Sure, Mary Tyler Moore turned the world on with her smile — but her scene-stealing co-star, the legendary Betty White, is the one who stole our hearts for the long haul.

America’s badass sweetheart, a cultural touchstone who’s entertained generations with her wit and wisdom, turns 99 years old Sunday.

The Illinois-born, Cali-raised teen broke into showbiz three months after graduating from Beverly Hills High in 1939, when she was in an early “experimental” TV show, according to the Television Academy Archive.

Ever since — from pioneering work in the 1950s (she was the first woman to produce a sitcom!) to her ’70s breakthough as nymphomaniacal Sue Ann Nivens on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” to innocent ’80s lady Rose Nylund on “The Golden Girls” — Betty has always been a sure bet.

We know the truth — but does she realize she’s a legit pop culture icon? KEEP READING

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