Reunions can offer an opportunity to reminisce with old friends about the good old days. But is reminiscing about the past necessary when you’re supposed to be looking toward the future?

Bea Arthur was certainly a woman who knew what she wanted out of life. Previously a stage actor, she became known nationwide during her time starring on popular sitcoms like Maude and The Golden Girls.

After so many on-screen successes, Arthur had decided that her time working in television had come to an end.

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“When you do a series, oh God, which I will not do again, it’s your life,” the actor said during an interview with The Olympian. “There’s no other life, you neglect the family, you don’t think you do, but you do.”

In another interview, this time with The Palm Beach Post, Arthur explained that she wasn’t necessarily dissatisfied with her time on television, but she had no plans to pursue starring in another series.

“I don’t really know what I want to do, but I do know that I don’t want to do another series,” Arthur said. “I really feel like I’ve spent most of my adult life in television. It’s been very good to me, and I’m proud of the work I’ve done.”

However, Arthur was never one to do things in halves. When she joined a cast, on stage or screen, she dedicated her entire life to the project. “What’s important to achieve?” asked Arthur. “Excellence. Otherwise, why bother?”

Because Arthur had no interest in messing with perfection, she maintained that she had no plans for a reunion for Maude or The Golden Girls. Though the cast of The Golden Girls did gather together for a 2003 special, Arthur wasn’t interested in continuing to develop Dorothy Zbornak's story.

“I absolutely refuse to do a reunion,” Arthur told The Olympian. “Why do a reunion? It’ll never top what we did before.”