Scott and SadieGrab your popcorn, because we’ve got a retro Hollywood feud resurfacing that’s juicier than the plots of Golden Girls or All in the Family. Sally Struthers recently accused Betty White of fat shaming her back in the day. Yep, Betty White—America’s golden grandma who could do no wrong. According to Sally, Betty wasn’t quite as sweet off-camera as she was on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
Sally claims Betty used “passive-aggressive jabs” to comment on her weight, leaving her feeling “humiliated” during their encounters. This raises the question: Was Betty White secretly throwing shade in the guise of good-natured ribbing, or was Sally just sensitive to some golden-age sass?
Let’s be real. Betty White’s sharp tongue was legendary. She had a knack for delivering zingers that could be taken as either endearing or cutting, depending on the recipient’s mood (or snack choice). But does that make her a fat-shamer? Or was it just the way Hollywood was back then—less body-positive, more “Hollywood ideal”?
On the other hand, Sally Struthers has every right to call out moments that made her feel uncomfortable. Fat-shaming is no laughing matter, even when cloaked in humor. However, revisiting these moments decades later also prompts the question: Should these comments remain in the past, or are they worth airing now in a culture more attuned to body positivity?
What do you think? Have you ever been told to “put down the fork” by someone claiming they were “concerned for your health”? Is fat shaming real, or is it tough love in disguise? Drop your thoughts in the comments!
