Thank you for being a friend! It’s hard to believe it’s been four years since we said goodbye to the legendary Betty White. The beloved TV icon passed away peacefully at her home on this day in 2021, just shy of her 100th birthday. As the holidays wrap up and we recover from our Golden Girls marathons, it feels like the perfect time to reflect on the trailblazing actress and comedian.
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For decades, this legendary TV actress kept generations of audiences in stitches, whether as the adorably clueless Rose Nylund on The Golden Girls, the man-eating “Happy Homemaker” Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, or the hilariously feisty Elka Ostrovsky on Hot in Cleveland.
Born in Oak Park, Illinois, in 1922, Betty Marion White Ludden began her acting career in the late 1930s after graduating from high school. She worked in modeling and theater before moving to radio and television. In the 1950s, she created and starred in the sitcom Life with Elizabeth and hosted her own variety show, The Betty White Show. She also became a frequent panelist on popular game shows like Password, What’s My Line and The Match Game.
Betty White’s Third Marriage Was the Charm
In 1961, White met the love of her life, game show host Allen Ludden, when she appeared as a guest on his show Password. Having been divorced twice—first from U.S. Army Air Force pilot Dick Barker and then from theatrical agent Lane Allen—she initially felt like a failure and turned down Ludden’s first two marriage proposals. Two years later, she finally said yes.
They were married until his death from stomach cancer in 1981, and she never remarried.
After appearing on numerous talk shows and game shows, White made her big-screen debut in the 1962 political drama Advise & Consent as Senator Bessie Adams of Kansas. Per IMDb, she later appeared in films such as Lake Placid, The Story of Us, Bringing Down the House, and The Proposal. Her voice acting credits include roles in The Lorax and Toy Story 4.
Of course, it was on the small screen where White really captured the attention of viewers everywhere.
In 1973, she joined another TV icon, Mary Tyler Moore, on The Mary Tyler Moore Show as the very man-hungry “Happy Homemaker” Sue Ann Nivens, a role she played for 46 episodes. Her portrayal of Sue Ann won her two Emmy Awards.
Betty White Lands Her Signature Role
In 1985, The Golden Girls premiered, and a cultural phenomenon was born. The series followed four widows sharing their lives, loves, and a lot of cheesecake in sunny Miami. White played the sweet, simple, and often nonsensical Rose Nylund from 1985 until 1992, when the show ended after Bea Arthur (Dorothy Zbornak) announced her departure. Rose, along with Rue McClanahan’s Blanche and Estelle Getty’s Sophia, reappeared in the short-lived spin-off series The Golden Palace.
Her other TV credits include guest spots on hits like The Practice, The John Larroquette Show, The Bold and the Beautiful, and *Boston Legal*—all before she heated things up on TV Land’s Hot in Cleveland in 2010.
Beyond acting, White was a devoted animal lover, supporting charities like the Morris Animal Foundation, Farm Sanctuary, and SPCLA.
Meanwhile, White’s legacy is shining brighter than ever. For many fans, Hulu has basically become the Golden Girls channel, letting them relive Dorothy’s sass and Rose’s stories from St. Olaf anytime they want. Just last month, ABC celebrated the sitcom’s 40th anniversary with The Golden Girls: 40 Years of Laughter and Friendship—proof that cheesecake and witty one-liners never go out of style.