Betty White facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Betty White
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White at the 1988 Emmy Awards
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Betty Marion White
January 17, 1922 Oak Park, Illinois, U.S.
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| Died | December 31, 2021 (aged 99) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
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| Education | Beverly Hills High School |
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| Years active | 1939–2021 |
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Works
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Full list |
| Title | 4th mayor of Hollywood (honorary) |
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| Awards | Full list |
Betty White (born January 17, 1922 – died December 31, 2021) was an American actress and comedian. She had a very long career in entertainment, lasting over 80 years! Betty White was a pioneer in early television. She was one of the first women to work both in front of and behind the camera.
She was the first woman in the United States to produce a sitcom (a funny TV show about everyday life). This show was called Life with Elizabeth. Because of her work, she was named an honorary Mayor of Hollywood in 1955. Many people called her the "First Lady of Television."
Betty White was also famous for appearing on many American game shows. Some of these were Password, Match Game, and The $25,000 Pyramid. She was even called "the first lady of game shows." In 1983, she became the first woman to win an Emmy Award for hosting a game show called Just Men!.
She had big roles in popular TV shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show (where she played Sue Ann Nivens), The Golden Girls (as Rose Nylund), and Hot in Cleveland (as Elka Ostrovsky). In 2009, she became very popular again after being in the movie The Proposal with Sandra Bullock. Fans even started a campaign on Facebook for her to host Saturday Night Live in 2010, which she did!
Betty White holds a Guinness World Record for having the "Longest TV career by an entertainer (female)." She won many awards, including eight Emmy Awards and a Grammy Award. She also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Early Life and Dreams
Betty Marion White was born in Oak Park, Illinois, on January 17, 1922. She was the only child of Christine Tess, a homemaker, and Horace Logan White, who worked for a lighting company. Her family had roots from Denmark, Greece, England, and Wales.
When Betty was just over a year old, her family moved to Alhambra, California. Later, they moved to Los Angeles during the Great Depression. This was a tough time when many people didn't have much money. To help out, her dad built and sold crystal radios. Sometimes, he even traded them for other things, like dogs!
Betty went to Horace Mann Elementary School and Beverly Hills High School, finishing in 1939. She loved animals and nature, especially after family trips to the Sierra Nevada mountains. She really wanted to be a forest ranger. But back then, women were not allowed to be rangers.
Instead, Betty became interested in writing and performing. She wrote and starred in a play at her school. This made her realize how much she loved acting. She decided to become an actress, inspired by singers Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy.
After high school, she appeared on an early, experimental television show. She also worked as a model. Her first professional acting job was at a small theater. When World War II started in 1941, Betty volunteered for the American Women's Voluntary Services. She helped by driving trucks with supplies for soldiers in the Hollywood Hills. She also performed for troops before they went overseas.
Career Highlights
Starting in Radio and Early TV (1949–1953)
After the war, Betty tried to get jobs in movies, but she was told she wasn't "photogenic" enough. So, she looked for work in radio, where looks didn't matter.
She started with small jobs like reading commercials and making crowd noises for about five dollars a show. She appeared on shows like Blondie. Soon, she got her own radio show called The Betty White Show.
In 1949, she began co-hosting a daily live TV variety show called Hollywood on Television. By 1952, she was hosting the show by herself. It was a huge job, lasting five and a half hours, six days a week! She often sang songs during each broadcast. In 1951, she was nominated for her first Emmy Award for her work on television.
In 1952, Betty also helped create her own TV show called Life with Elizabeth. She starred in it as the main character. This show was special because Betty, at just 28 years old, was one of the few women in television who had full creative control both in front of and behind the camera. The show was based on funny real-life situations.
Hosting Her Own Shows (1952–1959)
From 1952 to 1954, Betty hosted and produced another show called The Betty White Show. She had creative control and even hired a female director. Her show was groundbreaking because it featured an African-American tap dancer named Arthur Duncan as a regular performer. Some TV stations in the Southern United States threatened to stop showing her program if Arthur wasn't removed. Betty famously refused, saying, "I'm sorry. Live with it," and gave Arthur even more time on air.
After Life with Elizabeth ended, she appeared in the sitcom Date with the Angels from 1957 to 1958. This show wasn't very successful, but it was where she first met Lucille Ball. They became good friends, supporting each other through life's challenges.
The "First Lady of Game Shows" (1960s)
By the 1960s, Betty White was a regular on many TV game shows and talk shows. She made many appearances on the popular game show Password from 1961 to 1975. She later married the show's host, Allen Ludden, in 1963. She also appeared on other game shows like Match Game and Pyramid.
In 1962, she made her first movie appearance in the drama Advise & Consent, playing a strong female senator. She was also offered a job as an anchor on the famous morning show Today, but she turned it down because she didn't want to move to New York City.
For 19 years, Betty was the hostess and commentator for the annual Rose Parade broadcast on NBC.
The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Golden Girls (1970s–1980s)
In 1973, Betty joined The Mary Tyler Moore Show as Sue Ann Nivens. Sue Ann was a "man-hungry" character who hosted a cooking show called The Happy Homemaker. What made her funny was that her sweet TV personality was the opposite of her real, cynical self. Betty won two Emmy Awards for this role.
After The Mary Tyler Moore Show ended in 1977, Betty got her own sitcom, The Betty White Show, but it only lasted one season.
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In 1983, Betty became the first woman to win a Daytime Emmy Award for hosting a game show, Just Men!. This cemented her nickname, "First Lady of Game Shows."
In 1985, Betty got her most famous role as Rose Nylund on The Golden Girls. The show was about four older women living together in Miami. Betty, Bea Arthur, Estelle Getty, and Rue McClanahan starred in it. The show was a huge success and ran until 1992. Betty won an Emmy Award for her role as Rose in the first season.
