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Carol Creighton Burnett was born on April 26, 1933, in San Antonio, Texas. Soon afterwards, her family moved to California. She attended Hollywood High School and eventually studied theater and musical comedy at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in the early 1950s.
Soon afterwards, the young comedian made her television debut, becoming a regular cast member on 'The Garry Moore Show.' In 1962, she won her first Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performance in a Variety or Musical Program or Series.
By 2010, Burnett was limiting her screen work to occasional guest star appearances on television shows. But she could still raise as smile with skits like the one she shared with Jimmy Fallon on 'The Tonight Show' in 2014.
In the same year, 1962, Burnett shared top billing with Julie Andrews in 'Julie and Carol at Carnegie Hall.' For this musical comedy television special, she took home a second Emmy Award. The two performers became lifelong friends. Burnett also met her future second husband on the show, Joe Hamilton.
With her star in the ascent, Carol Burnett was kept busy with a string of television appearances, including 'The Twilight Zone' episode 'Cavender is Coming' (pictured), broadcast in 1962.
Another great friend and mentor was Lucille Ball. They had worked together in the 1960s, first on Burnett's CBS-TV special 'Carol + 2' and later 'The Lucy Show.' The pair are seen sharing a joke in 1971 during the International Radio and TV Society Gold Medal Awards at Waldorf Astoria in New York City.
In fact, 'The Carol Burnett Show' was celebrated for its star-studded guest star lineup. In this image, Burnett adjusts the bow tie of the king of the one-liners, Rodney Dangerfield.
Carol Burnett reached the pinnacle of her success with her groundbreaking comedy variety show, 'The Carol Burnett Show.' First broadcast in 1967, the production was one of the first of its kind to be hosted by a woman.
Burnett's loud, sloppy slapstick style of comedy was an instant hit, and the show established her as a television superstar. One of her signature characters was an unnamed charwoman (pictured), who often appeared in a musical number.
During her early teens, Carrie Hamilton, daughter of Carol Burnett and Joe Hamilton, struggled with substance and alcohol abuse. She successfully overcame the habit by the time she was 15. In 1979, she appeared on the 'Dinah! and Friends' TV chat show and spoke candidly about her narcotics nightmare. On January 20, 2002, Carrie died from pneumonia as a complication of lung cancer that spread to her brain. She's pictured in the studio with her parents and host Dinah Shore.
Previously married to Don Saroyan (they had divorced in 1962), Carol Burnett tied the knot for the second time on May 4, 1963, with Joe Hamilton, who directed the Carnegie Hall TV special the previous year. The couple had three children together, Carrie, Jody, and Erin. Hamilton died of cancer in 1991.
In 2003, Burnett was among the celebrities acknowledged by the Kennedy Center Honors. She's pictured with fellow honorees James Brown, Loretta Lynn, Mike Nichols, and Itzhak Perlman in Washington, D.C. The annual honors are given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture.
With Joe Hamilton's death in 1991, Burnett floundered emotionally before finding love again with Brian Miller, a member of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. They married on November 24, 2001.
Other notable big-name celebrity guests included Maggie Smith, Gloria Swanson, Betty Grable, Rock Hudson, Steve Martin, and Liza Minnelli. Pictured with Burnett is Rita Hayworth, dressed as the famous charwoman.
Burnett made occasional returns to the stage in the 1970s and 1980s, notably in 1974 alongside Rock Hudson at The Muny theatre in St. Louis, Missouri, in 'I Do! I Do!'
Burnett always felt at home on television, and in 1983 she won a part on the long-running soap opera 'All My Children.' She made occasional appearances on the show in each decade thereafter until 2011. She's pictured left with Darnell Williams, Debbi Morgan, Susan Lucci, and other cast members.
