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The evolution of Betty White

The evolution of Betty White

See photos of the beloved actress through the years to celebrate her 99th birthday

By Madeline Boardman

Updated January 17, 2021 at 08:13 PM EST

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Betty White Through the Years

Born in Oak Park, Ill., on January 17, 1922, Betty White celebrates her 99th birthday Sunday. Pictured here in 1954, the beloved star got her start as a teenager, picking up early work through commercials and programs on the radio. White made her on-screen debut in the '40s and rose to fame on TV shows like Life with Elizabeth, Date with the Angels, The Jack Paar Tonight Show, To Tell the Truth, and The Betty White Show. In the decades since, the actress picked up Emmy Awards for her work on Mary Tyler Moore, The Golden Girls, The John Larroquette Show, and Saturday Night Live. See photos of White through the years, ahead.

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Betty White in 1954

Credit: NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

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Betty White at Her Home With Her Dog Stormy on February 3, 1954

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Betty White in 1955

Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images

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Betty White in 1955

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Betty White at the Chirstmas Parade in Los Angeles in December 1955

Credit: Earl Leaf/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

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Betty White in 1956

Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images

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Betty White at Home on May 6, 1957

Credit: ABC Photo Archives/ABC via Getty Images

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Betty White on Betty White's Date with L.A. Fireman on June 7, 1957

Credit: ABC Photo Archives/ABC via Getty Images

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Betty White on The Betty White Show on March 8, 1958

Credit: ABC Photo Archives/ABC via Getty Images

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Betty White With Her Husband Allen Ludden in the 1960s

Credit: NBCU Photo Bank

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Betty White With Allen Lunden on May 8, 1963

Credit: CBS via Getty Images

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Betty White With Allan Ludden on Password on February 7, 1967

Credit: CBS via Getty Images

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Betty White With Lorne Greene at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1967

Credit: NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

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Betty White in New York on December 27, 1968

Credit: CBS via Getty Images

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Betty White in 1970

Credit: NBC/NBCU Photo Bank

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Betty White With Allen Ludden on February 14, 1972

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Betty White With Allen Ludden, Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Dolly Read Martin, Richard Dawson, and Gene Rayburn on Match Game in 1973

Credit: Courtesy Everett Collection

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Betty White on Mary Tyler Moore in 1974

Credit: CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images

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Betty White With Ted Knight, Georgia Engel, Gavin MacLeod, Mary Tyler Moore, and Ed Asner on Mary Tyler Moore on November 21, 1975

Credit: CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images

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Betty White With Mary Tyler Moore on The Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1975

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Betty White With Ed Asner, Mary Tyler Moore, and Ted Knight at the Emmy Awards in 1976

Credit: CBS via Getty Images

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Betty White With Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on February 8, 1979

Credit: Gene Arias/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank

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Betty White With Rue McClanahan, Estelle Getty, and Bea Arthur on The Golden Girls on July 26, 1986

Credit: Gary Null/NBCU Photo Bank

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Betty White at the 38th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards on September 21, 1986

Credit: Ron Galella/WireImage

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Betty White on The Golden Girls in the Late 1980s

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Betty White With Her Golden Girls Costars Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty in 1988

Credit: ABC Photo Archives/ABC via Getty Images

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Betty White With Rue McClanahan on The Golden Girls in 1989

Credit: Theo Westenberger/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

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Betty White at the ABC All-Star Party for Summer TCA Press Tour on July 20, 1995

Credit: Ron Galella/WireImage

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Betty White on Ladies Man in 1999

Credit: CBS via Getty Images

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Betty White With Mary Tyler Moore and Cloris Leachman at the 2nd Annual TV Land Awards in Hollywood on March 7, 2004

Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

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Betty White With Rue McClanahan and Bea Arthur at the DVD Release Party for The Golden Girls in Los Angeles on November 18, 2004

Credit: Carlo Allegri/Getty Images

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Betty White With James Spader on Boston Legal on January 24, 2006

Credit: RON TOM/ABC Photo Archives

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Account

The evolution of Betty White

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Betty White Through the Years

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Betty White in 1954

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Betty White at Her Home With Her Dog Stormy on February 3, 1954

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Betty White in 1955

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Betty White in 1955

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Betty White at the Chirstmas Parade in Los Angeles in December 1955

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Betty White in 1956

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Betty White at Home on May 6, 1957

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Betty White on Betty White's Date with L.A. Fireman on June 7, 1957

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Betty White on The Betty White Show on March 8, 1958

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Betty White With Her Husband Allen Ludden in the 1960s

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Betty White With Allen Lunden on May 8, 1963

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Betty White With Allan Ludden on Password on February 7, 1967

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Betty White With Lorne Greene at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1967

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Betty White in New York on December 27, 1968

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Betty White in 1970

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Betty White With Allen Ludden on February 14, 1972

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Betty White With Allen Ludden, Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Dolly Read Martin, Richard Dawson, and Gene Rayburn on Match Game in 1973

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Betty White on Mary Tyler Moore in 1974

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Betty White With Ted Knight, Georgia Engel, Gavin MacLeod, Mary Tyler Moore, and Ed Asner on Mary Tyler Moore on November 21, 1975

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Betty White With Mary Tyler Moore on The Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1975

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Betty White With Ed Asner, Mary Tyler Moore, and Ted Knight at the Emmy Awards in 1976

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Betty White With Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on February 8, 1979

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Betty White With Rue McClanahan, Estelle Getty, and Bea Arthur on The Golden Girls on July 26, 1986

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Betty White at the 38th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards on September 21, 1986

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Betty White on The Golden Girls in the Late 1980s

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