'The Golden Girls': Rue McClanahan's Blanche Devereaux was TV's finest floozy

Samantha Jones ain't got nothin' on the Southern Belle that is Blanche Devereaux, no ma'am.

Long before "Sex and the City" came along, there was the original fearless female foursome -- better known as "The Golden Girls" -- who graced our television sets with the wittiest, most outrageous banter you'd ever heard women utter ... and what would that banter be without Blanche?

Blanche was "the sexy one," "the slutty one," the one with no shame, who'd bedded hundreds of men, broke a thousand hearts and showed no signs of slowing down in her later years.

Blanche refused to grow old and had no problem lying about her age if it meant she could continue living her life to the fullest.

She was a proud lady who had confidence oozing out of every tight pore. She could brag about herself with the best of 'em. 

She could deliver an unapologetic put down with the same skill as Dorothy (Bea Arthur) and get a solid laugh as easily as Rose (Betty White). 

Blanche Devereaux knew how to make an entrance and how to saunter right out of a room.    

Early this morning (June 3), Rue McClanahan, who played Blanche for seven fabulous years, passed on after suffering a massive stroke.

To say she will be missed is a true understatement. 

But like all television greats, she will live on through her work...