The show was inspired by a sketch

In 1945, 'Remington Steele' actress Doris Roberts (pictured) and 'Night Court' star Selma Diamond appeared in a promotional skit for NBC dressed as old ladies and when NBC senior vice president Warren Littlefield saw the sketch he immediately imagined a sitcom featuring four older women. He suggested the idea to his wife Susan Harris, who jumped at the chance to write the script because she felt it was an idea that had "never been addressed".