When The Golden Girls came to an end after 7 seasons, the production team looked for a way to keep the series going. They came up with the concept of The Golden Palace, featuring the characters running a Miami hotel.
The series was picked up by CBS, and debuted in 1992. Betty White, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty would continue portraying their Golden Girls characters on the new show. Bea Arthur would not star in the show, but would make a couple guest appearances later in the first season. Don Cheadle, Cheech Marin, and Billy Sullivan were also added to the cast. The new show could not replicate the success of the original series, and was canceled by CBS after just one season.
The Golden Palace Hotel
The show was set in an art-deco style hotel on Miami’s South Beach. Much like the Golden Girls, the interiors were all filmed on a soundstage at Ren-Mar Studios in Hollywood. However a real Miami hotel was used for establishing shots. The Carlyle was picked to portray the show’s location, and appeared in the opening credits. If the hotel looks familiar, you may recognize it from the 1996 comedy The Birdcage. It is no longer a hotel, but no contains residential condos.
The Golden Girls House
The first episode of The Golden Palace starts off by showing the characters selling their home that was featured in The Golden Girls. The old set is featured as the movers take boxes out as the girls move to the hotel. The house used for establishing shots throughout the original series was also briefly seen as the first establishing shot of The Golden Palace.
While The Golden Palace has never been released on DVD, it finally made it’s streaming debut on Hulu in January 2022. A number of episodes can also be found on YouTube, although often poor quality.
