Did Betty White Die In Her Sleep?

Fans, friends, and celebrities alike are mourning the loss of legendary actor Betty White, after her agent broke the news that she tragically died on New Year's Eve. According to The Hollywood Reporter, White died in her Los Angeles home unexpectedly, weeks before turning 100. The actor spent eight decades working in Hollywood including iconic roles in "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "The Golden Girls," and "Hot in Cleveland." "I will miss her terribly and so will the animal world that she loved so much," said White's agent Jeff Witjas to People. "I don't think Betty ever feared passing because she always wanted to be with her most beloved husband Allen Ludden. She believed she would be with him again."

White confirmed just that back in 2012 in an interview with "CBS Sunday Morning." The star told Kati Couric her "mother had the most wonderful outlook on death" that she adopted herself. "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.'" News of White's death came as a surprise to fans, who never imagined the day the world would lose their American sweetheart. "Even though Betty was about to be 100, I thought she would live forever," said White's agent.

Now, details are emerging about the cause of death for White, and whether or not her health had an impact.

According to Betty White's friend and agent Jeff Witjas, the star died on New Year's Eve in her sleep, seemingly of natural causes.

The actor "died peacefully in her sleep at her home early this morning," Witjas said to People. White had spoken with the magazine in a piece published just days prior as she looked forward to her 100th birthday, telling the outlet, "I'm so lucky to be in such good health and feel so good at this age." Back in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic first began, reps for White told Today that the actor was "doing very well" as fans worried about the 98-year-old (at the time)."No one is permitted in except those who must," said White's rep. "She owns literally thousands of crossword puzzle books and is constantly doing them to keep her mind jumping."

Aside from crossword puzzles, over 70 years of work and avoiding "anything green," as the actor told People, White has given tidbits into how she stayed healthy in her 99 years of life. Back in 2014, White wrote an op-ed in Harper's Bazaar detailing how she doesn't "eat anything special," but enjoys french fries, hot dogs, and "vodka on the rocks." Then in 2018, the actor told Parade her secret to longevity is to "accentuate the positive, not the negative." White continued, "It sounds so trite, but a lot of people will pick out something to complain about, rather than say, 'Hey, that was great!' It's not hard to find great stuff if you look."

While tributes have poured all over social media for Betty White, with a lot of fans sharing memes of how they believe she still wasn't old enough to die yet, she's always joked about being one of the oldest entertainers in the film and television industry. 

During an interview back in 2010, White told Parade that she was more 90210 than the original "Beverly Hills 90210" gang. Or at least, she was there first. White moved to Beverly Hills from Chicago when she was just 18 months old with her family. "I don't think California was even a state yet. I'm pretty sure it was still a territory," she joked. In that same interview, White — who the internet adopted as their best friend thanks in part to her "Golden Girls" fame — says that if there's one friendship she's not interested in, it's the Facebook kind. Calling herself a "technological spaz," she said that social media sounded like "a huge waste of time" during her "Saturday Night Live" monologue back in 2010, which SNL replayed one day after her death, according to Deadline. White's episode originally aired on Mother's Day that year after — ironically enough — a Facebook page was launched to get her on the show.

White was definitely a legendary entertainer, ahead of her time. It's without a doubt that the world is going to miss her wit and her wisdom and her undeniable charm.