Arrivederci, Pussycat

The Golden Girls actress Estelle Getty, who played Bea Arthur's elderly and wise-cracking Sicilian mother, Sophia, died Tuesday. She had suffered from Lewy Body dimentia, with symptoms of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's Disease, for several years. She was just shy of her 85th birthday.

Getty acted on an off for decades, on broadway (she was starring in Torch Song Trilogy when she landed Golden Girls), in movies (bit parts in movies like Tootsie and roles in Mask and Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot!). But it was her role on television as Sophia Petrillo that made her an international name after years of toiling in the acting profession.

When Golden Girls, which also starred Betty White and Rue McClanahan, premiered in 1985, it was an immediate hit, and landed 15 Emmy nominations in its first season. Getty herself won the Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Emmy Award in 1988. She was nominated seven times.

Although Getty's Sophia was often depicted as somewhat senile (under the pretenses that she'd had a stroke), she often was the funniest of the senior women and got the best one-liners. She was 61 when she got the part, even though Sophia was in her 80s, and was actually over one year younger than her TV daughter, Arthur. In a statement, Arthur said, "Our mother-daughter relationship was one of the greatest comic duos ever, and I will miss her."

The New York-born Getty, who is survived by two sons, retired from acting in 2000 after her illness prohibited her from working. By then, she had appeared as Sophia in no less than five different series: as a regular on Golden Girls and spin-offs The Golden Palace and Empty Nest, and guest shots on Blossom and Nurses.

Perhaps what made the character so memorable was Getty's quick wit and skill at zingers. A sample of Sophia's observations, delivered perfectly by Getty:



On her surprisingly sensitive hearing: "I could hear a canary break wind in Lauderdale."

On Blanche's evidently homosexual brother: "The man's as gay as a picnic basket."

On Dorothy's quip that she was 'incompetent': "No I'm not. Once, when I was laughing too hard, I had a little accident."

On being fed cabbage: "Great. In ten minutes, I'll be sky-writing."

Thumbs Down?

The show that was once known as Siskel and Ebert is no more.

Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper, the two official hosts of At the Movies with Ebert and Roeper, announced in separate statements this week that they were cutting ties with the program.

Roeper blabbed first by issuing a statement revealing he failed to negotiate a contract renewal after lengthy negotiations with Disney. Ebert followed suit the next day, announcing he'd no longer continue with the show as it was heading in a "new direction." Ebert hasn't been on the air with the program since 2006, after multiple surgeries for thyroid cancer left him unable to speak.

The pair hinted that we may not have seen the last of them in a movie-review television show format. Roeper said a new show of some form was in the pipeline, but revealed nothing more.

More Emmy Talk

First off, I have to say Neil Patrick Harris and Kristen Chenoweth are perhaps the most entertaining people ever to announce award nominations. From Chenoweth's comments on nominees she'd dated to the pair's banter on honored reality shows ("We should be on that show!" they said after The Amazing Race was announced), they were unpredictable without being annoying. Bring them back for the Oscars. Other notes:

Lost is finally back in the best drama line-up. It's well-deserved. Now why did they only nominate Michael Emerson for Supporting Actor? How 'bout Henry Ian Cusick? And why are the women always ignored?

I am always mystified by the academy's infatuation with Boston Legal and Two and a Half Men. Not to sound discriminatory, but I chalk that up to the average age of the academy members.

Snubbed? I'd say, aside from Lost actors, the list should also include Jenna Fischer and John Krasinski of The Office (not to mention Amy Ryan for guest actress), Jack McBrayer from 30 Rock, The Wire, Mary McDonnell of Battlestar Galactica and Friday Night Lights.

Extras Extra! I was pleased the series finale did so well as a TV movie. I think I'm most happy for Ashley Jensen, who up until now has always been ignored by the academy. Her Maggie is one funny, awkward creature.

So, who should host this year? If Jon Stewart is tired from his Oscar chores, I vote for Stephen Colbert. I'd pay to see him pick on Shatner. Anyone else?

An Emmy is a Horrible Thing to Lose

The Emmy nominations were announced in Hollywood this morning by Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) and Kristen Chenoweth (Pushing Daisies). Both were pleasantly shocked by getting nominated themselves for supporting comedy performances.

The big news is that basic cable was as dominant as ever, with two series (Damages and Mad Men) nominated as Best Drama Series, along with Showtime's Dexter.

HBO, with 85 bids in all (23 of which were for the miniseries John Adams) can rest easy as the still-most-nominated network. ABC was close behind with 76. And in shocking news to no one, the CW strutted away with 0. More highlights:

Multiple Nominees Tina Fey pulled a magic trick and got herself nominated four times - for acting in, producing and writing 30 Rock and for her guest-hosting gig on SNL. Ricky Gervais did well with Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale, for which he was nominated for acting, writing and directing (the latter two nominations shared with Stephen Merchant, of course). Bob Balaban scored a nod for helming Bernard and Doris and for acting in Recount. Speaking of which, Tom Wilkinson was nominated for that film as well as for his portrayal of Ben Franklin in John Adams.

30 Rock's Guest Actor Explosion Of the 11 people nominated for best guest actor and actress in a comedy series, seven of them came from the 30 Rock party: Rip Torn, Will Arnett, Tim Conway, Steve Buscemi, Carrie Fischer, Edie Falco and Elaine Stritch. That boosted the show's tally to 17, a record for a comedy series. Ever.

Freshmen Rule Emmy voters are usually slow to warm up to new series, but this year is an exception. In addition to the 16 nominations bestowed on Mad Men and the seven for Damages, these series also got multiple nods: Samantha Who?, Pushing Daisies and In Treatment.