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Betty White as Rose Nylund
"It's like we say in St. Olaf, Christmas without fruitcake is like St. Sigmund's Day without the headless boy."

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Phillip Petrillo is a major unseen character in The Golden Girls. He is the only son of Sal and Sophia Petrillo and the younger brother of Gloria Harker and Dorothy Zbornak. A crossdresser who later moved to New Jersey, Phil's antics were often the subject of Sophia's embarrassment. Phil died of a heart attack at fifty-five years old.

Phil never made an onscreen appearance, save for a body double in his casket.

Personality and Characteristics[]

Phil never physically appeared in the show, so his personality can only be put together through stories that other characters have said about him. He was Dorothy's opposite in knowledge, as he cared little for books while Dorothy was the overachiever.

Phil's most prominent trait is his affinity for crossdressing.

Biography[]

The Petrillos

Sophia and Sal bring Phil home from the hospital; "Clinton Avenue Memoirs" (1990)

Childhood[]

Phil was born in 1935 in Brooklyn, New York to Sal and Sophia Petrillo. Sophia went into labor while Sal was called away to work and ended up giving birth on the way to the hospital, even needing the cabby to perform a C-section.[1] After Phil was brought home from the hospital, his oldest sister Dorothy began to act out more. Sal let her sit on his knee as he reassured her that he and Sophia didn't love her any less.[1] Phil was dressed in Dorothy's baby hand-me-downs, which Sophia believed he would grow out of,[1] but that never happened.

Phil nursed until he was twelve, and Sophia only stopped it when Phil wanted to come home at lunchtime to breastfeed.[2] Phil allegedly played with matches as a child, which was why Dorothy was put in charge while their parents were out.[3]

During high school, he was still wearing dresses when Dorothy's old teacher came to visit. He apologized to Sophia, saying that they couldn't fix the problem with the dress code, but Phil did wear boys' clothes, and he even wore a suit one Halloween.[4]

Marriage[]

In 1964, Phil married to a woman named Angela, unknowingly in exchange for a dowry of two-million lire ($47 USD). Phil wore a wedding dress with a plunging neckline to their wedding. While Sophia was deeply embarrassed by the dress, Angela and her family were extremely supportive and thought that Phil looked beautiful.[1]

Phil and Angela allegedly lived in a trailer park in New Jersey.[5] He and Angela had ten children over the course of their marriage, one of which was named Harvey.[6]

Dorothy and Sophia would reference Phil like they did other unseen family members. Sophia would complain that he rarely called and that when he did call, he used a pay phone. Every Christmas, he would send Sophia a nativity scene made out of cheddar cheese.[2]

In the two-part episode "Golden Moments", Phil and Angela had an argument and she decided to leave him. Sophia decided that she needed to go live with Phil to help him pick up his pieces.[5] The ladies tried to convince Sophia to stay with them, but just as they're about to give up, Phil and Angela send word that they've reconciled.[7]

Death[]

In 1990, Phil had a heart attack while trying on evening gowns in a store and passed away. His sister Dorothy was asked to give the eulogy, which angered her because she never expected to be speaking at her baby brother's funeral. Phil was dressed in a black nightie for the funeral, and after the priest saw Phil's clothes, he offered to do the funeral for free.

Phil's widow, Angela spends a week with the girls and learns why Sophia never visited as much, which upset Phil. Sophia claims it was because she never got the dowry from Angela's father for $47. Angela gives her the money, but there's something more that's upsetting Sophia, so Rose uses her grief counseling experiences to get Sophia to talk about it. Sophia said she was ashamed of Phil's cross-dressing and asked Angela why she never stopped it. Angela told Sophia that it was something he did all his life. Rose makes a point that Phil was a decent father and husband, and a good provider, and Sophia shouldn't allow herself to be consumed by her shame of his differences, and there was nothing wrong with her loving him for who he was. Sophia admitted that she did love her son, but she always wondered what she said and did to make him the way that he was. Angela tells Sophia: "What he was, Sophia, was a good man." Sophia breaks down crying and says: "My baby is gone." and Angela hugs her.[4]

Relationships[]

Sophia Petrillo[]

I did love him. He was my son. My little boy. But every time I saw him, I always wondered what I did, what I said. When was the day that I did whatever I did to make him the way he was. ... My baby is gone!
— Sophia finally lets her feelings about Phil be known, "Ebbtide's Revenge" (1990)

Sophia's youngest child and her only son. When Phil was a baby, Sophia dressed him in hand-me-downs from Dorothy and Gloria as the Petrillos couldn't afford new clothes.[8] She allegedly nursed him well into his preteens, and only stopped when he wanted to come home from school at lunchtime.

