Betty White, the beloved television icon whose career spanned eight decades, died just weeks before she was to turn 100.
Her agent, Jeff Witjas, confirmed her death in a statement to People.
Witjas thought Betty would live forever even though she was about to be 100. She loved the animal world so much that I will miss her. I don't think Betty was afraid of passing because she always wanted to be with her husband. She thought she would be with him again.
Los Angeles authorities confirmed that officers responded to her address for a "natural cause of death" but did not provide further details. The death of a 99-year-old woman was confirmed by the fire officials.
White was nominated six times for her work on The Golden Girls, which ran from 1985 to 1992. White told People that she was lucky to be in good health and that she felt good at her age.
White's career began long before The Golden Girls and went on for decades after her part on the endless rerun series.
White's first TV appearance was in 1939. She got her first regular TV gig on the variety show Hollywood on Television in 1949, after working in radio and television for decades. She was nominated for an award in the Best Actress on Television category for the first time in 1951, but it went to another person.
White made appearances on game shows like What's My Line?, Match Game, and Password. She married Password host Allen Ludden in 1963, and they were together until his death in 1981. White told Anderson Cooper that he had the love of his life. Who needs the rest if you've had the best?
White began her stint as Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1973. She captured the contrast between the sweet on-air persona of "The Happy Homemaker" and her sarcastic, sexually voracious real-life demeanor. She won two awards for her performance.
White continued to take on guest and recurring TV roles after The Mary Tyler Moore Show ended. She was the first woman to win an Outstanding Game Show Host award. She got her career- defining part on The Golden Girls two years later. White was considered for the role of Blanche, but director Jay Sandrich thought she should do something different after she played Mary Tyler Moore so well.
White continued to play up the dirty side of her personality for the rest of her career.
After the cancellation of The Golden Girls in 1992 and the spin-off The Golden Palace in 1993 she continued acting, but her major resurgence didn't begin until the late 2000s, thanks to her role in The Proposal and a 2010 grassroots campaign. She was the oldest person to host the show. White joined the cast of TV Land's Hot in Cleveland. White's performance made her a regular for all six seasons of the series.
White worked for decades with organizations like the Los Angeles Zoo Commission and the Morris Animal Foundation. The American Veterinary Medical Association's Humane Award was given to her in 1987.
White was a symbol of making the most out of one's later years, as she enjoyed the most popularity and fame at an older age. White was awarded the Guinness World Record for longest TV career for a female entertainer. None. I think I'm the luckiest old broad on two feet.
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