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Betty White.jpg

The Last Golden Girl Goes To Her Rest: A Tribute to Betty White

By Jen Maravegias | Celebrity | January 1, 2022 |

By Jen Maravegias | Celebrity | January 1, 2022 |

Betty White.jpg

2021 had one last kick in the teeth for us yesterday when Betty White passed away at the age of 99. She was just two weeks shy of her 100th birthday. People Magazine had planned to celebrate with a cover story this month.

Betty left behind an enormous and lasting footprint as part of the history of television with her remarkable 70-year career. Most known for her roles as the dippy Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and the equally dippy (but just as beloved) Rose Nylund on Golden Girls, she was also a staple on the game show circuit. She met her husband of 18 years, Allen Ludden, when she was a guest on Password, which he hosted.

She also hosted her own daily talk/variety show on NBC in 1954. It was short-lived but, according to internet rumors, it went out in a blaze of anti-racist glory.

She anchored a Golden Girls spin-off that aired briefly and also starred Don Cheadle, who remembered her on Twitter last night.

Most recently she was part of the ensemble for TVLand’s Hot In Cleveland, which ended its five-year run in 2015. In 1999 she played my favorite of all her roles: The very grumpy, mildly profane, alligator-feeding widow in Lake Placid.

Besides being an iconic mainstay of our pop culture lives, Betty was also a fierce advocate for animal welfare (the previous clip notwithstanding). According to People, she began working with the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association(GLAZA) in 1966 and joined the Board of Trustees in 1974. She contributed to zoo exhibits and created a 1974 TV special that spotlighted the zoo’s animal care team. In 2006, Betty was honored as the City of Los Angeles’ “Ambassador to the Animals” for her lifelong work for animal welfare. She was later named an honorary zookeeper by the Los Angeles Chapter of the American Association of Zoo Keepers.

Betty White worked with a lot of people and touched a lot of lives during her time on earth. She was remembered fondly across the entirety of the internet last night as we counted down to the new year. No one will miss her more than her handsome ex, Ryan Reynolds. We might want to do a welfare check on RR. He is not OK.

She was a true master of her craft and there are hundreds of clips to support that. But this one is chef’s kiss.

Even America’s coolest president knew what was up.

She could hang with the best of them.

And gosh, she was a radiant beauty, worthy of Pajiba 10.

Another piece of the best of American culture is gone now.

But, she is well remembered and will never be forgotten. Thank you, Betty White, for all of the laughs we had along the way.