Who played the role of Blanche Devereaux in the American TV series "The Golden Girls"?

"The Golden Girls" is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Bea Arthur as Dorothy Zbornak as Rose Nylund, Betty White, Rue McClanahan as Blanche Devereaux, and Estelle Gett as Sophia Petrillo.

The plot revolves around four older single women (three widows and one divorcée) sharing a house in Miami. The owner of the house is a Blanche Devereaux, who was joined Rose Nylund and divorcée Dorothy Zbornak after they both responded to an ad on the bulletin board of a local grocery store a year before the start of the series. In the pilot episode, the three are joined by Dorothy's 80-year-old widowed mother, Sophia Petrillo, after the retirement home where she has been living has burned down.

Eddi-Rue McClanahan (February 21, 1934 – June 3, 2010) was an American actress and comedian. For her work on the TV series "The Golden Girls" she won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 1987.

After graduating from Ardmore High School, she was offered a dance scholarship but chose to study Drama at the University of Tulsa. She made her professional stage debut in the play "Inherit the Wind", in 1957, and made her Broadway debut, in 1969. She was then spotted by television executive Norman Lear who cast her in various television series, such as "Maude" and "Mama's Family", and "The Golden Girls".