LOS ANGELES -- Estelle Getty, the diminutive actress who spent 40 years struggling for success before landing a role of a lifetime in 1985 as the sarcastic octogenarian Sophia on TV's "The

Golden Girls," has died. She was 84.

Ms. Getty, who suffered from dementia, died Tuesday at her Hollywood Boulevard home, said her son, Carl Gettleman of Santa Monica.

NBC's "The Golden Girls" featured four female retirees sharing a house.

The other stars were Bea Arthur, Betty White and Rue McClanahan. The last character to be cast was Sophia Petrillo, the feisty 80-something mother of Arthur's character.

When she auditioned, Ms. Getty was in her early 60s. She flunked her "Golden Girls" test twice because it was believed she didn't look old enough to play 80.

She came prepared for the third audition, however, wearing dowdy clothes and telling an NBC makeup artist, "To you this is just a job. To me it's my entire career down the toilet unless you make me look 80." The artist did, Ms. Getty got the job and won two Emmys.

"The Golden Girls," which ran from 1985 to 1992, was an immediate hit.

Born Estelle Scher to Polish immigrants in New York, she married New York businessman Arthur Gettleman (the source of her stage name) in 1947.

In addition to her son Carl, Ms. Getty is survived by son Barry Gettleman, of Miami; a brother, David Scher of London; and a sister, Rosilyn Howard of Las Vegas.