Getty Actress Betty White on December 11, 2012 in Los Angeles, California.
Betty White, a legendary actress and comedian and a pioneer of television, died today. She was an acclaimed actress, winning eight Emmy Awards, a Grammy Award, three American Comedy Awards and three Screen Actors Guild Awards. She was perhaps best known for her roles on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Golden Girls and was a panelist on a series of classic American game shows.
White was born Betty Marion White on January 17, 1922, in Oak Park, Illinois. Soon after she was born, her family moved to California and she grew up in Los Angeles, finding her passion for performing in high school. During her life, White was married three times. Her second husband, from 1947 to 1949, was to Hollywood agent Lane Allen, whose real name was Albert Edward Wootten.
Here’s what you need to know about Lane Allen:
1. Lane Allen’s Second Wife Was Actress Randy Stuart
After his divorce from White, Allen met and remarried, this time to actress Randy Stuart. Stuart was born Elizabeth Shaubell in Kansas on October 24, 1924. She was married twice before, to Kenneth Smith from 1943 to 1945 and to Edward Charles George from 1947 until her marriage to Allen in 1954.
The two tied the knot on June 25, 1954, and were married until their divorce in 1968. They had three children together, Gina Lee Wootten, Scott R. Wootten and Laurie A. Wootten. These kids would be Allen’s only children in his three marriages.
Stuart was best known for her film roles in the 1940s and 1950s as well as Western TV shows. Perhaps her most memorable role was as Louise Carey opposite Grant Williams as Scott Carey in 1957’s The Incredible Shrinking Man.
2. He Worked as a Hollywood Agent, Casting Director & Actor
Screengrab/Findagrave.comAlbert Edward Wootten (Lane Allen)
Allen worked in Hollywood as an agent, casting director and actor. According to his IMDB profile, he appeared in many small acting roles, with his most well-known parts coming in 1976 in the TV series Police Story and Gemini Man.
In the late 1970s, he also worked in the casting department for the TV series Project U.F.O. and as the casting director for the Barnaby Jones TV series. His obituary stated that: “During his long career in the entertainment industry, he acted in many roles while holding the position of Casting Director with Disney and MCA/Universal Studios.”
3. Betty White Was Married To Two Other Men In Addition to Allen
GettyBetty White circa 1955.
White was married three times during her life, and Allen was actually White’s second husband. She first married Dick Barker, a U.S. Army Air Corps pilot, but their marriage only lasted five months before they split up. They were married in 1945. She then married Allen two years later, in 1947. Although it lasted a bit longer than her first marriage, they split up after two years, in 1949. According to some articles, it was because Allen pushed her to quit the entertainment industry and focus on raising a family with him.
White met her third husband, Allen Ludden, while he was hosting the game show Password. The two became close friends and eventually got together, marrying in 1963 until his death from stomach cancer in 1981. After Ludden’s death, White famously told Larry King that she wouldn’t remarry because “Once you’ve had the best, who needs the rest?”
She also opened up about her regrets with her first two marriages in an interview a few years ago. She said, “I wish I didn’t have two bad marriages. They were probably my fault. I just didn’t marry the right men… I had lovely relationships, but not anything in the league of Allen [Ludden].”
4. Allen Was Married to Ramona Eileen Mckay Until His Death
Screengrab/Findagrave.comAlbert Edward Wootten (Lane Allen)
Allen married his third wife, Ramona Eileen Mckay, on August 27, 1971. The two were together for over 20 years, until his death in 1995. The two didn’t have any kids together. Ramona died on January 29, 2007.
There isn’t much information publicly available about Allen’s third wife. She was born on January 6, 1935.
5. He Was Born in Toronto, Canada, & Died in 1995 at the Age of 81
Screengrab/NewspapersLane Allen’s obituary
According to his IMDB profile, Allen was born Albert Edward Wootten on August 4, 1914, in Toronto, Canada. His parents were Edwin Patrick Wootten and Olive Victoria Cooper Wootten and he had an older brother, Edwin Patrick. According to public records, he enlisted in the military on October 8, 1941, although it’s unclear how long he served.
He died on August 5, 1995, in Los Angeles. His cause of death has not been publicly revealed. His daughter Gina died a year later, in 1996.