When Phil became engaged, Sophia and Sal met with the woman's father, who promised them a check for two-million lire in exchange for Phil's hand in marriage. Sophia and Sal took the check, but the check bounced when they tried to cash it. Later at Phil's wedding, Sophia was shocked to see that Angela and her family not only allowed Phil to wear a wedding dress, but encouraged him to do so. This only deepened her shame of his crossdressing, but she would blame her hatred for Angela on the bounced check.[9] After Phil got married, Sophia rarely came to see him, only calling him on occasion and eventually using codenames to trick him into calling her on Mother's Day.[10] Phil, however, never reached out or wrote to her as he knew how she felt about his lifestyle, though he did send her a cheddar cheese nativity scene every Christmas.[11]

Early on in the series, Sophia would make jokes about Phil ("I love all my children...except Phil.").[11] She would go to visit Phil a handful of times in the series -- for his son Harvey's attempted graduation from pet grooming school,[6] for his daughter's wedding,[12] and she even considered moving in with Phil after Angela walked out after they had a fight.[5][7] However, while Sophia rarely visited, there were problems whenever she did, as she always picked fights with Angela. According to Angela, Phil was also upset that Sophia never visited him, and knew that she didn't because she was ashamed of him.

In "Ebbtide's Revenge", Sophia hardly showed any emotion at the news of Phil's death. While at the funeral, she lied to the priest and told him that Phil was a rocket scientist with an IQ of 160. She didn't cry at the funeral, and effortlessly made jabs at Angela for the wake and the service. A week later, Sophia revealed that the reason she never came to visit Phil was because Angela's father's dowry check bounced. However, through the counselling expertise of Rose, the truth gradually came out -- Sophia never visited because she was ashamed of Phil's crossdressing, and she resented Angela for not doing anything to stop it. Rose makes a point to establish that Phil was a decent father and husband, and a good provider -- and that there was nothing wrong with Angela loving Phil for who he was. Sophia admitted that she did love Phil, but she always wondered what she did to make him the way he was. As Angela tells her that Phil was a good man, Sophia breaks down crying and exclaims "My baby is gone!".[9]

Dorothy Zbornak[]

Dorothy's youngest sibling and only brother. Dorothy mentioned that she borrowed a lot of Phil's clothes when they were younger.

At Phil's funeral in "Ebbtide's Revenge", Dorothy breaks down as she give the eulogy. She reveals that she's angry about Phil's death, as speaking at the funeral of her youngest brother was something she never thought she would do.

Angela Petrillo[]

To be added.

Family[]

   
   
   
   
   
   
Mr. Petrillo †
   
   
Mrs. Petrillo †
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Don Angelo
Grisanti, Sr.
   
   
Eleanor
   
   
Uncle
Nunzio
   
   
Aunt
Teresa
   
   
Aunt
Renata
   
   
Uncle
Bruno
   
   
Uncle
Vito
   
   
Uncle
Gino †
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Salvadore
Petrillo
   
   
   
   
   
   
Sophia
Petrillo
   
   
Regina
Grisanti
   
   
Angela
Vecchio
   
   
Carmine
Vecchio
   
   
Angelo
Grisanti, Jr.
   
