I will certainly be watching this one:
Betty White fans, your prayers have been answered. The former “Golden Girl” will appear on “Saturday Night Live” in the near future, she confirmed to PEOPLE at Elton John’s annual Oscars viewing party on Sunday night.
Fans have been clamoring for White, 88, to do “SNL” — an idea she called “ridiculous” just a few weeks ago — ever since her comic turn in a Snickers ad during the Super Bowl. One Facebook page devoted to the cause has attracted half a million fans.
I forget what I was watching a couple years ago when I was completely shocked (and pleasantly surprised) with how obscene Betty White was.
demkat620
She is great. Animal advocate and very funny lady.
I’ll watch.
Norbrook
Oh yes, I am definitely going to watch that! She’s one of the funniest women, and I love watching her. It ought to be epic!
thejoz
She was in that Lake Placid movie I think and was a foul-mouthed old lady.
…I think that’s what you’re thinking of. Not 100% certain on that.
DavidNC
that William Shatner roast, probably. she was great.
Tickraw
One of my favorite Family Guy moments:
“Hi. I’m Betty White. I just got a subpoena regarding an erotic novel and I’m looking for the son of a bitch responsible.”
UnkyT
Was it The Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner?
http://www.comedycentral.com/videos/index.jhtml?videoId=73131
If you didn’t lover her before that you had too after.
Bob
Yup. Lake Placid.
Llelldorin
Craig Ferguson? When she described Sarah Palin, more accurately than anyone else at the time, as “one crazy bitch?” Before going into a very… detailed?… description of how attractive she found then-Senator Obama?
Irony Abounds
While not obscene, her Sue Ann Nivens was a classic on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Great comedic timing.
General Egali Tarian Stuck
She had some great lines in the last few episodes of The Practice that were just hilarious. I tried to find them at IMBD, but weren’t listed. Completely raunchy and funny as hell.
taylormattd
It was the Shatner roast. Just amazing.
bobbo
You must be very young. She was on “Password” in the 70s (and 60s?) (she was married to the host, Allen Ludden) and was as blue as she could get on a daytime game show. Also her character Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show was a proud slut.
Downpuppy
Betty! Oh Betty!
If I had been taught by her I’d be a better man.
General Egali Tarian Stuck
@thejoz:
Yea, she was great in that, feeding the giant croc her cows as I recall, though been awhile.
nutellaontoast
Does finding out that your elders participate in lewd behavior ever stop amazing people? In HS you’re amazed to find out your teachers drink, in college, your professors. You get a job and giggle about getting high with your boss. Then betty white comes along and drops an Eff-bomb and it’s like, WTF?!?!?!
Ogami Itto
I’ve always enjoyed her work as a comedic actress. Also, yes, she’s infamously bawdy.
demo woman
@General Egali Tarian Stuck: Maybe if you look for her on Boston Legal that would help. Was she on the Practice? Must go check before I’m mocked. Hangs head in shame.. Catherine started at The Practice.
David
One of her first jobs in television was when television was new and there were no templates. She had a five hour morning talk show, five days a week, no script, no writers, and no guests unless she herself booked them.
Quaker in a Basement
Put Betty White and Cloris Leachman together and they could make a longshoreman blush.
General Egali Tarian Stuck
@demo woman: yes, it was the last few episodes of The Practice with the trial of a doctor accused of killing his girlfriend, and Betty, or ms. Piper was a witness. I wasn’t able to get into Boston Legal. but loved The Practice.
Betsy
@nutellaontoast:
It’s not so much the F-bomb; it’s when she says things like “I caught the bouquet at Bill’s wedding…and I hope I’m still around to catch the cock ring at Sulu’s.”
Ash Can
Betty White is who I want to be when I grow up.
Violet
Very much looking forward to this. I’ve loved Betty White since the Mary Tyler Moore Show. I used to watch that in the afternoon in reruns after school. She’s always been hilarious.
Paris
There’s some wing nut religious site that accuses the golden girls of causing homosexuality. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find it easily but there is nothing some wing nut somewhere can’t twist into an assault on their essence of being.
DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal)
I watched Betty as a kid and seeing her in a new light as a foul mouthed adult was excellent, it was real and Betty has always been funny without that aspect. Seeing her, Phyllis Diller, Adam West and other actors I grew up watching ‘turn the new leaf’ to adult-based humor has been hilarious to watch happen. I don’t know how many times I have said to the kids ‘you wouldn’t have seen that on TV when I was a kid’.
The clip she did on Obama that was making the rounds during the general was a frickin’ riot. I’ll be sure to tune into SNL since Betty is an absolute must-see.
PaulW
There’s a demotivational poster of her being a badass:
here.
Cat Lady
@Betsy:
I always thought the gay attraction to Golden Girls was just the Bea Arthur tranny vibe. Who knew?
Also, Jane Harman and Cloris Leachman: separated at birth?
PTirebiter
Back in the mid 70’s I was a cameraman on an animal awards show that went out live from Magic Mountain. Ms. White was presenting an award when the recipient, a huge poodle, trotted onstage and started humping her leg to beat the band. She deadpanned the camera and said, ” and he’s a such friendly boy too.” She never missed a beat and threw us to a break as the hander and two stage managers frantically pried the dog off her. I’ve loved her ever since.
Artful Dodger
And you thought Rachel Maddow was hot.
Raenelle
I’ve loved her since she went on MTM–a show stacked with talent and clever characters–and completely stole every scene she was in. Hilarious. Sly. She’s one of the best, and she has been for a very long time. Like Jeff Bridges, it’s about fucking time that her obvious talent is being honored.
DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal)
@PTirebiter:
That. Is. Freaking. Hilarious! Thanks for the share. :)
Allienne Goddard
Yep. Betty White is, I believe the term is, “teh awesome!”
DonBoy
Reminder: owner of the 1952 Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy series.
Brian J
It was probably that roast of William Shatner.
As I said yesterday, I have a lot of respect for people like her. She’s funny and has been for a while, whether she’s doing something raunchy or something mild. I don’t consider acting as vital to our society as other things, but it’s something that not many people can do well, particularly in a comedic way.
So, my hat’s off to you, Ms. White. You’re a funny broad, worth every second of time you are given. At 88, you’re funnier than ladies half your age.
Brian J
@Llelldorin:
When was that?
I always liked how Lisa Lampenelli described Palin as “that crazy bitch with the gun from Alaska.” It’s funny ’cause it’s true.
Brian J
@nutellaontoast:
Like I said yesterday, part of it is her age. You don’t expect someone her age to be saying such things. But then you try to remove her age and consider just what’s she saying. When you realize that it’s what is being said, and not who is saying it, you realize how great it is.
Tattoosydney
Betty White is one of the funniest women anywhere, and apparently absolutely shameless. If you haven’t seen her regular appearences on the Late Late Show, then you are in for a treat.
Sarah Palin is a crazy bitch.
Actually we prefer to be called sky whores.
KCinDC
She needs to bring Abe Vigoda along.
WereBear
Well, she’s always had drop dead perfect timing.
It worked for her when she was young and cute, and it worked for her when she played on once being young and cute, and now she’s old… and still cute.
She works with all the tools she has, and yes, she is awesome.
Brian J
@Tattoosydney:
Watching that clip of her talking about Sarah Palin almost makes me wish that Palin was the Republican nominee in 2012.
sukabi
@Tattoosydney: ugh, CBS has blocked the “Sky Whores” clip from being viewed in the US…
Chad N Freude
@DonBoy: Yes! “Life With Elizabeth.” Clips are available on YouTube. Dated humor, not especially funny by contemporary standards, but she was terrific. I think she also produced the show.
Corner Stone
@Tickraw: I’m not sure it gets better than having her cast to read “Peterotica”.
Tattoosydney
@sukabi:
Bugger. Pick any one of the others – I particularly like the one where Betty has got a job as the CBS nurse, or the Oscars discussion, or the girl scouts.
demo woman
@General Egali Tarian Stuck: Michael Emerson’s character on The Practice scared the shit out of me… When he appeared on Lost, I had to stop watching. The Practice was great. Boston Legal was just a different show but I have to admit that Spader and Shatner made quite the team.
RandyH
I think she participated in a roast of William Shatner a few years back where she was particularly raunchy with both Shatner and the Sulu guy (after he had recently come out of the closet.)
I was surprised. She was like Kathy Griffith (+40 years) that night.
PTirebiter
@DonBoy: Do you remember the show’s title?
Jon H
I think there’s a fair chance this will turn out like “Snakes On A Plane”, and the net excitement won’t translate into viewers.
By the time she gets on, the net meme will be over, and everyone will go back to their habit of, you know, not watching SNL. So they’ll miss it.
Which would be sad.
ChrisNBama
OMG! Just watched Betty White roast William Shatner! The cockring joke had me spewing soda thru my nose! Classic!
Desert Rat
I think this is nothing short of awesome. And Betty White is a deceptively funny lady in the package of a grandma. :)
jron
@Tattoosydney: the skywhores clip is not available in the US. and that makes me sad.
jron
I didn’t know she had been on Craig Ferguson so many times. All of her clips are hilarious.
Yutsano
@Tattoosydney: Me likey me some bawdy old broads. Betty White has the same image my Catholic grandmother liked to project (saintly, kind, never a discuraging word) but I did get that woman before she died to say “Fuck”. That was a great moment in my life.
So I’m this close to buying the Rosetta Stone stuff and getting my francais skills back to mad props. It’s useful for my employment plus it may come in handy should I decide to exercise my long-standing birthright as a Quebecois.
asiangrrlMN
God, I want to be Betty when I grow up. She’s hilarious. I saw her on Ferguson and cracked up. This clip of the Shatner roast is too awesome for school. I will definitely be watching this SNL.
@Tattoosydney: Hubby 1! Good to see ya.
@Yutsano: That’s why you fake-married moi!
YellowJournalism
I love the old Match Game reruns where she’d pretend to be shocked at some of the other stars’ answers, meanwhile giving some of the raunchiest ones of the episode.
Yutsano
@asiangrrlMN: Yesh, yesh I did. Though the reasons were numerous, mostly because, well, you asked and I dare not say no. Dammit, the more I talk about this damn marriage thing the more I wonder what the hell the Dawg was driving at. I’m gonna overthink it I’m sure.
sam
I’m gonna date myself so badly here, but I watched Betty White on local TV in LA in the 50s doing a show called “Life with Elizabeth.” Very funny lady.
Robin G.
The Golden Girls was my favorite show when I was seven. I learned all the euphamisms for premature ejactulation before I had any real idea of how sex worked. I still watch the DVDs whenever I’m having a bad day.
Betty White is made of so much win. And I don’t think her obscenity is so shocking because she’s old, but rather because it seems to run against her persona. Bob Saget isn’t old, but man, you could have knocked me over with a feather when I saw his standup.
Jamey
Sue Ann Niven is one of the greatest characters in TV history–and the inspiration for Jenna Moroney.
These two achievements alone merit Betty White her own book in The Bible.