Betty White Trends on Twitter for 98th Birthday, but Fans Thought the Worst

Fans had a brief moment of panic during which they thought Betty White had died after the actress' name began trending on Twitter. Friday, Jan. 17 marked White's 98th birthday, and the celebratory posts dedicated to the Golden Girls star by many fans that got her name trending also initially sparked concern among others who assumed the worst.

Saw Betty White in my feed and about DIED! Happy 98th, Betty White! You sassy little gem. ♥️👵🏼 #HappyBirthdayBettyWhite #BettyWhite pic.twitter.com/V5whEzu6ql

— Megan Dupuis 🔮 (@MegEliz1) January 17, 2020

"Can Happy Birthday Betty White trend instead of just [Betty White]?" asked one fan. "I d– near had a hear attack thinking she died."

"When i saw Betty white was trending i was terrified she died on her birthday," wrote another.

5,234 is the number of times I thought Betty White died today seeing her photo in my TL. #HappyBirthdayBettyWhite pic.twitter.com/bu0M7qoZ7K

— Craig Lopacinski (@CraigatNeptune) January 17, 2020

"Every year Betty White trends on Twitter and I worry she died, but it's always just her birthday," tweeted one fan. "This will happen to me every year until her eventual passing at age 120."

"i can't be the only one who deada– thought betty white died when they saw her name trending," commented another.

i rlly thought betty white died. how foolish of me to not acknowledge her immortality. happy bday queen! pic.twitter.com/7PvNQ5vwAL

— ryan (@ryansded) January 17, 2020

Of course, the actress celebrating another birthday also brought about plenty of questions regarding White's secret to longevity, something she had opened up about when speaking to Parade just ahead of her 96th birthday. At the time, White credited her age to vodka and hot dogs, "probably not in that order."

"Accentuate the positive, not the negative," she added. "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."

White has been a staple in Hollywood since the 1950s when she snagged her first big TV role in Life With Elizabeth, though her very first role was in the 1945 short film Time to Kill. Over the years, White has starred on TV series after TV series, including memorable runs on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Love Boat, The Golden Girls, Boston Legal, and more recently, Hot in Cleveland.