Comedic actress Betty White, who capped a career of more than 80 years by becoming America’s geriatric sweetheart after Emmy-winning roles on television sitcoms ‘The Golden Girls’ and ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’, died on Friday, less than three weeks shy of her 100th birthday.
In a youth-driven entertainment industry where an actress over 40 faces career twilight, White was an anomaly who was a star in her 60s and a pop culture phenomenon in her 80s and 90s.
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Playing on her eminent likability, White was still starring in a TV sitcom, ‘Hot in Cleveland’, at age 92 until it was canceled in late 2014.
White said her longevity was a result of good health, good fortune, and loving her work.
“It’s incredible that I’m still in this business and that you are still putting up with me,” White said in an appearance at the 2018 Emmy Awards ceremony, where she was honored for her long career.
“She was great at defying expectation. She managed to grow very old and somehow, not old enough. We’ll miss you, Betty,” former costar and friend Ryan Reynolds wrote in a Twitter post.
The world looks different now. She was great at defying expectation. She managed to grow very old and somehow, not old enough. We’ll miss you, Betty. Now you know the secret. pic.twitter.com/uevwerjobS
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) December 31, 2021
Minutes after news emerged of her death, U.S. President Joe Biden told reporters: “That’s a shame. She was a lovely lady.” His wife Jill Biden said: “Who didn’t love Betty White? We’re so sad about her death.”
Betty White brought a smile to the lips of generations of Americans. She’s a cultural icon who will be sorely missed. Jill and I are thinking of her family and all those who loved her this New Year’s Eve.
— President Biden (@POTUS) December 31, 2021
White was born on Jan. 17, 1922, and started her entertainment career in radio in the late 1930s and by 1939 had made her TV debut singing on an experimental channel in Los Angeles. After serving in the American Women’s Voluntary Service, which helped the U.S. effort during World War Two, she was a regular on ‘Hollywood on Television’, a daily five-hour live variety show, in 1949.
A few years later she became a pioneering woman in television by co-founding a production company and serving as a co-creator, producer, and star of the 1950s sitcom ‘Life with Elizabeth’.
Through the 1960s and early ’70s, White was seen regularly on television, hosting coverage of the annual Tournament of Rose Parade and appearing on game shows such as ‘Match Game’ and ‘Password’.
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White reached a new level of success on ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’, playing the host of a home-making television show. White won best-supporting actress Emmys for the role in 1975 and 1976.
She won another Emmy in 1986 for ‘The Golden Girls’, a sitcom about four older women living together in Miami that featured an age demographic rarely highlighted on American television.
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After a less successful sequel to ‘The Golden Girls’ came a series of small movie parts, talk-show appearances, and one-off television roles, including one that won her an Emmy for a guest appearance on ‘The John Larroquette Show’.
A young fan started a Facebook campaign to have White host “Saturday Night Live” and she ended up appearing in every sketch on the show and winning still another Emmy for it.
The Associated Press voted her entertainer of the year in 2010 and a 2011 Reuters/Ipsos poll found that White, then 89, was the most popular and trusted celebrity in America with an 86% favorability rating.
“Who would ever dream that I would not only be this healthy but still be invited to work?” White said in a 2015 interview with Oprah Winfrey.
Celebrating 99 years of your love on the planet. Thank you Betty White
pic.twitter.com/NUmNq1BOZ9
— Oprah Winfrey (@Oprah) January 1, 2022
White, who had no children, worked for animal causes. She once turned down a role in the movie “As Good as It Gets” because of a scene in which a dog was thrown in a garbage chute.
She looked forward to her milestone birthday, writing on Twitter just three days before her death, “My 100th birthday … I cannot believe it is coming up”.
My 100th birthday… I cannot believe it is coming up, and People Magazine is celebrating with me! The new issue of @people is available on newsstands nationwide tomorrow. https://t.co/kTQnsbMDGK
— Betty White (@BettyMWhite) December 28, 2021
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