Betty White’s career ran through practically the entire history of television. And before White died on Dec. 31 at the age of 99, her longevity was a tribute not merely to persistence but to the willingness of a classic Hollywood talent to be versatile and to adapt.
In moving from television in the 1940s and ’50s to late-in-life media stardom on contemporary sitcoms and on “Saturday Night Live” (with some plum movie roles in between), White was perennially able to shift gears. She brought the best of an irreducible public persona — sparkling and witty, even or especially as dim or deluded characters — to a breadth of projects that offered her chances to show different sides of her talent. Her gifts recalled the best of an era of Hollywood in which charm reigned supreme; placing those gifts in a modern context provided a counterpoint that keeps fans fascinated by White practically to the century mark.
In moving from television in the 1940s and ’50s to late-in-life media stardom on contemporary sitcoms and on “Saturday Night Live” (with some plum movie roles in between), White was perennially able to shift gears. She brought the best of an irreducible public persona — sparkling and witty, even or especially as dim or deluded characters — to a breadth of projects that offered her chances to show different sides of her talent. Her gifts recalled the best of an era of Hollywood in which charm reigned supreme; placing those gifts in a modern context provided a counterpoint that keeps fans fascinated by White practically to the century mark.
- 1/6/2022
- by Daniel D'Addario
- Variety Film + TV
“You know, being together every week is getting to be a very, very nice habit. I hope you’ll keep it up, will ya?”
This was Betty White’s line at the end of each episode of her very first sitcom, Life with Elizabeth, in which she and Del Moore played a married couple who kept stumbling into various hijinks. White first played Elizabeth in a series of sketches in Hollywood on Television, a local Los Angeles talk show that debuted in 1949. (When the sketches spun off into their own show in the early Fifties,...
This was Betty White’s line at the end of each episode of her very first sitcom, Life with Elizabeth, in which she and Del Moore played a married couple who kept stumbling into various hijinks. White first played Elizabeth in a series of sketches in Hollywood on Television, a local Los Angeles talk show that debuted in 1949. (When the sketches spun off into their own show in the early Fifties,...
- 12/31/2021
- by Alan Sepinwall
- Rollingstone.com
Five-time Primetime Emmy Award winner, game show panelist and prolific actress Betty White has passed away at the age of 99. Long the subject of internet death hoaxes, the actress’ death was confirmed by her her agent and close friend Jeff Witjas.
White was the last living member of “The Golden Girls,” which ran from 1985 to 1992. She played good girl Rose Nylund opposite Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty. The popular sitcom, which has continued to run on various channels in syndication, spawned a one-season spin-off starring White called “The Golden Palace” in 1992.
Working well into her late 90s, White had memorable supporting roles in feature films like “Lake Placid” and “The Proposal,” and starred in the sitcom “Hot in Cleveland” from 2010-2015. She most recently lent her voice to the Disney+ streaming series of shorts “Forky Asks a Question,” as the character Bitey White opposite colleagues Carol Burnett, Carl Reiner,...
White was the last living member of “The Golden Girls,” which ran from 1985 to 1992. She played good girl Rose Nylund opposite Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty. The popular sitcom, which has continued to run on various channels in syndication, spawned a one-season spin-off starring White called “The Golden Palace” in 1992.
Working well into her late 90s, White had memorable supporting roles in feature films like “Lake Placid” and “The Proposal,” and starred in the sitcom “Hot in Cleveland” from 2010-2015. She most recently lent her voice to the Disney+ streaming series of shorts “Forky Asks a Question,” as the character Bitey White opposite colleagues Carol Burnett, Carl Reiner,...
- 12/31/2021
- by Kristen Lopez
- Indiewire
A few weeks shy of her 100th birthday, Betty White, the beloved actress and comedian whose career in Hollywood spanned nearly eight decades and included stints on hit shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Golden Girls, has died. She was 99.
White died at her home in California on Friday, Dec. 31. A representative for the Los Angeles Fire Department told Rolling Stone: “We responded to a medical aid request. The call was received at 9:33 a.m. We have determined death of an approximately 99-year-old female.”
White’s agent and friend,...
White died at her home in California on Friday, Dec. 31. A representative for the Los Angeles Fire Department told Rolling Stone: “We responded to a medical aid request. The call was received at 9:33 a.m. We have determined death of an approximately 99-year-old female.”
White’s agent and friend,...
- 12/31/2021
- by Jon Blistein
- Rollingstone.com
Multiple Emmy Award-winning actress and animal rights activist Betty White, who most famously starred in The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Golden Girls, has died, just days short of her 100th birthday. White passed peacefully Thursday night at her home, her agent Jeff Witjas confirmed to Deadline.
“Even though Betty was about to be 100, I thought she would live forever,” Witjas said in a statement. “I will miss her terribly and so will the animal world that she loved so much. I don’t think Betty ever feared passing because she always wanted to be with her most beloved husband Allen Ludden. She believed she would be with him again.”
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2021: A Photo Gallery
Although White is most notably known for playing sweet and naive Rose in The Golden Girls from 1985-1992, her career began more than four decades prior in her adopted home of Los Angeles.
“Even though Betty was about to be 100, I thought she would live forever,” Witjas said in a statement. “I will miss her terribly and so will the animal world that she loved so much. I don’t think Betty ever feared passing because she always wanted to be with her most beloved husband Allen Ludden. She believed she would be with him again.”
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2021: A Photo Gallery
Although White is most notably known for playing sweet and naive Rose in The Golden Girls from 1985-1992, her career began more than four decades prior in her adopted home of Los Angeles.
- 12/31/2021
- by Rosy Cordero
- Deadline Film + TV
She still loves game shows. She still answers questions with Rose Nylund’s exclamation points. She’s won six Emmys and hosted three different series titled “The Betty White Show” during her eight decades in television.
At 98, Betty White has many gifts, including her unique perspective on the evolution of television. The Los Angeles native starred in her first experimental TV broadcast in Hollywood a few months before NBC pulled off its broadcasting feat at the 1939 New York World’s Fair in Queens. Her long list of accomplishments include co-starring in three enduring sitcoms: CBS’ “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” NBC’s “The Golden Girls” and TV Land’s “Hot in Cleveland.”
In a recent email correspondence with Variety, White shared observations on her career, starting with her days as the record-spinning sidekick on the five-hour daily talk show “Hollywood on Television,” hosted by popular disc jockey Al Jarvis, for...
At 98, Betty White has many gifts, including her unique perspective on the evolution of television. The Los Angeles native starred in her first experimental TV broadcast in Hollywood a few months before NBC pulled off its broadcasting feat at the 1939 New York World’s Fair in Queens. Her long list of accomplishments include co-starring in three enduring sitcoms: CBS’ “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” NBC’s “The Golden Girls” and TV Land’s “Hot in Cleveland.”
In a recent email correspondence with Variety, White shared observations on her career, starting with her days as the record-spinning sidekick on the five-hour daily talk show “Hollywood on Television,” hosted by popular disc jockey Al Jarvis, for...
- 9/17/2020
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
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