- Font:
- +
- -
Bea Arthur served up the jokes, making America laugh for decades on TV – but, as it turns out, the late actress also served her country in the Marine Corps during her youth.
-
Most popular
According to TheSmokingGun.com, the “Maude” and “The Golden Girls” star served for 30 months starting in 1943. She reportedly was a member of the Women’s Reserve and worked as a truck driver and typist.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: In Memoriam: The Stars We Lost In 2010
According to one document obtained by the website, she was stationed at Marine headquarters in Washington, D.C., as a typist and also worked at Marine Corps and Navy air stations in Virginia and North Carolina.
She reportedly advanced through the ranks to the title of staff sergeant, before an honorable discharge in September 1945, according to the site.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: In Memoriam: The Stars We Lost During Summer 2009
Bea’s Marine qualification card credits the actress with the skills of “piano & organ 13 years” and “contralto-orchestra.” It also lists her hobbies as hunting with a .22 caliber rifle and “bow and arrow.”
In 2001, Bea was asked about the Marine rumor in an interview with Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and she denied ever serving. Check out a clip of the interview, here.
Copyright 2012 by NBC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
“ ”