Betty White passed away on Dec. 31 at the age of 99, and tributes poured out online to the beloved Golden Girls actress. One heartwarming story came from actor Don Cheadle, who starred with White in the Golden Girls spinoff, Golden Palace. The Marvel star took to Twitter to share a behind-the-scenes detail that showed what kind of woman White was.
“Betty was the best of the best. When we were shooting scenes together it was difficult for the DP to get the lighting right between my chocolate and Betty’s white! She was either a ghost or I was the shadow,” Cheadle shared. “I came on set one day and Betty had darkened her make up/hair a bit in an attempt to accommodate for it.”
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“Nobody asked her to do it. and that’s just one small example of her overflowing generosity,” Cheadle continued. “My dogs thank her too. She gave us our veterinarian reco who we still see to this day. She was the goldenest of them all and will be forever missed.”
The Golden Palace took place after the events of The Golden Girls finale when Bea Arthur’s Dorothy got married and left the group. The Golden Palace saw Rose (White), Blanche (Rue McClanahan), and Sophia (Estelle Getty) relocate to a South Beach hotel that they invested in and intend to manage. The series also starred Cheech Marin. It only ran for one season.
The news of White’s passing was first reported by TMZ and it happened just weeks before her birthday on Jan. 17. TMZ also reported that White didn’t have any sudden illness nor was battling any particular ailment. It’s been reported White died of natural causes.
“Even though Betty was about to be 100, I thought she would live forever,” White’s agent and close friend Jeff Witjas told PEOPLE in a statement on Friday. “I will miss her terribly and so will the animal world that she loved so much. I don’t think Betty ever feared passing because she always wanted to be with her most beloved husband Allen Ludden. She believed she would be with him again.”
Before her death, White told PEOPLE about how excited she was to turn 100. “I’m so lucky to be in such good health and feel so good at this age,” she said. “It’s amazing.”
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