Andrew Gold, 'Golden Girls' Songwriter, Dies at 59

If you've caught an episode or two or ten of the classic show Golden Girls over the years, chances are that catchy theme song has remained entrenched in your brain, "Thank you for being a friend." Well, sadly the man who wrote the warm and fuzzy lyrics, Andrew Gold, has passed away at 59.

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According to E! News, Andrew passed away in his sleep. Although he had renal cancer and was responding well to treatment, his family indicates he may have had a heart attack.

"Thank You for Being a Friend" wasn't this songwriter's only claim to fame. When he was a high school student, he approached Linda Ronstadt and become a permanent member of her band!  He ended up arranging three of her albums but that was just the beginning.

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Andrew recorded sessions with James Taylor, Carly Simon and Jackson Browne to name a few! As for his first hit? "Lonely Boy" reached number seven on the Billboard single charts but he's perhaps most known for writing the theme song to Golden Girls which came off his All This and Heaven Too album.