Since my dear friend Betty Lynn died — and "friend" understates our long relationship — there have been a lot of online articles and videos and I'm sure there are stories in the tabloids that are really, really wrong. She did not have a sad life at the end. When I saw her in Mt. Airy in June of 2019, one of the things we talked about was how happy she was living there. She was in an assisted living home where the staff took very, very good care of her. She was financially sound. She loved her doctors and caregivers. She loved being the big celebrity in town and meeting her fans. When I spoke with her after that, including the week before she died, none of that had changed.
Yes, she had health problems. If you live to be 95, you might have a health problem or two. It is not news that a woman that age had health problems. She was very content with that situation and grateful she had as few as she did and had lived as long as she had.
She was not in despair. She also did not die of a broken heart because of Andy Griffith. She and Andy were friends but they were not as close as some people like to think. I actually do have a little insight into Betty's romantic life because we talked about matters of the heart and love — hers and mine — a few times, including that last time I saw her in person.
Betty's passing was only sad in the way that the death of anyone who dies at the age of 95 is sad. We can't stop people from writing what they write about folks in the public eye…but we also shouldn't believe that if it's written somewhere or there's a YouTube video about it, it's true. There were sad parts to Betty's life and career but her last years were anything but.