Bea Arthur's 'Maude' Had A Gay Best Friend 46 Years Ago HuffPostBy the time Bea Arthur joined the cast of “The Golden Girls” in 1985, she’d already endeared herself to TV audiences as the protagonist of “Maude,” which had ended its CBS run nearly a decade prior. Like “Golden Girls,” “Maude” broke fresh ground in portraying hot-button issues such as racism, addiction and ― most famously ― abortion.