For her re-ascent to the top of the pop-culture consciousness, the 88-year-old White has been named Entertainer of the Year by the Associated Press. The wire service collected 102 ballots from member organizations, and White received 20 first-place votes. She beat the cast of "Glee" for the honor by two votes.
"It's ridiculous," White tells the AP. "They haven't caught on to me, and I hope they never do."
White started her year by receiving SAG's lifetime achievement award in January, and she's ending it as a SAG nominee for her individual performance in TV Land's comedy "Hot in Cleveland" (the show's ensemble is also nominated for best cast of a comedy series). In between she won an Emmy for her May turn as host of "Saturday Night Live," which followed a Facebook campaign to get her on the show and gave "SNL" its biggest audience in some time.
White says all the accolades and fan response have been "phenomenal" -- she just doesn't want people to call it a comeback.
"Everybody keeps congratulating me on my resurgence and my big comeback," she tells the AP. "I haven't been away, guys. I've been working steadily for the last 63 years. ... I've had my own following all that time. If they want me to go away, if they get tired of me, just stop asking me because I keep saying yes."
