US President Joe Biden has led the tributes for American actress Betty White, who died on Saturday at the age of 99.
White, who had a long and distinguished career, was best known for playing Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show in the 1970s and Rose Nyland on The Golden Girls in the 1980s and early 1990s.
After success with The Golden Girls, White became a regular on talk and game shows, and made guest appearances on other programmes like Community, 30 Rock and The Bold and the Beautiful.
At 88, she became the oldest person ever to host Saturday Night Live.
White would have been 100 years old on January 17 and recently told People magazine she was looking forward to hitting the milestone.
"I'm so lucky to be in such good health and feel so good at this age. It's amazing," White said.
Biden tweeted, "Betty White brought a smile to the lips of generations of Americans. She's a cultural icon who will be sorely missed. Jill and I are thinking of her family and all those who loved her this New Year's Eve."
House speaker Nancy Pelosi also tweeted, saying it was a tribute to White how many people were now mourning her death.
Tribute also came from fellow actors, with Seth Meyers tweeting: "RIP Betty White, the only SNL host I ever saw get a standing ovation at the after party. A party at which she ordered a vodka and a hotdog and stayed til the bitter end."
Ryan Reynolds said "the world is a different place now" while Mark Ruffalo, Kathy Griffin and Star Trek actor George Takei also paid their respects to the actress.
Actress Aimee Carrero tweeted a story about when she met White, who told her why she had been married three times.
White served in the American Women's Voluntary Services during World War II and the US Army tweeted a picture of her in uniform.
