had aired, fred silverman, who was in charge of cbs at the time, had called norman lear and said, get that woman her own show. and then there s maude. and then there s maude! that uncompromisin , enterprisin , anything but tranquilizin , right on maude! adrienne barbeau: it was not your all-american family. carol: you re getting senile in your old age. maude: thank you darling. i only hope i live long enough to become a burden to you. adrienne barbeau: maude is an independent strong woman who speaks her mind. she was married to her fourth husband, walter, played by bill macy. maude: i don t have time to fix you your breakfast! here, have some cold knackwurst. eric mccormick: i loved their combative relationship. i still to this day if somebody pisses me off i ll say, god ll get you for that walter. maude: god ll get you for that walter. patrick gomez: maude was really the first time that we saw such a fiercely independent woman who wasn t afraid to speak