Often times when White appeared on talk shows or awards shows she was announced by the words, “And here comes Betty White, the woman who’s been on TV for the ages.” In fact, it’s been over 70 years. White’s manager and friend, Jeff Witjas, commented on her death to People magazine: “Although Betty would soon be 100 years old, I thought she would live forever.”
White was born on January 17, 1922 in Oak Park, Illinois. She spent most of her childhood and youth in the suburbs of Los Angeles. She made her first contact with the entertainment industry at Beverly Hills High School, which served as the set of numerous films, such as Frank Capra’s “Isn’t Life Beautiful?” White originally wanted to be a forester, but this profession was frowned upon for women in the United States in the 1930s. Instead, she began writing scripts and acting in school theater.
Radio as a “way out”
When White tried filming after finishing school, she had no luck at the beginning because she was considered unphotogenic. So she started out on radio entertainment shows. She got her first engagement as an actress at the Bliss-Hayden Little Theater in Los Angeles. During the Second World War, she put her acting career on hold and worked for the American Women’s Voluntary Services.
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In the late 1940s, White received her first own radio show (“The Betty White Show”), which was later broadcast as a talk show on television. Between jokes and singing, the everyday worries of the US population during the Cold War were also discussed.
In 1950, White made the big leap into American show business – and not just in front of the camera. As a co-producer, she created sketches for the talk show “Hollywood on Television” and later the series “Life with Elizabeth”, in which White both played the female lead and was in charge behind the camera and also owned all the rights to the production. White was just 28 years old at the time and still lived with her parents. In between, she was repeatedly cast in smaller and larger roles in various television programs.
Breakthrough with “Golden Girls”
The entertainer achieved her greatest success in the mid-1980s. In “Golden Girls” she conquered the hearts of the audience as the good-natured Rose Nylund, the aging girl next door – in over 60 countries. Together with the late actresses Beatrice Arthur, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, 180 episodes of television history were created.
Many serious, socially critical, but also taboo topics are addressed with humor and ease – for example Alzheimer’s, homosexuality, discrimination, social isolation, euthanasia, old-age poverty and AIDS. In total there were three spin-offs from “Golden Girls”, a play and a – rather less successful – “Golden Girls” restaurant in New York. The sitcom was often received in other series, such as “The Simpsons”.
Grammy, Guinness, Golden Globe
In 1995 White received her star on the famous “Walk of Fame”. In total, the actress received three American Comedy Awards, seven Emmys and three Screen Actors Guild Awards. In addition to numerous nominations for other prizes, she was also nominated four times for the Golden Globe. She even received a Grammy in the category “Best Spoken Album” for “If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t)”. In 2013, she was inducted into the Guinness Book of Records for the longest television career by a female entertainer.
White was married three times, most recently to television presenter Allen Ludden. He died in 1981. White had no children, but three stepchildren through his marriage to Ludden. Throughout her life she campaigned for animal welfare at various NGOs and zoos – her commitment to animals was also integrated into her role in “Golden Girls”. White also hosted a show called “The Pet Set,” a show about celebrities and their pets. In 2010, the USDA Forest Service named White an Honorary Ranger, fulfilling a lifelong dream for the actress.
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