Imagine for a moment meeting then befriending one of your favorite icons from your childhood and teenage years. Michael LaRue did not need to imagine it. He met Rue McClanahan in 2000 and the two were virtually inseparable for the last decade of her life. "She always said that she was nothing like Blanche," said LaRue. "What!? 'You're always chasing men,' I'd tell her. Just before she passed, she was actually courting husband number seven. 'Well, seven is a lucky number' she'd say," added LaRue.
McClanahan had a prodigious career that never seemed to lose steam. While she played hundreds of roles on stage, screen and television, gay men and the world at large recognize her as the iconic and first sultry television Southern belle, Blanche Elizabeth Devereaux from The Golden Girls. She was, for many gay men living in the mid-'80s and early '90s, the "Samantha" of their generation. McClanahan passed in June 2010, leaving behind a son and a mountain of possessions. "She really loved to shop. She had two homes [including] a Manhattan apartment with 13 closets stuffed so full you couldn't fit a paper clip in sideways. She saved everything! She even had her prom dress from 1949," said LaRue.
McClanahan knew that she wanted her fans to have her seemingly unending collection for themselves. "She always knew after she was gone that she wanted her fans to have it all. She wanted to make sure that as many people as possible could have some access to her and her career as possible," explained LaRue.
At first, after McClanahan passed, LaRue held two charity auctions of some of the more memorable and expensive pieces of McClanahan lore. The first auction was held in New York City and the second in Beverly Hills, Calif. "Still, there was so much more left," LaRue said. "So I developed the website www.EstateOfRue.com to make sure that everyone had access to her. I have to stress that this site is not about the money. Most of the proceeds of the sale go to the cost of continuing the on-line estate sale, the rest is split between her numerous charities and her son."
EstateOfRue.com offers for sale just about everything, since McClanahan was a pack rat and also the only Golden Girl who had her costumes written into contract as her property. "Some of the costumes were sold at auction. Some were donated to museums. But the rest is for sale to her fans on the website," said LaRue. "There are these great earrings that she said were from the Golden Girls but I couldn't find a photo of her wearing them from a single episode. It turned out that they were Bea [Arthur's] from the show and McClanahan 'filched' them from her because she liked them so much. So now you can buy those earrings with a picture of Rue [McClanahan] wearing them with Estelle [Getty]," said LaRue.
Gay male fans of McClanahan or the iconic show will remember one particular calendar with fondness. "The Men of Blanche's Boudoir" calendar was a homemade gift that Blanche gave to the girls during one of the show's Christmas episodes. Dorothy, Blanche and Sophia share a brief exchange that still represents some of television's most memorable writing. As the girls flip through the calendar, Dorothy says "Whoa!" when she sees the man for September. Blanche asks, "September?" and Sophia quips, "I'm surprised you could walk in October!" One may be the last remaining actual copy of that calendar is available for sale on the EstateOfRue.com .
Something else remarkable is a leather bound copy of the original pilot script for the Golden Girls. It's the only script featuring Coco, the gay houseman that Blanche employed.
LaRue is not only responsible for the management of McClanahan's estate, which is considerable, but also for beginning the Official Rue McClanahan Facebook Memorial Page. The page features photos, quotes, movie and television stills and, of course, memories, from the life of his friend.
"Some people said to me that it was 'great that you're doing this. ... She was so lucky to have you,' when all along I was the lucky one," said LaRue. "My own mom passed when I was 8. As it turns out, Rue was the same age as my mom. Rue baked for me, sewed for me, encouraged me. The hole that had been there was more than amply filled by this wonderful woman.
"Betty White has been so supportive of the page as well and has done some wonderful promotions for the EstateOfRue.com and the Facebook memorial page. It's funny: The last movie Rue saw was The Proposal. I actually found that ticket stub in one of her handbags. Anyway, she called Betty White to tell her what a great job she did in the show but asked 'Who WAS that MAN you were with [remarking about Ryan Reynolds]?' Even until the end, Rue was boy-crazy," laughed LaRue.
In 2007, McClanahan started to work on the production of the one-woman show based on her autobiography My First Five Husbands, and the Ones that Got Away. Shortly after her endeavor, McClanahan became ill and entrusted her care to LaRue. "You know, most of the employees who were helping her with the show ended up helping her with her medical care and recuperation," LaRue said. "She closed the production company and most of those folks helped her. It took a village to care for Rue."
Before and after the pre-production of her show, McClanahan had a camera crew following her. Her intention was to release the film as a documentary on her and the making of a Broadway show. "Even after she became ill, the crew still followed us everywhere. So I decided to make use of some of that footage," said LaRue. "I used that footage, with old photos and other interviews to do my own documentary on our relationship and on her life, on her career; it's called Rue LaRue: Thank You For Being a Friend. I loved that woman. She always thought it would be hilarious if we got married then she would be Rue LaRue. She was a blast."
Fans of Rue McClanahan can visit www.EstateOfRue.com to purchase items from the McClanahan estate, see dozens of photos and read stories about the legendary actress. Facebook users can also "Like" the Official Rue McClanahan Memorial Page for updates on sales and for more memories of McClanahan.
