From ”The Golden Girls” to ”Boston Legal,” White remembers her most cherished characters.
Entertainment Weekly spoke with Betty White in Spring 2010 about her favorite roles. We are sharing it again now after news of her death.
She’s charmed men, she’s eaten cheesecake, and she’s killed (both literally and figuratively). White remembers her most cherished characters.
Elizabeth, Life with Elizabeth (1952-55)
“It was my first series. It was important because I produced the show. We had one writer. A staff of ‘writer.’ We didn’t think of it as being something special. The job was there and you did it.”
Sue Ann Nivens, The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1973-77)
“She was great fun to play because she was the neighborhood nymphomaniac. I used to ask my husband [Allen Ludden], ‘How much is Sue Ann like Betty?’ He’d say, ‘Well, she’s actually the very same character…except she can’t cook.”‘
Rose Nylund, The Golden Girls (1985-92)
“She was terminally naive. I like Rose because she thought life was like a musical comedy. It was going to have a happy ending no matter what ever happened.”
Dr. Shirley Floytt, Ally McBeal (1999)
“I did a one-shot where I was a pill pusher, and I had this vest with all the little pockets of pills, and I was trying to get Ally to take them so we could take them together. It was so crazy.”
Catherine Piper, The Practice & Boston Legal (2004-08)
“When David E. Kelley writes you a part, it’s a privilege. He made her such a complete character. You saw her commit murder and get away with it. You saw her rob two convenience stores and get away with it. And he managed to keep her alive. I loved Catherine.”