Rue McClanahan Dies At 76

Golden Girl and beloved gay icon Rue McClanahan died this morning at the age of 76.

"She passed away at 1 a.m. this morning," her manager, Barbara Lawrence, tells PEOPLE. She had a massive stroke." McClanahan, who played Blanche Deveraux on the still-popular '80s sitcom Golden Girls, had suffered a minor stroke earlier this year while recovering from bypass surgery. Lawrence added that at the time of her death Thursday, McClanahan “had her family with her. She went in peace.”

Last fall Rue was scheduled to appear at a tribute in her honor at San Francisco's Castro Theater, but was forced to cancel due to the above-mentioned heart surgery. I met Rue once only, at Bea Arthur's memorial in NYC, where she was charming, yet hilariously raunchy.