If you are a fan of the classic sitcom The Golden Girls, you might have wondered about the actress who played the younger version of Dorothy Zbornak, the sarcastic and witty character portrayed by Bea Arthur. Her name is Lynnie Greene, and she appeared in four episodes of the show as Young Dorothy. But is she related to Bea Arthur in real life? The answer might surprise you.
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Who is Lynnie Greene?
Lynnie Greene, also known as Lyn Greene, is an actress, writer, director and producer in the television industry. She was born on May 21, 1954 in Newton, Massachusetts. She attended the Juilliard School and started her acting career in the 1970s.
According to Wikipedia, she co-starred with Bess Armstrong in the short-lived CBS comedy On Our Own in 1977. She also originated the role of Emma Goldman in the original off-Broadway production of Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins in 1990-91, as well as recreating the role of Comrade Charlotte in the 1987 reworking of Kander & Ebb’s Flora the Red Menace.
She later transitioned to writing and producing for television. She was a writer and an executive producer on the series Nip/Tuck, BOSS and the ABC series Scoundrels. She was also a co-executive producer on Showtime’s Masters of Sex. She most recently served as an executive producer on the 2016 Amazon mini-series The Interestings, based on Meg Wolitzer’s novel of the same name; and on the 2018 The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair, based on Joël Dicker’s novel.
How did she get the role of Young Dorothy?
According to Wikiwand, Lynnie Greene played a recurring role in The Golden Girls during flashbacks, as a younger version of Bea Arthur’s character, Dorothy Zbornak. She appeared in four episodes overall: “Family Affair” (1987), “The Way We Met” (1986), “Mother’s Day” (1988) and “Old Friends” (1989).
She was cast for the role because of her resemblance to Bea Arthur, as well as her ability to mimic her voice and mannerisms. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly in 2015, Greene said that she auditioned for the part by reading a scene from Maude, another sitcom that starred Bea Arthur.
She said that she was nervous to meet Bea Arthur on set, but that she was very kind and supportive of her. She also said that she enjoyed working with Estelle Getty, who played Dorothy’s mother Sophia Petrillo, and that they had a lot of fun together.
Despite their striking physical similarity and their convincing portrayal of mother and daughter on screen, Lynnie Greene and Bea Arthur are not related in real life. They are not even from the same ethnic background. Lynnie Greene is of Irish descent, while Bea Arthur was of Jewish descent.
According to Golden Girls Wiki, Bea Arthur was born Bernice Frankel on May 13, 1922 in New York City. She was the daughter of Jewish immigrants from Poland and Austria. She changed her name to Beatrice when she started her acting career.
Lynnie Greene is actually closer in age to Bea Arthur’s real-life children than to her. Bea Arthur had two sons: Matthew Saks (born in 1955) and Daniel Saks (born in 1959). They are both from her first marriage to Robert Alan Aurthur, a screenwriter and producer. She later married Gene Saks, a director and actor, in 1950 and divorced him in 1978.
What is their relationship now?
Sadly, Bea Arthur passed away on April 25, 2009 at the age of 86 from cancer. She left behind a legacy of comedy and activism, as well as a loyal fan base that still loves and remembers her.
Lynnie Greene is still active in the television industry as a writer and producer. She has not appeared on screen since 1994, when she had a guest role on The 5 Mrs. Buchanans.
In the same interview with Entertainment Weekly, Greene said that she had not seen or spoken to Bea Arthur since The Golden Girls ended in 1992. However, she said that she felt honored to have played her younger self and that she admired her greatly.
She said: “She was such an icon for women — strong and independent and smart and funny. I feel very lucky to have been part of that show.”