   
Philomena
Grisanti
   
   
Uncle
Mario
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Stanley
Zbornak
   
   
   
   
   
   
Dorothy
Zbornak
   
   
   
   
Gloria Harker
   
   
Mr. Harker
   
   
   
   
Phillip
Petrillo
   
   
Angela
Petrillo
   
   
Cousin
Apollonia
   
   
Cousin
Graziella
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Dennis
Griffiths
   
   
Kate
Griffiths
   
   
Michael
Zbornak
   
   
Lorraine
Wagner
   
   
Katherine
Harker
   
   
Jim
Harker
   
   
Harvey
Petrillo
   
   
Five sons
   
   
Four
daughters
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Robby Zbornak


Appearances[]

The Golden Girls (1985-1992)[]


Trivia[]

  • When the script for Phil's funeral was sent to the cast, Estelle Getty asked for jokes her character were to give at Phil's coffin cut. Getty felt that mothers would never do this, and the jokes were considered too homophobic in nature. The writers acceded to her request.
  • In “Mary Has a Little Lamb”, Sophia revealed that Phil has a pet poodle who likes to wear a tutu and hop around on it hind legs. This is most likely like a dance because Dorothy mention how Phil would look stupid doing it by himself.
  • According to Sophia, Mother’s Day is the only day Phil doesn’t call Sophia to ask for money.

Site Navigation[]

V - E - H
The Golden Girls characters
Main Cast Blanche DevereauxDorothy ZbornakRose NylundSophia Petrillo
Recurring Cast Miles WebberSalvadore PetrilloStanley Zbornak
Family members Alma LindstromAngelo Grisanti, Jr.Angela PetrilloAngela VecchioAurora DevereauxBridget NylundBrother MartinCharmaine HollingsworthCharles Nylund, Sr.Clayton HollingsworthCurtis HollingsworthDon Angelo Grisanti, Sr.Elizabeth HollingsworthGloria HarkerGunter LindstromHolly LindstromDavid BlackmoreJamie DevereauxJanet BlackmoreJim HarkerKate GriffithsLucas HollingsworthLucy WarrenMichael ZbornakPhillip PetrilloRebecca DevereauxTheodore HollingsworthVirginia Warren

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The Golden Girls, Season 5, Episode 16, "Clinton Avenue Memoirs". Gamble, Tracy and Vaczy, Richard (writers) & Drake, Jim (director) (February 3rd, 1990)
  2. 2.0 2.1 The Golden Girls, Season 1, Episode 4, "Transplant". Harris, Susan (writer) & Bogart, Paul (director) (October 5th, 1985)
  3. The Golden Girls, Season 1, Episode 12, "The Custody Battle". Grossman, Terry and Speer, Kathy (writers) & Drake, Jim (director) (December 7th, 1985)
  4. 4.0 4.1 The Golden Girls, Season 6, Episodes 12, "Ebbtide's Revenge". Sotkin, Marc (writer) & Diamond, Matthew (director) (December 15th, 1990)
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 The Golden Girls, Season 3, Episode 18, "Golden Moments, Part 1". Grossman, Terry and Speer, Kathy (writers) & Hughes, Terry (director) (February 13th, 1985)
  6. 6.0 6.1 The Golden Girls, Season 1, Episode 13, “A Little Romance”. Fanaro, Barry and Nathan, Mort (writers) & Hughes, Terry (director) (December 14th, 1885)
  7. 7.0 7.1 The Golden Girls, Season 3, Episode 19, "Golden Moments, Part 2". Grossman, Terry and Speer, Kathy (writers) & Hughes, Terry (director) (February 13th, 1985)
  8. The Golden Girls, Season 5, Episode 16, "Clinton Avenue Memoirs". Gamble, Tracy and Vaczy, Richard (writers) & Drake, Jim (director) (February 3rd, 1990)
  9. 9.0 9.1 The Golden Girls, Season 6, Episodes 12, "Ebbtide's Revenge". Sotkin, Marc (writer) & Diamond, Matthew (director) (December 15th, 1990)
  10. The Golden Girls, Season 3, Episode 25, "Mother's Day". Speer, Kathy and Grossman, Terry (writers) & Hughes, Terry (director) (May 7th, 1988)
  11. 11.0 11.1 The Golden Girls, Season 1, Episode 4, "Transplant". Harris, Susan (writer) & Bogart, Paul (director) (October 5th, 1985)
  12. The Golden Girls, Season 3, Episode 4, “The Housekeeper”. Hervey, Winifred (writer) & Hughes, Terry (director) (October 17th, 1987)
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