7 Surprising ‘Golden Girls’ Guest Stars You Probably Forgot

Betty White, Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty made The Golden Girls a beloved sitcom and achieved superstardom in the series — a fact celebrated by The Golden Girls: 40 Years of Laughter and Friendship, a special edition of 20/20 airing on November 11, 2025, at 10pm EST. The special will feature rare behind-the-scenes footage of the show’s actresses, all of whom have passed away, as well as commentary from the show’s writers and producers, celebrity super fans like Kelly Ripa and Sheryl Lee Ralph, and former guest stars like Mario Lopez.

Speaking of guest stars — over the show’s seven seasons, there were also some truly surprising guest stars, several of whom appeared before they became really famous. Here are seven stars you may have forgotten showed up in Miami:

George Clooney

Before becoming one of Hollywood’s biggest stars, George Clooney appeared in the Season 2 episode, “To Catch a Neighbor,” playing Bobby Hopkins, an undercover cop who moves into the house while investigating a robbery case. Years later, Clooney said working with Bea Arthur made him laugh nonstop. He said, according to PEOPLE, “Bea Arthur was the funniest person in the world. They were all hysterically funny, but Bea Arthur really made me laugh.”

Alex Trebek

Alex Trebek made a memorable cameo as himself in a dream sequence where Dorothy competes on Jeopardy! during the show’s final season. Johnny Gilbert and Merv Griffin also appear in the dream sequence as themselves.

Quentin Tarantino

Before his directing career took off, Quentin Tarantino appeared in “Sophia’s Wedding: Part 1” during Season 4 as one of the Elvis impersonators at Sophia’s reception. He later revealed that the small paycheck he earned from the episode actually helped fund the pre-production of his directorial debut, Reservoir Dogs.

Mickey Rooney

In the Season 3 episode, “Larceny and Old Lace,” Mickey Rooney played Rocco, a fast-talking con artist and old friend of Sophia’s who insists he’s gone straight. The episode was named after the 1944 Broadway play Arsenic and Old Lace — a play about murder that doesn’t really have anything to do with the episode, but it is a fun pun.

Burt Reynolds

Burt Reynolds appeared as himself in Season 2 in an episode titled “Ladies of the Evening,” where the ladies win tickets to meet him, but get arrested before the big event. When he finally shows up at the end, his brief scene with the women became one of the show’s most famous celebrity cameos.

Although he only has one cameo in the show, he is mentioned several times throughout the series. The writers once said that the Reynolds bit was created to show that the women still have sexual attraction.

Dick Van Dyke

Dick Van Dyke guest-starred in Season 5’s “Love Under the Big Top,” playing Ken, a lawyer and paramour of Dorothy who decides to give up his job to become a clown.

Rita Moreno

Rita Moreno and Paul Dooley appeared in the season 2 episode “Empty Nests,” as their neighbors. The episode served as the backdoor pilot for what became the show Empty Nest. Moreno played Renee Corliss, a woman struggling to reconnect with her husband after their children move out. Ultimately, the show was not picked up in this form, but later aired with a different set of actors.

Now comment and tell us some other guest stars you remember from The Golden Girls!

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