On The Golden Girls, camaraderie, joy, and the lasting bonds of friendship were prized above anything, but occasionally clout held sway too in a series that focused on four women enjoying their remaining decades on their own terms. The series was a breath of fresh air in comparison to others that depicted “the golden years” as being devoid of excitement, glamour, and sex appeal.
Dorothy, Blanche, Rose, and Sophia attended events in Miami society, wore fashionable clothing, and had vibrant personal lives. They commanded respect, had varying degrees of popularity, and showed that “women of a certain age” could be status symbols. Knowing that, they also weren’t fully retired yet, worried about their pensions, and interacted with other characters who had their own financial woes. Deducing the main characters’ social standing is both tricky and enlightening.
Michael Zbornak
Dorothy’s son Michael was a traveling musician, often moving from city to city in search of session bands to sit in with. Dorothy lamented his lack of stable employment, though she defended him to her friends. He wasn’t a prominent name in the music industry, and seemed to always find his way back to Dorothy’s couch when gigs didn’t pan out.
He got married to Lorraine in Season 3, a woman several years older than himself who sang in his band, but unfortunately by Season 5 they’d divorced. Michael never seemed to be able to get his act together enough to find contentment.
Rebecca Devereaux
Blanche’s daughter Rebecca, a formerly overweight beauty model after entering into an abusive relationship, seemed to disappoint her mother at every turn. Her and Blanche’s strained relationship seemed to stem from her perceived lack of Blanche’s forceful determination and headstrong nature, right up until she decided to have a baby through artificial insemination.
Despite Blanche’s dislike of her decision, she stuck to her convictions and had her baby the way she wanted. She seemed content to be far removed from the limelight, creating a life for herself free of judgment or the influence of other people’s opinions.
Salvadore Petrillo
Sophia’s late husband Salvadore Petrillo, an immigrant from Sicily to Brooklyn in the 1920s, was her partner for over forty years. They lived in a small apartment for most of their time together, where they raised their three children Gloria, Phil, and Dorothy (the latter most being his and Sophia’s favorite).
Not much was known about Sal’s career, except that he, like his wife, maintained steady employment during the Great Depression, and never let his family go hungry. It was never explicitly stated to what degree, but Salvadore might have had ties to the mafia.
Miles Webber
Rose’s boyfriend Miles Webber was a history professor and a respected member of his community, who often hosted dinner parties involving intellectual discussions that made Rose feel very out of place. On the other hand, Miles never felt quite at ease accompanying Rose to anything formal, or that he as a self-described spendthrift considered too pricey.
Miles’ life was all a fabrication, and Rose soon learned that her respectable boyfriend was actually Nicholas Carbone, a bookkeeper for a mobster, forced into the witness protection program. He later had to assume the alias Samuel Plankmaker after he was made by his old boss, and left Miami.
Sophia Petrillo
Dorothy’s mother Sophia Petrillo was a salty Sicilian immigrant who, together with her husband Salvadore, worked hard all her life to provide for her children. After her retirement home Shady Pines burned down, she lived with Dorothy, but continued to work part-time jobs to make her own way.
Proud and stubborn, Sophia worked in fast-food, and even became a spaghetti sauce and sandwich entrepreneur to prove to herself and others that she was still capable of supporting herself. She was purported to have mob connections, which seemed to give her threats a certain heft.
Stan Zbornak
Despite being Dorothy’s freeloading ex-husband, who cheated on her with a young flight attendant en route to Hawaii, Stan Zbornak became a somewhat affluent businessman. He went from trying to convince Dorothy to give him money, to inventing a baked potato opener that made him rich practically overnight called the “Zbornie.”
Stan may not have been a very talented or charming man but he was persistent, a trait that often separates those that eventually achieve any sort of success or notoriety. By the end of the series, he took his company Zbornco international, licensing the “Zbornie” to Japan. Despite being wealthy, Stan could never quite escape his legacy as a “yutz.”
Rose Nylund
Born in St. Olaf, Minnesota to a monk and his lover, Rose Nylund was given up for adoption after her father returned to the monastic life and her mother died in childbirth. She was eventually adopted by Norwegian parents and raised on a farm, where she gained a vast array of homespun anecdotes, remedies, and knowledge.
Rose might have come from humble beginnings, but she graduated valedictorian of her high school class (though later revealed she didn’t technically graduate), and eventually poured her heart into everything from becoming a grief counselor to assisting one of Miami’s premier consumer reporters Enrique Mas. She may have been considered a little naïve by her roommates, but she was respected in her community.
Dorothy Zbornak
Dorothy Zbornak was born in a Brooklyn to Sophia and Salvadore Petrillo, inheriting their work ethic and their fiery tempers. She married young and had two children, eventually leaving New York and moving to Miami with her husband Stan. His infidelity caused their marriage to implode, and she became committed to supporting herself.
Dorothy’s calling was always education, and she worked as both a high school substitute teacher specializing in American History and English, as well as a night-school instructor for adults interested in completing their high school equivalency, and even a tutor alongside Blanche at the art museum. Though she wasn’t always certain of her impact on her students, she was well-respected as an educator, and her friends always relied on her for her sage advice.
Blanche Devereaux
Born to a prominent Georgia family, Blanche Devereaux grew up in Atlanta’s high society, accustomed to attention from her father “Big Daddy” and envy from her peers. She relocated from her family’s plantation to Miami when she married her husband George and remained there after his death, working at an art museum.
Blanche was used to a certain social status, and enjoyed certain privileges of being born into affluence. She owned the house that Sophia, Rose, and Dorothy lived in, and was responsible for its upkeep. Of all of her roommates, she seemed the most financially stable, popular, and well-known within high and low social circles alike.
