With a career spanning nearly eight decades and iconic award-winning performances, Betty White will always remain in our hearts. It is hard to pay tribute to the pioneer of early television in one aspect, as the actor had a great influence off-camera too. Betty White took her last breath on 31st December 2021 and the remembrances focused mainly on her television works.
Betty White: A Progressive Mind
Betty White was not just impressive on camera, but she displayed her power off the camera as well. She was the first woman to co-found a production company with which she produced a national TV show in 1952. As her career progressed, her influence also increased beyond the entertainment industry. White was already a lifelong animal welfare worker, and she also supported the LGBTQ+ community and worked for their rights. She contributed to HIV / AIDS awareness and she also spoke against having biological children in the era where women were expected to do the same. In her 1954 self-produced TV show “The Betty White Show”, she showed her support against racism by inviting Arthur Duncan, a black tap dancer.
Betty chose her career over her marriage and she never regretted that. Asking upon that topic she always said it’s hard for a woman that she is it’s hard to be fair to his husband and keep a bright career at the same time. And according to Betty finding a husband and starting a family are not the benchmark for a woman’s success.
Betty White’s characters were just like her, never afraid to speak of the mind and that is why she gained such popularity among the LGBTQ+ community. She always portrayed the controversial topics with a little touch of humor which made everyone support her. At GLAAd Media Awards 2013, Betty spoke about gay marriage legalization and said that when two people are in love and want to legalize that with marriage, it is not fair to tell them it is not right, it’s primarily not people’s job too.
Most of the millennials came across Betty in the sitcom “The Golden Girls” where 4 women live their lives at old age. The Tv was remarkable because American pop culture and society devalues people in old age and hence Betty White’s expanding her career during that time was an act of both resistance and resilience.