Interestingly, Betty was first offered the role of Blanche, and Rue McClanahan was offered Rose. But the director suggested they switch roles because they had played similar characters before. Betty wasn't sure she could play Rose, but the director explained that Rose was "terminally naive," meaning she was always innocent and believed everything.
Later Career and Comeback (1990–2021)
After The Golden Girls ended, Betty continued to act. She appeared in many TV shows like The Practice and Boston Legal. She even won another Emmy in 1996 for appearing as herself on The John Larroquette Show.
In 2009, Betty starred in the romantic comedy movie The Proposal with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. This movie helped her become very popular with a new generation of fans. She also appeared in a funny Snickers candy commercial during the 2010 Super Bowl XLIV, which became very famous.
Because of the Snickers commercial's success, fans started a Facebook campaign to get Betty to host Saturday Night Live. She did, and at 88 years old, she became the oldest person to host the show! Her appearance won her another Emmy Award.
In June 2010, Betty joined the cast of the TV Land sitcom Hot in Cleveland as Elka Ostrovsky. She was only supposed to be in the pilot episode, but she was so popular that she stayed for the whole series, which ran for six seasons.
From 2012 to 2014, Betty hosted Betty White's Off Their Rockers, a show where older people played jokes on younger people. She also won a Grammy Award for her audiobook If You Ask Me.
In 2018, a PBS documentary called Betty White: First Lady of Television celebrated her amazing career. In 2019, she voiced a character named Bitey White in the Pixar movie Toy Story 4.
Betty White: A Celebration
Before Betty White passed away, a special documentary-style film called Betty White: A Celebration was planned to be released on her 100th birthday in 2022. It featured many famous friends like Ryan Reynolds and Tina Fey. Even after her death, the film was still shown in theaters as a tribute to her life.
Achievements and Honors
Betty White won many awards throughout her career. She received five Primetime Emmy Awards and two Daytime Emmy Awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015. She was the only woman to win an Emmy in all the main comedy acting categories. She also holds the record for the longest time between Emmy nominations, over 60 years!
She was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1995. She has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame right next to her late husband, Allen Ludden's star.
In 1987, the American Veterinary Medical Association gave Betty their Humane Award for her charity work with animals. In 2006, the City of Los Angeles honored her for her animal work and named her "Ambassador to the Animals" at the Los Angeles Zoo.
In 2010, she received the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award, presented by actress Sandra Bullock. She was also made an honorary forest ranger by the USDA Forest Service in 2010, fulfilling a dream she had since childhood when women weren't allowed to be rangers.
A 2011 poll found that Betty White was considered the most popular and trusted celebrity in America! In 2017, at age 95, she was invited to become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, making her the oldest new member at that time.
Personal Life
Betty White was married three times. Her first marriage was to Dick Barker, a pilot, after World War II. They divorced within a year because she didn't enjoy his simple farm life. In 1947, she married Lane Allen, a talent agent. They divorced in 1949 because he wanted a family, but she wanted to focus on her career.
On June 14, 1963, Betty married television host Allen Ludden. She had met him on his game show Password. He proposed to her several times before she finally said yes! They were very happy together.
Betty became a stepmother to Allen's three children from his previous marriage. Allen Ludden passed away in 1981 from stomach cancer. Betty never remarried after his death. When asked why, she famously said, "Once you've had the best, who needs the rest?"
Betty White was a member of the Unity Church.
Her Passing
Betty White passed away peacefully in her sleep on December 31, 2021, at her home in Los Angeles. She was 99 years old. Her death was due to a stroke she had on Christmas Day.
Many people and organizations shared their sadness and tributes. The United States Army thanked her for her service during World War II. The Martin Luther King Jr. Center praised her for supporting racial equality early in her career. Her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was covered with flowers and messages from fans.
Causes She Cared About
Helping Animals
Betty White loved animals very much and was a strong advocate for their welfare. She worked with many animal organizations, including the Los Angeles Zoo and the Morris Animal Foundation. Her passion for animals started in the 1970s when she hosted a show called The Pet Set, which featured celebrities and their pets.
She was a board member of the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association for many years and even donated a lot of money to the zoo. She also served as a judge for the American Humane Hero Dog Awards.
Fighting for Fairness
In 1954, when The Betty White Show became popular across the country, some people in the Southern states criticized her for having Arthur Duncan, a Black tap dancer, on her show. They demanded she remove him. Betty refused, saying, "he stays, live with it." This showed her strong support for racial equality.
In 2017, Arthur Duncan appeared on a TV show and thanked Betty again for her support, proving how much her actions meant to him.
Supporting LGBT Rights
Betty White was also a supporter of LGBT rights. She believed that if two people loved each other and had a strong relationship, they should be able to get married, no matter their gender. She felt that people should "Mind your own business, take care of your affairs, and don't worry about other people so much."
Music and More
In 2011, Betty White worked with singer Luciana to create a remix of her song "I'm Still Hot". The song was released digitally and the video came out later. It was part of a campaign for a company, and it even reached number 1 on the Dance Club Songs chart! Betty also sang songs on her live TV shows, like "Nevertheless I'm in Love with You" and "It's a Good Day".
Images for kids
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White on The Betty White Show in 1954
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Cast photo from The Betty White Show of 1977, from left: John Hillerman, Betty White, Georgia Engel
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President Barack Obama talks to White in the Oval Office in June 2012
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White with her Hot in Cleveland co-stars Valerie Bertinelli, Wendie Malick, and Jane Leeves at the Hollywood Walk of Fame in August 2012
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See also
In Spanish: Betty White para niños
