Bea Arthur in the unsuccessful 1974 film version opposite Lucille Ball. In 1981, she appeared in Woody Allen's "The Floating Light Bulb". She made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera in 1994 portraying the Duchess of Krakenthorp, a speaking role, in Gaetano Donizetti's "La fille du régiment". In 1971, Arthur was invited by Norman Lear to guest-star on his sitcom "All in the Family", as Maude Findlay, the cousin of Edith Bunker. An outspoken liberal feminist, Maude was the antithesis role to the conservative Republican character Archie Bunker, who described her as a "New Deal fanatic". Nearly 50, Arthur's tart turn on
Archie Bunker Archie, as it is learned when Fred visits Archie in the "Archie's Brother" episode, had not seen each other in the 29 years since Archie and Edith's wedding, although they apparently had communicated over the years via phone (two early episodes -- "Cousin Oscar" and "Lionel Steps Out"—depict phone conversations between Archie and Fred), their long estrangement fueled because of a petty argument, apparently out of a sibling rivalry of sorts going back to their childhood. Fred visits Archie for support, because he is about to go into the hospital for a major operation, and the two apparently seem to