Who was Estelle Scher?

Who was Estelle Scher?The world knew her by her stage name of Estelle Getty. Estelle Scher was born July 25, 1923 in New York City. She was the daughter of Sarah and Charles Scher, Jewish immigrants from Poland who worked in the glass business.[2] Getty got her start in the Yiddish theater and also as a comedienne in the Catskills borscht belt resorts, and among her most notable stage roles was as Harvey Fierstein's mother in Torch Song Trilogy during its original Broadway run. She is best known for her role as Sophia Petrillo on the popular 1980s sitcom The Golden Girls. Her character was the wise-cracking Sicilian mother of Dorothy Zbornak, played by Beatrice Arthur (the other main characters being played by Betty White and Rue McClanahan); in real life, Getty was in fact one year younger than Arthur.
Toward the end of her career, she wrote an autobiography, with Steve Delsohn, titled If I Knew Then, What I Know Now... So What? (Contemporary Books, 1988).[2]

Getty was married to Arthur Gettleman (from whose name she adapted into her stage name) from 1947 until his death in 2004. Getty had two sons: Carl Gettleman, who lives in California, and Barry Gettleman, who lives in Florida.[3]
In 1991, as later reported in Star magazine, Getty helped to nurse her 29-year-old nephew Steven Scher, who was near death and suffering from the final stages of AIDS.[citation needed] Because Scher's parents lived in England and his friends were no longer able to care for him in Greensboro, North Carolina, Getty had him flown to California and admitted to hospice care. He died in January 1992.
In 2000, Getty stopped making public appearances after revealing she had Parkinson's disease and osteoporosis. In 2002, media reports claimed she was also suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Doctors later discovered she actually had Lewy body dementia; both the Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diagnoses were incorrect.[3] In 2003, Lifetime television hosted a Golden Girls reunion, but Getty did not appear due to her failing health.

American actress Estelle Getty died at age 84 On July 22, 2008, at approximately 5:30 a.m. PDT, Getty died in her Hollywood Boulevard home in Los Angeles from natural causes (according to her manager), three days before her 85th birthday.[4][5][6]
Each of Getty's former Golden Girls co-stars did not attend Getty's funeral, but did reflect upon her death: Rue McClanahan told the Associated Press, "Don't feel sad about her passing. She will always be with us in her crowning achievement, Sophia." Bea Arthur said in a statement, "Our mother-daughter relationship was one of the greatest comic duos ever, and I will miss her." Betty White remarked, "The only comfort at this moment is that although Estelle has moved on, Sophia will always be with us."[6]
In honor of Getty, Lifetime TV – which airs The Golden Girls – aired ten episodes of the series featuring the best of Sophia on Friday, July 25. Fans voted for their favorite episode on Lifetime's website. The episode "Old Friends" received the most votes and was aired last during the marathon.

Getty had won 2 Emmy Awards, although she was nominated 10 times.

The handprints of Estelle Getty in front of The Great Movie Ride at Walt Disney World's Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park.
1986 – Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – The Golden Girls – (Nominated)

1987 – Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – The Golden Girls – (Nominated)
1988 – Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – The Golden Girls – (Won)
1989 – Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – The Golden Girls – (Nominated)
1990 – Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – The Golden Girls – (Nominated)
1991 – Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – The Golden Girls – (Nominated)
1992 – Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – The Golden Girls – (Nominated)

Golden Globe Awards
1985 – Actress in a Leading Role – Musical or Comedy Series – The Golden Girls – (Nominated)
1986 – Actress in a Leading Role – Musical or Comedy Series – The Golden Girls – (Won)
1991 – Actress in a Supporting Role – Series, Mini-Series or Television Movie – The Golden Girls – (Nominated)

Golden Raspberry Awards
1992 - Worst Supporting Actress - Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot (Won)

Filmography
Tootsie (1982)
Mask (1985)
Mannequin (1987)
Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot (1992)
Stuart Little (1999)

Television
Copacabana (1985)
The Golden Girls (173 episodes, 1985–1992)
Empty Nest (2 episodes, 1988–1991; regular, 1993-1995)
The Golden Palace (24 episodes, 1992–1993)

American actress Estelle Getty died
at age 84 from advance stages of dementia July 22, 2008, at approximately 5:30 a.m. PDT, Getty died in her Hollywood Boulevard home in Los Angeles from natural causes (according to her manager), three days before her 85th birthday.



Each of Getty's former Golden Girls co-stars did not attend Getty's funeral, but did reflect upon her death: Rue McClanahan told the Associated Press, "Don't feel sad about her passing. ."She will always be with us in her crowning achievement, Sophia." Bea Arthur said in a statement, "Our mother-daughter relationship was one of the greatest comic duos ever, and I will miss her." Betty White remarked, "The only comfort at this moment is that although Estelle has moved on, Sophia will always be with us.








She was nominated eight times for the emmy ward and she won it twice.
















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