United States actor, Betty White, best known for starring as ‘Rose’ in 1980s sitcom ‘The Golden Girls’, has died aged 99 – less than a month before her 100th birthday.
White’s agent and close friend, Jeff Witjas told People in a statement on Friday, “Betty died peacefully in her sleep at her home early this morning.”
The actress was planning a big birthday event which is to hold in collaboration with People Magazine.
White was featured on the cover story of People Magazine’s December issue where she talked about her successful career, and clocking 100.
The actress said she felt “so lucky to be in such good health and feel so good at this age.”
“My 100th birthday. I cannot believe it is coming up, and People Magazine is celebrating with me!” she announced via Twitter on Tuesday.
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
White was born in Illinois on January 17th, 1922, and had a television career spanning more than 80 years.
The pioneering Emmy-winning comedienne enjoyed one of the longest careers in showbiz history: she began regularly appearing on television in 1949 and had a voice role in Toy Story 4 in 2019.
She appeared in hit US sitcoms including Hot In Cleveland, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Betty White Show and Life With Elizabeth.
“Even though Betty was about to be 100, I thought she would live forever,” her agent Jeff Witjas told People magazine in a statement.
The screen veteran was named the woman entertainer with the longest television career by Guinness World Records, having started out in 1939.
In a youth-driven entertainment industry where an actor over 40 is facing career twilight, White was an elderly anomaly who was a star in her 60s and a pop culture phenomenon in her 80s and 90s.
Playing on her imminent likability, White was still starring in a TV sitcom, “Hot in Cleveland,” at age 92 until it was cancelled in late 2014.
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.
Inducted into Television Hall of Fame in 1995, White boasts of several awards as an actress and comedian. She is the winner of five Primetime Emmy Awards out of 21 nominations and two Daytime Emmy Awards.
In 1987, the American Comedy Awards awarded her as the Funniest Female.
She has also written several books. As an advocate for animal welfare, the comedian was awarded The American Veterinary Medical Association Humane Award in 1987 for her charitable work with animals.
White is survived by three step children, David, Martha, and Sarah, the children of her late husband, Allen Ludden.
Via Reuters.
