The Bold And The Beautiful Role You Likely Forgot Betty White Played
Betty White is one of a few actresses whose charisma and star power have practically eclipsed any one individual role. That's perhaps owing to the longevity and durability of her career. Prior to passing away at the age of 99 on December 31, 2021, White graced television screens for decades, beginning with the talk show "Hollywood on Television" in 1949. In addition to leading '50s sitcoms like "Life with Elizabeth" and "Date with the Angels" (via IMDb), White co-founded and held creative control of Bandy Productions (via Television Academy).
Improbably, White's career began to peak once she reached her 50s — a remarkable feat for an actress in the 1970s. In 1973, she was cast in "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," and from then on, White established her on-air mien as a chipper, clean-cut woman with an unlikely love of filth. Almost forty years into her storied career, White landed the role for which she is perhaps best known: Rose Nylund in "The Golden Girls."
The sitcom aired from 1985 to 1992, with White nabbing Emmy nominations for every year the show was on the air, with one win (via IMDb). For all of White's incalculable contributions to TV comedy, there's one corner of the television world that the actress didn't tackle until late in her career — the soap opera. Starting in 2006, White finally did just that with her role in "The Bold and the Beautiful."
She played Stephanie Forrester's long-lost mother
In 2006, White first appeared as Ann Douglas in "The Bold and the Beautiful." The oft-speculated-about character is long ignored in the soap opera, and it isn't until Season 20 that White brings the character to life. White plays the mother of Stephanie Forrester (Susan Flannery), the series' matriarchal head of the family's fashion dynasty. When Stephanie recalls childhood abuse at the hand of her father, she travels home to Chicago to confront her mother, Ann. White's involvement in "The Bold and the Beautiful" wasn't a one-off guest appearance, either. The actress returned for 23 episodes between 2006 and 2009 (via IMDb), until the character's death from pancreatic cancer.
Over the course of her time in "The Bold and the Beautiful," White showcases her little before seen dramatic acting chops. "It's also, for me, such a great stretch because I don't get the chance to do serious acting," White told Tulsa World in 2009. "So to get some serious things to do was kind of fun." Being a soap opera, however, the actress also leans into decidedly soapy plot lines that run the gamut from parental neglect to substance abuse.
After White passed away in 2021, "The Bold and the Beautiful" was one of countless productions to pay homage to the venerated actress. On January 17 — what would have been White's 100th birthday — the series dedicated that night's episode to the former cast member (via Soap Hub). "Betty was as Bold and Beautiful as they come," reads a statement on the show's Twitter account, "and will forever be in our hearts."