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Betty White
Peter Kramer  /  AP
The unstoppable Betty White, 89, is taking on reality TV with a hidden-camera show that turns senior citizens into merry pranksters.
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updated 4/4/2011 11:51:10 PM ET 2011-04-05T03:51:10

The unstoppable Betty White is taking on reality TV with a hidden-camera show that turns senior citizens into merry pranksters.

NBC has ordered 12 episodes of "Betty White's Off Their Rockers," the working title for a series based on a hit Belgian program that has been produced in other European countries and South Korea.

Slideshow: Betty White over the years (on this page)

"People have been telling me that I'm 'off my rocker' for years — now I can prove it," White joked in a statement Thursday.

The reality show follows seven seniors who band together to play pranks on younger people, with White helping conspire to put one over on "the unsuspecting youth of America," said NBC and Universal Media Studios executive Paul Telegdy.

(TODAYshow.com is part of msnbc.com, which is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

White, 89, has a track record at NBC. She starred in the network's sitcom "The Golden Girls" for seven seasons and won an Emmy last year as host of "Saturday Night Live."

The actress also stars in the TV Land sitcom "Hot in Cleveland," which has been renewed for a third season, and has a book, "If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won't)," set for release in May.

The reality show's format has been licensed for the United States by Kinetic Content, which will produce the series for NBC in consultation with the original Belgian producer, Tim van Aelst.

An air date for the series was not announced.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Photos: Betty White's transformation

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  1. 1950

    The beautiful 28-year-old brunet co-hosted music roundup "Hollywood on Television" for a whopping five hours a day, six days a week. "We were one of the only games in town," she has said of her show with DJ Al Jarvis. "It was like television college."

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    InStyle.com: Betty White over the years (Hulton Archive / Getty Images) Back to slideshow navigation
  2. 1958

    White sported a wavy pageboy when she played newlywed Vicki Angel on "Date with the Angels." (Everett Collection) Back to slideshow navigation
  3. 1975

    White went blond as the scheming (and sexy -- costar Ed Asner called her "one hot mama") Sue Ann Nivens on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." Her role as the "Happy Homemaker" won her an Emmy. (CBS Photo Archive / Getty) Back to slideshow navigation
  4. 1985

    On the hit show, "The Golden Girls," she played naive Minnesotan Rose Nylund -- and won an Emmy. "I like Rose because she thought life was like a musical comedy," she has said. "It was going to have a happy ending no matter whatever happened."

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    InStyle.com: Betty White over the years (Lynn McAfee / Retna) Back to slideshow navigation
  5. 1982

    Blond bouffant, red lips, big smile -- at 60, the "Match Game" star embraced her look. (ABC Studios / Getty) Back to slideshow navigation
  6. 1999

    Super-producer David E. Kelley cast her in horror flick "Lake Placid." "I was looking for the sweetest, most grandmotherly type, who in fact was vicious and had a gutter mouth," he told EW. "Betty certainly personified the former, and she had no problem embracing the latter." (Columbia Tristar / Courtesy Everett Collection) Back to slideshow navigation
  7. 2010

    The now silver-haired star is hotter than ever with a hit viral Super Bowl ad, a hosting gig on "Saturday Night Live," and a role in the upcoming series "Hot in Cleveland." "At my age, you shouldn't have all this good stuff," she modestly told Entertainment Weekly. "But honestly, how lucky can I get?"

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    InStyle.com: Betty White over the years (Lester Cohen / WireImage) Back to slideshow navigation
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