The Golden Girls traded cheesecake for sports beefcake these 11 times

“The Golden Girls” TV show holds a very special place in the pantheon of gay entertainment.

During the show’s seven-season run in the 1980s and ’90s, it tackled LGBTQ issues and also gave, through the palatable voices of these older women, the perspective of gay men. Watching the series, it often seems this group of four women, constantly chasing love and romance, are simply stand-ins for gays. Many of the themes and storylines hold up in West Hollywood today.

In the later years of the series, at least one of the main writers, Marc Cherry, was in fact a gay man. He went on to create “Desperate Housewives,” among other shows.

“The Golden Girls” ran from 1985 to 1992, offering insights on gay, lesbian and even transgender inclusion at a key moment in LGBTQ history. At the time, our community was reeling from attacks about HIV, religion and other elements.

Also during that time, “The Golden Girls” tackled various sports stories. They visited the racetrack, bought a boxer, did away with an old friend during a tennis match and convinced a professional baseball player to wear women’s lingerie.

In addition to the regular fare of calling Danny Thomas a lesbian and supporting a soon-to-be-out trans election candidate, many of the sports moments were particularly memorable for the series.

Here are those golden moments when the girls traded cheesecake and stories from St. Olaf for beefcake and stories from sports.

The Competition, 1985

Rose’s competitive nature gets the best of her when she ditches Blanche to compete with one of the Nielsen twins in their upcoming bowling tournament. The tables get turned when Blanche and Dorothy end up on the same team, and Rose and Sophia aim to take the trophy together.

Bang The Drum Stanley, 1988

Stan gets three tickets to “today’s ballgame” and he can’t find anyone to go with him. Dorothy and Sophia agree to join the yutz at the ballpark. After a ball is hit high and deep, the baseball hits Sophia on the head, Stan swoops in with an insurance scheme and legal mishegoss ensues

Blind Date, 1989

Rose convinces Dorothy and Sophia to help her coach a football team of 10-year-olds. When Rose’s competitive streak comes out and she tries to use an ineligible player, Dorothy bails and Sophia doubles down, filling the underweight player with a hoagie. 

Fiddler On The Ropes, 1989

When Sophia is entrusted to deposit some of the girls’ savings in the bank, she instead invests the money in a prize fighter. Despite Sophia’s coaching, all the fighter really wants to do is play the violin and get into a school of the arts.

Rites Of Spring, 1989

The girls are taken back to an attempt to get in shape as they reminisce about a jazzercise class and some Xanadu-inspired outfits for Blanche and Dorothy. And Rose can’t help but tell the instructor they think she’s a lesbian.

Till Death Do We Volley, 1989

When Dorothy’s high school rival Trudy arrives in Miami, the two set out on a series of competitions. After Trudy wins an arm-wrestling match, Dorothy seems to literally send Trudy six feet under on the tennis court, only to be fooled by a hoax… and then fooling with a hoax.

You Gotta Have Hope, 1989

When the girls need a big-time MC for the variety show, Rose reveals that (at least she thinks) her father is Bob Hope. The girls dress up as men and head into the men’s locker room at a local golf club, where Hope is reportedly playing, all in an attempt to get Bob Hope to MC their big event.

Twice In A Lifetime, 1990

As Rose seems to fall back in love with Buzz, an unmemorable flame from St. Olaf, Blanche loses herself in the memory of a baseball pitcher who was “always up for extra innings.”

Feelings, 1990

When Dorothy gives the high school’s star quarterback a failing grade, she’s left choosing between a passing grade and sleeping with the fishes.

All Bets Are Off, 1990

When Rose wants to paint a horse, she pleads with Dorothy to take her to the racetrack. That brings back Dorothy’s addiction to gambling, putting her potential new job in jeopardy.

Where’s Charlie?, 1991

Blanche dates a baseball player and gives him a shot of confidence by wearing women’s lingerie. When the baseball player finds himself in women’s clothing, Blanche finally admits behind his back, “It was the dress.”

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