Carol (Adrienne Barbeau) and Carol's adolescent son, Phillip. Walter and Maude's best friends are next-door neighbors Dr. Arthur and Vivian Harmon (Conrad Bain, Rue McClanahan).
Norman Lear based the Maude character on his then-wife, Frances Lear.
The show was the first spin-off of “All in the Family”, on which Bea Arthur had made two appearances as Maude Findlay, Edith Bunker's favorite cousin. Like “All in the Family”, "Maude" was a sitcom with topical storylines created by producers Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin.
“Maude” was originally broadcast on the CBS network from September 12, 1972, until April 22, 1978.
The show's theme song, "And Then There's Maude", was written by Alan and Marilyn Bergman and Dave Grusin, and performed by Donny Hathaway.
“Maude” was Norman Lear's favorite show from his own production company.
When Bea Arthur made her stunning cameo on All in the Family, William S. Paley called up Norman Lear immediately that night and said "Get that girl her own show". When they spun off Maude and the ratings went through the roof the Hollywood community all reportedly said "Where has this girl been?"
Some episodes just end as the actors are still speaking. This is because it ran longer for the live studio audience than it did for TV audiences.
McClanahan confirmed in an interview with the Archive of American Television that she was approached by Norman Lear during the taping of the “All in the Family” episode "The Bunkers and the Swingers" (1972) to take on the role as a late replacement for Doris Roberts, the original choice for the part.
At the beginning of the series, Maude hires ‘Florida Evans’ (Esther Rolle), a no-nonsense black woman who often has the last laugh at Maude's expense.
Rolle's character was so popular that, in 1974, she became the star of her own series, “Good Times”. In the second-season episode titled "Florida's Goodbye", Florida's husband Henry (John Amos) gets a promotion at his job, and Florida quits to become a full-time housewife.
In early episodes, when the character of Vivian made infrequent appearances, Rue McClanahan was aged with a gray wig and heavy make-up so she would look closer to Beatrice Arthur's age (McClanahan was actually twelve years younger than Arthur.) When Vivian became a regular, McClanahan balked at wearing the unflattering make up, and her much-improved appearance was explained by creating an episode in which the character underwent a facelift.
Maude's daughter, Carol Traynor, played by Adrienne Barbeau – in the “All in the Family” pilot episode the character was played by Marcia Rodd – is also divorced and has one child, like Maude. Carol and her son, Phillip (played by Brian Morrison in seasons 1-5 and by Kraig Metzinger in the sixth), live with the Findlays.
After Florida's departure in 1974, Maude hires a new housekeeper, Mrs. Nell Naugatuck (Hermione Baddeley), an elderly, somewhat vulgar, British widow who drinks excessively and lies compulsively.
Producers made an agreement with Conrad Bain to star him in his own series after "Maude" ended. This resulted in Bain being cast as the adult lead in “Diff'rent Strokes”.
Maude often steamrolled over her hapless husband, Walter, shooting him down with her cutting catchphrase, "God'll get you for that, Walter."
According to Rue McClanahan's autobiography "My First Five Husbands and the Ones That Got Away" as well as various other people's interviews Bill Macy dropped his trousers at the 1974 Emmy Awards and shouted a raunchy joke out to the audience. Reportedly this was a prank he used to pull from time to time. The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences responded by telling Norman Lear and the producers of "Maude" that they would no longer be eligible for any Emmy awards for the duration of the run of the show. "Maude" did not get any Emmy awards after that, except Bea Arthur in 1977 for Outstanding Lead Actress in a comedy series.
Rue McLanahan has called Bea Arthur a very "eccentric woman" in interviews and said she didn't have much of a relationship with her, even though they worked together for thirteen years if you count both the combined seasons of “Maude” and “The Golden Girls”.
Mrs. Naugatuck was named after the Connecticut town of the same name. The name Naugatuck is actually of Native American, and not English origin.
The series drew heavy criticism when the character of ‘Maude’ had an abortion. However, this particular 2-part episode originally aired in November 1972, and did not generate much controversy until it was repeated after the landmark January 1973 decision "Roe. vs. Wade" concerning abortion rights.
Maude's abortion was never mentioned again after the infamous abortion episode.
The only Oscar winner associated with this production is John Wayne; who made a cameo appearance on the "Maude Meets the Duke" episode.
According to Golden Girls Forever, Rue McClanahan was very worried after getting hired for the role of Vivian in the first season of Maude. She "didn't think of herself specifically as a comedian", and became so worried about not getting laughs that she ended up seeing a psychiatrist.
Many viewers felt that the fifty-something 'Maude' character becoming pregnant was quite ridiculous, considering an average woman's biological system. However, over 20 years after the episode first aired, cast member Adrienne Barbeau herself successfully gave birth (to twins) at age 51 in 1997.
Maude became a congresswoman during a three-part finale at the end of its sixth season, and this was obviously intended to be explored the next season, but Bea Arthur was against the series being re-conceptualized (Maude and Walter moving to Washington D.C., adopting new co-stars, with the original supporting cast being written off) and decided to end the series. A variation on the theme was used for her co-star Bill Macy's next series, Hanging In.
After "Maude", Adrienne Barbeau would marry John Carpenter and star in a string of horror movies, including Carpenter's “The Fog” and “Escape From New York” and Wes Craven's “Swamp Thing” as well as George Romero's “Creepshow”.
Bea Arthur would later reunite with her Maude co-star Rue McClanahan seven years later in “The Golden Girls”.
After the death of Bill Macy on October 17, 2019, Adrienne Barbeau is the only surviving member of the cast.
Some facts are taken from IMDB & Wikipedia.
Don't miss the chance to listen to my podcast interview with actress Adrienne Barbeau. During our entertaining conversation, she shared some fun behind-the-scenes stories of playing Bea Arthur’s daughter Carol on “Maude" with me, as well as some fun facts about her incredible career! Click the links below to enjoy!
Episode 89 - HERE
Episode 90 - HERE
