BARBARA WALTERS TO ROAST BETTY WHITE

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FAMED FRIERS CLUB

TO ROAST BETTY WHITE
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Betty White



Beloved funny lady Betty White will become the latest honoree to sit in the "hot seat" for the notorious and always outrageous official Friars Club Roast - to be held on May 16th at Manhattan's Sheraton Ballroom. Broadcast trailblazer and host of the View, Barbara Walters has been named as the event’s roastmaster. “My father was a proud Friar for a great many years, and I am proud to be the Roastmaster for Betty, as she paves the way for all youngsters and adds some sex appeal to this dignified, pillar of society," says Walters.
Betty, whose career has spanned more than 70 years, follows in the footsteps of past recipients Milton Berle, Frank Sinatra, Johnny Carson, Lucille Ball, Billy Crystal and most recently...Quentin Tarantino.

Despite her squeaky clean image as Rose Nylund in The Golden Girls, her recent appearances on Saturday Night Live, and her current hit TV show "Hot in Cleveland," have revealed her more bawdy side – much like her character Sue Ann Nivens on the classic Mary Tyler Moore show. Some might say, Betty has spent her entire professional life auditioning for a Friars roast!

Says Betty: “Those Friars may think I'm an easy mark but I have 90 years of comebacks waiting for them. This is such an honor to be roasted by the Friars Club. It will be an afternoon filled with dirty words, risqué jokes & sex talk.....and that's just what I plan on saying! I have no clue what the comedians will talk about.”

The 2012 Friars Club Roast will be produced by award winning TV executive Gary Smith, a former Executive Producer of the Tony and Emmy Awards.

The Friars Club was founded in 1904 as a place where entertainers entertained and over the years has achieved legendary status. Its historic membership has included such legends as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Lucille Ball and Milton Berle. Current Friars include Barbra Streisand, John Travolta, Whoopi Goldberg, Robert DeNiro, Joy Behar, Bruce Willis and Jimmy Fallon. The Friars Club “Monastery” is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan in a classic townhouse and is a haven for entertainers young and old.


Photos By: Sara de Boer/Retna


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