–Rue McClanahan as Blanche Devereaux, The Golden Girls.
Lately, Betty White has got all the attention. She hosted SNL last weekend, has popped up in various romcoms, and now has a facebook campaign to convince the Academy to pick her to host the Oscars next March. Life sure is swell for Betty. And while there is no doubt Ms. White is awesome (did you know she was one of the first female television producers?) we cannot forget Rue McClanahan, aka Blanche Devereaux. Time Magazine had the balls to add McClanahan to their “100 Least Influential People List,” simply because she’s not all over the place like White. I disagree, as would any reader of her 2007 autobiography.
McClanahan is a smart woman. She knows that she is now, and will always be identified by the Blanche Devereaux persona–bold, sassy, fabulous. Like Marie Osmond and Wendy Williams before her, you feel as if you’re talking to her one on one, over a cup of coff–er, a plate of cheesecake. However, you won’t find any scandal or trash talk, not even from behind the scenes of The Golden Girls. (I always seem to pick the friendliest celebrities, don’t I?) Although McClanahan does give a grading system to her men, she is never malicious. And while she has faced many obstacles in her life, she never dwells on the hardship or asks for pity. She’s just telling us about her life, and frankly, that’s just fantastic.
Have you read My First Five Husbands…And The Ones Who Got Away? Did you enjoy dipping your toes into the lake known as the woman who played Blanche? Let me know what you think in the comments!
Apologies for the delay in posting, especially to Christine 🙂
Next Week: Batter up with Alyssa Milano’s Safe at Home: Confessions of a Baseball Fanatic.
Celebrity Lit Club 
This book is officially added to my summer reading list!
I loved this book! I read it almost in 5 days time. It was hard to put down, Rue is a fantastic writer, humorous & I absolutely love this woman. She has been thru so much in recent years with her health; I’d just like to reach out & hug her & take care of her! I love that she loves to hug, that is a sign of a very warm, loving person. Rue doesn’t seem to have any airs about her; she just is who she is, doesn’t pretend to be anything else. She’s not snooty & full of herself from what I’ve observed. That is something admirable in celebrities when you can find some like that. AND I love the fact that like me, she is a huge animal lover. I wish I could write to Rue & actually get a letter back from her. To meet her would be a dream come true. I can’t believe Time mag would even say such a thing about her. I mean, Rue doesn’t have a mean bone in her body, why would they pick her out of thousands of has-been celebs they could have used that THINK they are influential? Rue may not be the most famous celeb out there, but to me, she is one of my favorites because of her personality, which really shone thru in her book. I really loved it & wish she’d write another one! Love you Rue!!