Betty White ... Thank You For Being A Friend

Gosh, I loved Betty White … sweet and perky and naughty and sassy. I cannot see a picture of her or watch a video without smiling. But here’s one reason I loved Betty …

In 1954, she had her own variety show, The Betty White Show, and one week she featured tap dancer Arthur Duncan, a Black ,man. Betty received all kinds of hate mail for doing that and her response was:

"I'm sorry. Live with it."

And then she proceeded to have Arthur Duncan on regularly before her show was canceled. That was Betty White. In the 1950s she had zero fucks to give. And here’s how she’s remembered …

“I don’t drink vodka … but I will tonight, on ice, with a slice of lemon with a hot dog on the other side and just be ok being sad. I’ll have to buy some rose colored glasses because Betty was that for all of us.”—Sandra Bullock

"The world looks different now. She was great at defying expectation. She managed to grow very old and somehow, not old enough. We'll miss you, Betty."—Ryan Reynolds

"I loved Betty very, very much. The world has lost one in a million."—Carol Burnett

"RIP Betty White, the only SNL host I ever saw get a standing ovation at the after party. A party at which she ordered a vodka and a hotdog and stayed til the bitter end."—Seth Meyers

“I hosted one of the many attempted reboots of the Pyramid game show in 2010 and Betty was a celebrity guest. The only thing she asked for all day was two bean and cheese burritos from Taco Bell.”—Andy Richter

"I had the honor of working with Betty on the series Bob and the finale of Hot In Cleveland. Betty was a regular on Jack Paar’s late night show and in 1960 she was there when I did my first stand-up on national television. Betty practically invented television and was a total pro. We lost a giant one today."—Bob Newhart

“I grew up watching and being delighted by her. She was playful and daring and smart. We all knew this day would come but it doesn’t take away the feeling of loss. A national treasure, indeed. Fly with the Angels.”—Debra Messing

“Our national treasure, Betty White, has passed just before her 100th birthday. Our Sue Ann Nivens, our beloved Rose Nylund, has joined the heavens to delight the stars with her inimitable style, humor, and charm. A great loss to us all. We shall miss her dearly.”—George Takei

“Betty White dying three weeks before she turned 100 is the final act of performer whose timing was always sharp, always unexpected, and even with the warmest of characters, always a little dangerous. No one else could live to 99 and so perfectly leave us wanting more.”—Guy Branum

“Betty White brought a smile to the lips of generations of Americans. She’s a cultural icon who will be sorely missed. Jill and I are thinking of her family and all those who loved her this New Year’s Eve.”—President Biden

“A spirit of goodness and hope. Betty White was much beloved because of who she was, and how she embraced a life well lived. Her smile. Her sense of humor. Her basic decency. Our world would be better if more followed her example. It is diminished with her passing.”—Dan Rather

“Rest in peace, sweet Betty. My God, how bright heaven must be right now.”—Valerie Bertinelli

“Betty White was an icon in the entertainment industry and a true ‘friend’ to the LGBTQ community. Her character Rose on The Golden Girls was instrumental in drawing mainstream attention to LGBTQ issues on television, namely an episode that raised awareness about HIV in 1990. Throughout the rest of her career, White used her platform to advocate for many issues affecting the LGBTQ community, including marriage equality and supporting at-risk queer youth.”—Anthony Allen Ramos, GLAAD

“In 1974, I was an obscure opening act for Linda Ronstadt at the Troubadour in Los Angeles. Passing through the lobby before the show, I saw Betty White and her husband Allen Ludden waiting in line. I loved Betty White, so I went up to them: ‘I’m so honored to meet you both.’ And then I said, ‘Isn’t Linda great?’ She said, ‘We came to see you … because we heard you were funny.’ I was elated.”—Steve Martin

Lastly, here’s Betty White, in her own words, on dying:

“My mother had the most wonderful outlook on death. She would always say, ‘Nobody knows. People think they do—you can believe whatever you want to believe what happens at that last moment—but nobody ever knows until it happens.' Growing up, whenever we’d lose somebody, she’d always say, ‘Now, they know the secret.'”

And now Betty knows it, too.

RIP Golden Girl