Andrew Stoner - Betty White: The First 90 Years

Betty White:

The First 90 Years

Andrew E. Stoner

Blue River Press

Betty White: The First 90 Years

Copyright 2013 by Andrew E. Stoner

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American

Copyright Conventions

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a database or other retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, by any means, including mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

pISBN: 9781935628231

eISBN: 9781935628873

Cover Design: Phil Velikan

Cover Photos: Betty White, Phil Stafford / Shutterstock.com; The Mary Tyler Moore Show Cast, Associated Press / Reed Saxon.

Layout/Design: MaryKay Hruskocy Scott, Candor Creative, LLC

Proofreader: David Ruiz del Vizo, MADA Writing Services

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Blue River Press, Indianapolis, Indiana

Distributed by Cardinal Publishers Group

Tom Doherty Company, Inc.

www.cardinalpub.com

For Betty, Bea, Rue and Estelle... thanks for the memories.

Table of Contents

Preface

Its worth noting right up front, Ive never met Betty White (although Ive wanted to for a long time), and she doesnt know who the heck I am. But then again, thats the way it is for millions of us who feel we know Betty on a very personal level, even those of us who have never been in her presence.

We feel this special love and affection that runs as deep as the dimples adorning Bettys lovely smile; and she fulfills without question, for many of us, the role of beloved aunt, cousin or even grandmother. Shes that fun person you are hoping you will see at the reunion; and the one you make a special effort to sit near.

Bettys fansall of us old timers who knew her and her work before she was Rose or Elka, and the new ones who think shes that funny old lady from The Proposalgreet her in our hearts and minds in a way we reserve for really special folk. Its an amazing contrast to Bettys personal life, which she often reminds people is one where she prefers time alone, and enjoys the company of her dogs as much as she does any special person. Make no mistake, Betty is not lonelyafter all, she can command an in-person or on- screen crowd with the snap of a finger.

When I started this work, I so hoped to interview or meet Miss White. It was a long-term goal that has yet to come to passIm still hopeful that we one day may meet. But the decision to go ahead and share memories about Betty and her amazing career was an easy one. Its as if you were to ask me to open up my scrapbook and tell you all about my favorite star, Betty White. Id be more than happy to do so!

And so, thats really what this book is. A glimpse into the incredible life and career of Betty White through the lens of a loving fan that has plenty of company in the front row in the Betty White Admiration Society. Ive spent considerable time exploring Bettys early career, including her truly pioneering involvement in some of Americas earliest television telecasts, to her long-term and deep commitment to animals and our environment.

But lest you worry this is a textbookit is not. There is plenty of fun here, from the incredible zingers Bettys character Sue Ann Nivens used to deliver on The Mary Tyler Moore Show to the feather-brained but loving outlook of Rose Nylund from The Golden Girls. And of course, theres a retracing of an incredible late-life resurgence that has cast her as one of the most beloved and funniest actresses out therewhether youre 16 or 60.

My hope is that you will enjoy this trip down memory lane about Bettys lifewritten with no objectivity at allwritten by a true fan that is forever grateful for the countless moments in life Betty has filled with laughter and love. Whether you call her Americas Sweetheart or Americas Golden Girl,; whatever you do, you cannot forget the incomparable Miss Betty White!

Andrew E. Stoner

November 2012

Betty took home a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild Awards in January 2010, and just a year later was back as the winner as Outstanding Female in a Comedy Series for her work on Hot in Cleveland. During the 2010 awards, co-star Sandra Bullock paid a moving and hilarious tribute to her friend Betty. (Featureflash/Shutterstock.com)

Senior Moments

Who Needs a Comeback?

Convinced that everyone else was preoccupied with how old they were, as Betty White entered her 90th year she adopted a grateful, and of course, humorous mantra. Im the luckiest broad on two feet, she declared.

That shes enjoyed 90 years of life is not that unexpectedher own mother lived 86 yearsbut that shes as big a star as there is after nine decades of life and more than six decades in show business in saying something. Perhaps only George Burns, who died in 1996 at the age of 100, could boast a bigger and longer longevity in the hearts and minds of America.

The key to Bettys health and longevity? Not the diet a doctor would recommend: Betty loves hot dogs and Red Vines licorice candy. I should follow better eating health rules, Betty admits. But hot dogs and Red Vines and potato chips and French fries are my favorite foods. Its hard to argue with her approach, however, as she declares herself good and energetic and adds,

Bettys routine, by the way, includes no formal exercise program. Instead, she said she relies on her bad memory which she says forces all sorts of trips up and down the stairs in her two-story home.

The issue of whether Betty has actually had a late career comeback, or has always been there is one that keeps coming up. CNN commentator Piers Morgan asked Betty during his interview about her alleged comeback to celebrity status. Bettys take: Come back from what? Shes always been there. Bettys been a part of American TV life for almost as long as most of us have been alive. For a star as big as Betty, literally never off television for any extended period for the first half century of television broadcasting, a comeback was unneeded. One doesnt need to come back to a presence on TV that is as natural as the medium itself.

Everybody says, So nice to see you back, Betty said. Ive never been away, guys. Ive been working for 63 years.

Bettys Senior Moments

Perhaps it is the security of all those years in TV provides, but with her popularity secured, in 2012 Betty broke new ground and shed her personal rule about airing her political views. In addition to taping a TV ad in support of a Democratic candidate for Congress in southern California, Betty openly declared her support for the re-election of President Barack Obama. Betty says she normally likes to act in a bi-partisan way for fear of turning off her fans, but says the 2012 election is important and she said she likes how (Obama) represents us and very, very much favors Obama for re-election. She later participated in a star-studded fundraiser for Obama in the Hollywood home of

She also weighed in on the issue of gay marriagea divisive issue for somenoting that she doesnt care who loves who, as long as they are good people. I really dont care with whom you sleep, she says. I just care about what kind of decent human being you are. I figure all the rest of it is your business and not mine.

And while Bettys star was risingor at least still shining as bright as ever (depending on whom you ask)sharing the praise and the limelight came naturally for her, its always been a part of Bettys personality. During earlier Emmy Awards broadcasts where she was nominated against co-stars Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty for their work on