Carol Burnett
Carol Burnett | |
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Burnett in 2014 | |
| Born | Carol Creighton Burnett April 26, 1933 San Antonio, Texas, U.S. |
| Education | University of California, Los Angeles |
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| Years active | 1955–present |
| Spouses | Don Saroyan
(m. 1955; div. 1962)Joe Hamilton
(m. 1963; div. 1984)Brian Miller (m. 2001) |
| Children | 3, including Carrie Hamilton and Erin Hamilton |
| Comedy career | |
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| Notable works and roles | The Carol Burnett Show Miss Agatha Hannigan in Annie Eunice Harper Higgins on Mama's Family See also full list |
Carol Creighton Burnett (born April 26, 1933) is an American comedian, actress, singer and writer. Burnett has played dramatic and comedic roles on stage and screen. She has received numerous awards and accolades, including seven Golden Globe Awards, a Grammy Award, seven Primetime Emmy Awards, twelve People's Choice Awards, two Peabody Awards and a Tony Award. Burnett has been honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1975, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005, the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2013, and the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 2015.[1][2]
Burnett was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, until her family moved to Hollywood, living a block away from Hollywood Boulevard.[3] She attended Hollywood High School and eventually studied theater and musical comedy at UCLA. Later, she performed in nightclubs in New York City and had a breakout success on Broadway in 1959 in Once Upon a Mattress, for which she received a Tony Award nomination. She soon made her television debut, regularly appearing on The Garry Moore Show for the next three years, and won her first Emmy Award in 1962.
Eventually, Burnett moved back to Los Angeles and began an 11-year run as star of the CBS variety-sketch comedy series The Carol Burnett Show from 1967 to 1978. She is the first woman to host a comedy-variety series.[4][5] With its vaudeville roots, The Carol Burnett Show was a variety show that combined comedy sketches with song and dance. The comedy sketches included film parodies and character pieces. Burnett created many memorable characters during the show's run, and both she and the show won numerous Emmy and Golden Globe Awards.
Burnett's film roles include Pete 'n' Tillie (1972), The Front Page (1974), A Wedding (1978), The Four Seasons (1981), Annie (1982), Noises Off (1992), and Horton Hears a Who! (2008). On television, she won an Emmy Award for her guest role in Mad About You and appeared in multiple specials with Julie Andrews. She was Tony-nominated for her role in Moon Over Buffalo (1995). Recently she has acted in Better Call Saul (2022), Palm Royale (2024), and Hacks (2025). She recorded her memoir In Such Good Company (2016) for which she won a Grammy Award.[6][7]
In 2019, the Golden Globes created the Carol Burnett Award for career achievement in television, giving Burnett the first award.[8] She was honored with an NBC special Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love celebrating her 90th birthday.
- ^ "Citations for Recipients of the 2005 Presidential Medal of Freedom" (Press release). Washington, DC: The White House. Office of the Press Secretary. November 9, 2005. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
- ^ McDevitt, Caitlin (October 21, 2013). "Carol Burnett honored with Mark Twain Prize". Politico. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
- ^ "Betty White on The Carol Burnett Show | FULL Episode: S10 Ep.12". July 15, 2022. Retrieved September 1, 2023 – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ Spencer, Amy (January 22, 2016). "Carol Burnett: First Woman of Comedy". Parade. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
- ^ Herman, Karen (April 29, 2003). "Interview: Carol Burnett". Archive of American Television. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "Artist Carol Burnett". The Recording Academy. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
- ^ "2017 Grammy Awards: Complete list of nominees". Los Angeles Times. February 12, 2017. Archived from the original on January 14, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
- ^ "Carol Burnett Receives Namesake Golden Globe Award: "Those Childhood Dreams Came True"". The Hollywood Reporter. January 6, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2020.