"Our national treasure": Friends and former co-stars react to Betty White's death
The word "golden," according to Dictionary.com, is an adjective. It's also synonymous with legendary Hollywood actress Betty White. With the news of White's sudden death Friday, the last day of 2021 and just weeks before what would have been her 100th birthday, many of her friends, former co-stars, and even Dictionary.com have taken to social media to share their tributes to "The Golden Girls" actress whose career spans decades.
According to IMDB, White has acting credits in almost every year since 1945, including recently as the voice of Bitey White in 2019's "Toy Story 4."
President Joe Biden said she "brought a smile to the lips of generations of Americans."
"She's a cultural icon who will be sorely missed," he tweeted Friday. "Jill and I are thinking of her family and all those who loved her this New Year's Eve."
NBC talk show host and "Saturday Night Live" alum Seth Meyers tweeted that White is 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," he said.
"Star Trek" actor and author George Takei said that White is "our national treasure."
"Our Sue Ann Nivens, our beloved Rose Nylund," he said referencing her characters on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "The Golden Girls," "has joined the heavens to delight the stars with her inimitable style, humor, and charm. A great loss to us all."
"When midnight strikes tonight, let us all raise a toast to Betty," Takei added.
Ryan Reynolds, who starred alongside White and Sandra Bullock in 2009's "The Proposal," said 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. Now you know the secret," he said.
Reynolds has joked for years that White is his "ex-girlfriend," and in an exclusive interview with People Magazine that published just days before her death, White joked that Reynolds has always been infatuated with her.
"I've heard Ryan can't get over his thing for me, but Robert Redford is The One," she told People. Redford, she has previously joked, is her Hollywood crush.
It's not just former co-stars who were affected by her death. The U.S. Army tweeted condolences as well, paying tribute to her time served volunteering with the service.
"Not only was she an amazing actress, she also served during WWII as a member of the American Women's Voluntary Services," the Army said. "A true legend on and off the screen."
