…And When We Die & Float Away: The Unusual Ending to the Golden Girls Theme Song

Virtually everyone who was alive in the English-speaking world in the 1980s and 1990s will be familiar with the catchy theme song to The Golden Girls. For seven seasons and 180 episodes, we heard the little-known jingle singer Cythia Fee taking on Andrew Gold's original song.

What a lot of people don't know, though, is that the original song has an ending that's more than just a little creepy – particularly if you were to hear it at the beginning of a light-hearted comedy about little old ladies living their best little old lady lives (I hesitate a bit to call them old, but more on that in a bit). It won't be a surprise to most fans of 70s music, but for anyone else, it could be a little jarring.

Thank You For Being a Friend

For those few who aren't familiar with the theme song for The Golden Girls, I've embedded it below. It's a fun, upbeat tune that beautifully conveys both the time period and the general feel of the show.

A similar, but slightly more “90s” version of the song was used for the short-lived follow-up series, The Golden Palace, in which White, McClanahan, and Getty returned to their roles alongside Cheech Marin and Don Cheadle (Bea Arthur was just a guest star in that one).

 

At just 40 seconds long, it's obviously quite a bit shorter than the original song by Andrew Gold. That's neither surprising nor unusual – songs that weren't written specifically for television are often shortened so nobody has to sit through 4-5 minutes of opening credits.

What IS unusual, however, is what was cut.

Andrew Gold's Original “Thank You for Being a Friend”

Lucky for us, Rhino Records has shared the original version on YouTube. The song was written by singer-songwriter Andrew Gold, who also happens to be the man who gave us the delightful song “Spooky, Scary Skeletons“. The original version of “Thank You for Being a Friend” was a hit in the 70s, peaking at 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1978. Gold once described it as “just this little throwaway thing” he wrote in about an hour.

Though it sounds a bit different hearing a man sing it, you won't notice any serious differences until around the 1:17 mark. That's when we get to the lyrics not included in the theme song version for The Golden Girls.

It's not until 2:38 or so that it turns really strange, though. Just give it a listen and picture THAT in the opening for The Golden Girls. It sets an entirely different sort of mood, wouldn't you say?

 

The lyrics, in case you're not able to watch or hear the video for some reason:

If it's a car you lack
I'd surely buy you a Cadillac
Whatever you need any time of the day or night
I'm not ashamed to say
I hope it always will stay this way
My hat is off, won't you stand up and take a bow
And when we both get older
With walking canes and hair of gray
Have no fear even though it's hard to hear
I will stand here close and say
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you)
Let me tell you about a friend (I wanna thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you)
And when we die and float away
Into the night the Milky Way
You'll hear me call as we ascend
I'll say your name then once again
Thank you for being a
Thank you for being a friend (I want to thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I want to thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I want to thank you)
Thank you for being a friend
People, let me tell you about a friend (I wanna thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you)
Thank you for being a friend
Whoa, tell you about a friend (thank you right now, for being a friend)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna tell you right now, and tell you again)
Thank you for being a friend (I wanna thank you, thank you, for being a friend)
Thank you for being a friend
Both versions are great in their own right, it's just one of those odd things a lot of people don't know about.

While We're at It – The Golden Girls Were Actually Not That Old

The Golden Girls

The Golden Girls was a fabulous show for many reasons, including the fact that it featured a cast led by women over the age of 50. For all the talk of diversity in Hollywood, age diversity is SORELY overlooked for every race. Very, very few shows feature central characters in the later stages of life.

But were they really as old as we remember them being? Let's take a look at their ages when the show began:

  • Betty White – 63
  • Rue McClanahan – 51
  • Estelle Getty – 62
  • Bea Arthur – 63

We decided to play-cast a fictional Golden Girls production with some current actresses and celebriteis in that age range. These were some of the options we found, as of early 2021:

  • Annette Bening (62)
  • Angela Bassett (62)
  • Sharon Stone (62)
  • Jamie Lee Curtis (62)
  • Michelle Pfeiffer (62)
  • Fran Drescher (63)
  • Jennifer Lopez (51)
  • Gwen Stefani (51)
  • Renee Zellweger (51)
  • Heather Graham (51)

At 52, Jennifer Aniston would be a little older than Rue McClanahan was when the show started. Same for Julia Roberts (53).

In a world where most women are still working in their early 60s, it's a bit funny to think of a 51-year-0ld actress portraying a Florida retiree. She wouldn't even be old enough to get into those 55+ senior living communities.

None of that takes away from what a lovely series it was, of course.

Where Can I Watch The Golden Girls?

In case this post has left you wondering, “Where can I watch The Golden Girls?” no worries. You can stream it on Hulu or purchase seasons on Amazon.

One Final Bit of Golden Girls Strangeness Before We Go…

The Golden Girls Chia Pet Collection: Sophia

If you've got a Golden Girls-loving friend who's hard to buy for, look no further than The Golden Girls Chia Pet collection. There's one for each of the ladies, but none are quite so fun as the Sophia head (it's the glasses). You can get it HERE.

 

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The Little-Known Missing Lyrics from The Golden Girls theme song
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