Betty White's Agent Looks Back on Her Final Days, Shuts Down Rumors About Her Death (Exclusive)

she was a cultural icon a national treasure and our forever golden girl welcome to et remembers betty white we were all so excited to celebrate her 100th birthday which was just 17 days away you know we dedicated the entire show to betty on friday but we've got even more memories in our e.t vault to share as we learn new details about betty's final days [Music] you are a woman who loves to work what is it that makes you want to come to work every single day oh i just love i'm so lucky to be in this business i never take it for granted you are the most remarkable woman in the business who no i'm the luckiest old brother in the business e.t checked in with betty just two weeks ago she was upbeat feeling good and amazed by the idea of turning 100. this was the last time she was spotted out in public betty was all smiles running errands in january of 2020 the day before her 98th birthday as for her final days will betty had been keeping it low-key during the pandemic e.t spoke with two of her confidants jeff witches her longtime friend and agent and producer steve batcher who was working with betty on a new documentary she actually passed away at home and you know i think she was just living her best life and that's what we want for betty white she was basically healthy i was over there at the house a number of times and we enjoyed playing gin rummy together now i will say her mind was sharp a rumor was that she didn't want to be in la in her brentwood home she wanted to be in carmel at the home she built with her late husband if betty white wanted to go to carmel she would go to carmel i mean she was in control of her life she was very comfortable just last month betty told et our show felt like home to her and our interviews like a visit with a good friend are you ever going to retire no of course not i don't think so why you work for the things you really believe in this was our last sit down with betty in 2017 she was 95 years young at the time what is the secret to your longevity blessed with good health really good health i love a cocktail i love i love peanut butter and jelly and stuff but i don't abuse the things that that i know if if you're blessed with this good health you should take advantage of it another life secret betty said quote see the funny side not the downside i get bored with people that complain it's such a waste of time batcher last saw betty in late december he was helping her film a shout out to her fans for betty white a celebration it's the last video she did 10 days before she passed away she wanted to thank her fans sincerely from the bottom of her heart and while her beloved fans may have feared her passing betty was not afraid of dying it's lovely to think there is something we don't know and as as a human race we have learned so much and we've gained so much knowledge but that's something nobody knows what happens afterwards it's a secret you know i first came to et they sent me to interview betty and i was like ooh i better talk loud and slowly uh no betty was smart as a whip quick so quick she got you guys oh she got me together i was a little nervous because i was like she's a little bit faster than nothing now betty was also considered a barrier breaker too indeed she was she continues to hold the guinness book of world records for the entertainer with the longest tv career yes of all time and you know that career spanned eight decades betty was born in 1922 sliced bread was invented in 1928 so you could say betty truly was the greatest thing since sliced bread betty started working in radio right after graduating from high school and then hollywood came calling i started back in 1949 and i was on a daytime talk show five and a half hours a day six days a week live when she co-hosted the variety series hollywood on television the show was criticized for featuring black tap dancer arthur duncan betty stood up and responded quote i'm sorry live with it and gave duncan more air time well i might have known neither one of us could pass that little old lady with a basket full of puppies in 1952 betty headlined her first tv sitcom life with elizabeth and was one of hollywood's first female producers she also received her very first emmy nod for her acting on the show is that so she would go on to earn a total of 21 nominations and five emmy wins she won her first two for playing sue ann nevins on the mayor tyler moore show turned my career around suanne came in you know and just caused a little habit spies things are mysterious thieves things that are undercover sneaky and when she wasn't acting betty just loved appearing on game shows i like it because it's mental exercise i think instead of just sitting there blurry-eyed watching something else happen you can't resist a game show if you're a game player at all she would garner an entire new generation of fans as ditzy rosen island in the golden girls and also appeared in the short-lived spin-off the golden palace with rue mcclanahan and estelle getty it's amazing it i have not seen chemistry like this work well frankly since the four golden girls got together betty just loved making audiences laugh and even tried out dramedy guest starring on allie mcbeal as ally's psychotherapist we had the best time calista is really some piece of talent in the 2000s betty continued to break barriers and relish in new challenges how lucky can you get so do i get the job i've got a recurring role on on boston legal that i i think that's another dream that i didn't expect betty flexed her dramatic skills playing james spader's secretary from 2005 through 2008. during that time she also guest starred on the bold and the beautiful i'm sorry for everything soap opera is completely different to anything i've ever done before is i grandma annie in 2009 the then 87 year old cemented her career resurgence with this scene-stealing role in the proposal let's see if we can find your boobs they're in there somewhere oh my god she's a national treasure i mean i we don't have enough time for me to to spew enough love for betty white ryan reynolds paid tribute to his on-screen grandma tweeting quote the world looks different now in a statement to e.t sandra bullock says quote i'll have to buy some rose-colored glasses because betty was that for all of us sandra they never made one like sandra talented beautiful funny the pair stayed close and when sandy presented betty with a life achievement on her at the sag awards betty roasted her as only betty could isn't it heartening to see how far a girl as plain as she is can go she also went viral in 2010 thanks to this classic super bowl snickers ad you're playing like betty white out there that's not what your girlfriend said today at the at the function the waitress bought me a plate with a snickers bar i'm here tonight because you wanted me to be that same year at the age of 88 betty became the oldest person ever to host snl she got the gig after fans campaigned for her on facebook i didn't know what facebook was and now that i do know what it is it sounds like a huge waste of time she's america's sweetheart still and she's a comic genius she won her fifth primetime emmy for that episode a month after snl her sitcom with valerie bertinelli hot in cleveland premiered so what are you like a hundred i don't like you all of a sudden things kind of exploded and i'm just riding the wave and having a wonderful time and 2018 marked betty's final tv appearance she got a standing ovation while honored at the emmys it's incredible that i'm still in this business that i'm still and you are still putting up with me you

Channel: Entertainment Tonight

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Keywords: ET Broadcast, Betty White, Betty White's agent, Betty White's agent interview, Betty White interview, Betty White moments, betty white funeral, Betty White death, Betty White dead, Betty White obit, Entertainment Tonight, etonline, et online, celebrity, Hollywood, news, trending, et, et tonight

Id: S42G-4FPMQw

Length: 8min 45sec (525 seconds)

Published: Sat Jan 08 2022