Beloved actress, comedian and icon Betty White has died aged 99, just weeks before a milestone birthday, TMZ reports.

A pioneer of early television and with a career spanning over nine decades, White is noted for her vast work in the entertainment industry, having been one of the first women to exert control in front of and behind the camera, as well as for being the first woman to produce a sitcom (Life with Elizabeth), which contributed to her being named honorary Mayor of Hollywood in 1955.

She is also widely known for her roles as Sue Ann Nivens on the CBS sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1973–1977), Rose Nylund on the NBC sitcom The Golden Girls (1985–1992), and Elka Ostrovsky on the TV Land sitcom Hot in Cleveland (2010–2015).

White holds the Guinness World Record for ‘Longest TV Career for an Entertainer’ after she started working in television in 1939 and was the recipient of eight Emmy Awards (21 nominations), three Screen Actors Guild Awards and a 1985 Television Hall of Fame inductee.

She credited ‘vodka, french fries and hot dogs’ for her longevity and said her ‘obsessive addiction to crossword puzzles’ kept her mind sharp.