Carol Burnett's recording career stretches back to 1959 and the original cast recording of 'Once Upon a Mattress.' In all, she's released 16 albums. Here she is duetting with operatic soprano Beverly Sills, during Sills' farewell as a performing artist in 1980. Along with Julie Andrews and Lucille Ball, Sills was another great Burnett confidant.
In 1963, the comedian made the jump from small screen to big screen in 'Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?' Starring opposite Dean Martin and Elizabeth Montgomery, she later dismissed the experience as "boring," and missed working in front of a live audience.
'The Carol Burnett Show' ran until 1978. Between series, Burnett revisited cinema with films that included 'Pete 'n' Tillie.' The comedy-drama was well received by critics, with Walter Matthau picking up a BAFTA award and Burnett receiving a Golden Globe nomination.
Two years later she again appeared alongside Matthau in 'The Front Page,' which costarred Matthau's longtime comedy collaborator, Jack Lemmon.
Back on the big screen, Burnett costarred alongside Alan Alda in the hugely successful romantic comedy 'The Four Seasons.' Her role garnered a Golden Globe nomination.
Burnett was nominated for another Golden Globe for her role in 'Annie,' the musical drama based on the 1977 Broadway musical of the same name.
'The Carol Burnett Show' remains one of the most successful comedy series in television history. It won numerous Emmy and Golden Globe awards. The comedian is pictured with husband Joe Hamilton at the Golden Globes awards ceremony in Los Angeles in February 1971.
And in 2019 the veteran comedian and actress was honored with the first-ever Golden Globe Television Special Achievement Award, named after her, during the 76th Annual Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in California.
In recognition of her special talent in making people laugh, Carol Burnett was presented with the inaugural Comedy Hall of Fame award in 1993 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.
And the accolades continued just a couple of years later with Burnett presented with the Peabody Career Achievement Award, handed out at the 77th Annual Peabody Awards Ceremony on May 19, 2018, in New York City.
A proud Carol Burnett was acknowledged by the entertainment industry with a Life Achievement Award during the 22nd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards in Los Angeles on January 30, 2016.
After graduating, Burnett relocated to New York. Her breakout performance in 'Once Upon a Mattress' marked her Broadway debut, for which she received a Tony Award nomination.
Burnett thrived ensconced in the Big Apple. Broadway musical appearances included 'Fade Out – Fade In,' while her 1964 variety series 'The Entertainers' matched her with the likes of Bob Newhart. She's pictured clowning around in her New York apartment.
Actor, singer, and comedian Jim Nabors (pictured with Burnett), best known for his signature character Gomer Pyle, was the guest star on every season premiere of the show. Burnett considered him to be her annual good luck talisman.
Still working, Carol Burnett arrived at NBC's 'Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love' birthday special on March 2, 2023 in Los Angeles, to fanfare and applause.
Sources: (The Famous People) (Britannica) (Emmys)
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This was followed in 2005 with the entertainer receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian award that recognizes exceptional meritorious service.
Carol Burnett is one of the most successful comedians in entertainment history. Her groundbreaking 1960's variety-sketch comedy television series 'The Carol Burnett Show' was one of the first of its kind to be hosted by a woman. It subsequently collected numerous accolades and is regarded as one of the greatest shows ever created. Burnett's acting talent extends to stage and cinema appearances, and she's also a Grammy-award winning singer. So, what makes this veteran entertainer so unique?
Click through for an appreciation of Carol Burnett's life and work.
The comedic career of Carol Burnett
The veteran entertainer is celebrating 90 years of laughter and love
CELEBRITY Retrospective
Carol Burnett is one of the most successful comedians in entertainment history. Her groundbreaking 1960's variety-sketch comedy television series 'The Carol Burnett Show' was one of the first of its kind to be hosted by a woman. It subsequently collected numerous accolades and is regarded as one of the greatest shows ever created. Burnett's acting talent extends to stage and cinema appearances, and she's also a Grammy-award winning singer. So, what makes this veteran entertainer so unique?
Click through for an appreciation of Carol Burnett's life and work.