Beatrice Arthur: A towering comedic talent from another era

The point of this history is that by the time she turned up as Maude on "All in the Family" in 1971, she already had a middle-aged appearance and an impressive career in the theater. No wet-behind-the-ears actress could have barged into the Bunker household and bossed around Carroll O'Connor's formidable Archie. The comic heat between these heavyweights, who had worked together in the theater in the late '50s, was supercharged. I can still hear the note of revenge in her voice when Maude, Edith's cousin who has come to nurse the Bunkers back to health, explains to an aggravated, flu-ridden Archie the nature of the breakfast she has prepared for him: "Cream of Wheat with cheese. It's light, but it binds."

I confess to being something of an aficionado -- OK, a fanatic -- of 1970s sitcoms. The news of Arthur's death came after I had just received the newly released first season of "Rhoda" on DVD and had spent the wee hours of the morning in admiration, watching Valerie Harper dig into her character's insecure skin and Nancy Walker deploy her jokes with all the crispness of a vaudevillian.

What struck me about "Maude," when I watched the first season on DVD about two years ago, is how each episode, taped before a studio audience (a form of television Arthur was completely at home with), is like a mini-stage play. The series is still hilarious. Arthur knows that the only thing funnier than unbridled anger is unbridled exasperation, and you sense her thriving on the immediate response.

But Arthur is not just clowning around. She's boldly and robustly acting, exploring different aspects of her character in conflict with the world around her. Lear's trailblazing social conscience was an ideal fit for Arthur's long-standing desire to sink her teeth into something substantive.

While Maude fought for progressive causes, Arthur held out for quality work. Her indelible gifts found another great part in "The Golden Girls' " Dorothy, the retired teacher living with her mother and two friends.

Dorothy was softer than Maude, less battle-ready. But as brought to life by Arthur, she could rise to any challenge with a clobbering comeback or one of those intimidating stares that could wipe the smile off a statue.

Not every great television comedian emerged from the theater. But when I watch someone of Arthur's caliber, I am instantly reminded of how such a piquant talent was cultivated and can't help wondering whether we will ever see its like again.

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charles.mcnulty@latimes.com