Golden Girls star Rue McClanahan is recovering in a hospital after having heart bypass surgery this week, her manager said.

McClanahan on Monday went to her doctor, who noticed her heart was irregular and asked her check into a New York hospital, said the actress' manager, Barbara Lawrence.

On Tuesday, McClanahan underwent the bypass operation. "She's fine, so it could not have gone better," Ms Lawrence said.

McClanahan, 75, played the promiscuous Blanche Devereaux on hit television series The Golden Girls from 1985 to 1992.

This year, she appeared in an episode of Law & Order.

- *Reuters*