List of The Carol Burnett Show characters and sketches

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The following is a list of recurring characters and sketches as well as other featured sketches from the CBS comedy and variety show The Carol Burnett Show starring Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, Lyle Waggoner and Tim Conway.

Contents

Characters and sketches

Burnett as the Charwoman Carol Burnett charwoman character 1974.JPG
Burnett as the Charwoman
Burnett as Eunice with Madeline Kahn in "The Family" sketch Carol Burnett Madeline Kahn Eunice Carol Burnett Show.JPG
Burnett as Eunice with Madeline Kahn in "The Family" sketch

Alice Portnoy

Burnett as a little girl who is a member of the Fireside Girls of America, a Girl Scout-type of organization, always trying to blackmail adults into making a contribution to her troop. Lawrence has played her sister Cecily.

As the Stomach Turns

A soap opera parody taking place in the fictional town of Canoga Falls with Burnett as the main character Marian Clayton. Other recurring residents of Canoga Falls include Conway as different variations of the Oldest Man, Korman as Mother Marcus and Lawrence as Marian's daughter, who always comes home with a baby and hands it over to Marian, who shortly thereafter almost always ensconces it in her umbrella stand. Curiously, the first skit was presented as the final episode of the fictional TV series. The skit frequently parodied shows like The Bionic Woman and movies such as The Godfather , Shampoo , and Close Encounters of the Third Kind .

Carol and Sis

Burnett as Carol and Lawrence as her sister Chris with Korman as Carol's husband Roger; [1] the sketch was based on Burnett's life in New York raising her kid sister in New York with her first husband, and Lawrence was originally hired just for this sketch. Roger's doting sister Mimi appeared in three installments, each time played by a different actress; the three Mimis were Alice Ghostley, Kay Medford, and Pat Carroll. [2]

Charwoman

Burnett's signature character, an unnamed charwoman, most often in a musical number, [3] whose animated image has been used in the opening credits, and also in the opening and closing credits of Carol Burnett and Friends.

Chiquita/Chiuango

Burnett's parody of Charo. In one sketch, Charo herself played Chiquita and Burnett played her mother.

The Family

Burnett and Korman as Eunice and Ed Higgins, a married couple, with Lawrence portraying Eunice's very difficult mother "Mama" Thelma Harper in the southern city of Raytown. The sketch's original premise featured Eunice's brother Phillip, played by Roddy McDowall, being visited by the family. Later on, other children of Mama's were introduced, including Betty White as Ellen, Alan Alda as Larry and Tommy Smothers as Jack. In addition, Conway played Mickey Hart, Ed's hard-of-hearing business partner. In the eleventh season, after Ed divorced Eunice owing to Korman's departure, Dick van Dyke was introduced as Dan Fogarty, an old friend of Ed's.

Fireside Chat

Korman and Burnett as the President of the United States and the First Lady (or other political figures), with Lawrence as their daughter. The premise was to parody a "perfect" First Family speaking to the American people, and also included their maid, usually Minerva played by Isabel Sanford. The skit was dropped when they realized that it was alienating half of the potential audience.

George and Zelda

Burnett as Zelda, a whiny, nasal-voiced woman and Korman as her husband George. [3] The sketch was inspired by the roles of Montgomery Clift and Shelley Winters in A Place in the Sun [4] Lawrence has occasionally played Zelda's mother.

The Ham Actors

Having gone through a number of names, the characters eventually became known as "Funt and Mundane," with Korman as Alfred Funt and Burnett as Mundane, two over-the-top actors who run into mishaps on the stage. The sketch started off with Korman as Funt and Burnett as different types of partners. [5] The names Funt and Mundane are take-offs of legendary acting couple Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne.

Kitchen Commercials

Burnett as a woman who is tortured by television commercial mascots come to life.

Mother Marcus

Korman as a full-figured, Yiddish grandmother who was based on his own real-life grandmother. [6] She was usually featured in "As the Stomach Turns", but has also been in other sketches such as the grandmother in "La Caperucita Roja", the Mexican version of "Little Red Riding Hood", the fairy godmother in "Cinderella Gets It On!", the disco version of "Cinderella", and the first Mrs. de Wintry in "Rebecky", the take-off of the 1940 film Rebecca .

Nora Desmond

Burnett as a has-been silent film actress and Korman as her bald, dutiful butler Max. It started with "Sunnyset Boulevard", the take-off of the 1950 film Sunset Boulevard , then continued as its own series of sketches. Gloria Swanson has praised Burnett for the character. [3]

The Old Folks

Burnett and Korman as Molly and Bert, an elderly couple who sit in rocking chairs on a porch talking about their lives.

The Oldest Man

Conway as a character introduced as "Gramps," who was given several names, but is best remembered as Duane Toddleberry. [7] He is an old, slow-moving man, usually in various situations involving Korman being annoyed with his lack of speed.

The Queen

Burnett's parody of Queen Elizabeth II, who made her debut on the interview sketch "V.I.P." Later on she appeared with Korman as her consort, Lawrence turning up various times as both her sister and her daughter, and mostly with Conway as Private Arthur Newberry, a soldier who is completely hollow due to having swallowed a live hand grenade. The premise with Private Newberry was his ridiculous requests, such as asking for animal-flavored ice cream or calling a ship dedicated to him as "HMS Stinky". Lawrence as the princess was once engaged to the hollowed-out private. In time, the Queen and her "King" were rewritten as the rulers of "Freedonia."

Shirley Dimple (occasionally Rhoda Dimple)

Burnett's parody of Shirley Temple.

Stella Toddler

Burnett as an elderly woman who always ends up in unfortunate accidents.

10th Avenue Family

Burnett and Korman as Stella and Harry, an unemployed and very scruffy married couple, with Waggoner as their 15-year-old biker son Brewster and Lawrence as their overdeveloped 12-year-old daughter Dulcie.

Unforgettable Commercials

Parodies of well-known commercials of the time featuring the entire cast. This was an annual sketch. [1]

V.I.P.

Korman as F. Lee Carman, who interviews famous "celebrities", parodied by Burnett, such as Julia Wild (Julia Child), Shirley Dimple (Shirley Temple) and Mae East (Mae West), as well as other guests such as a nudist.

Mrs. Wiggins

Also known as "Mr. Tudball and Mrs. Wiggins", Conway as Mr. Tudball, a businessman who speaks in a mock Romanian accent, [8] putting up with his empty-headed secretary Mrs. Wiggins played by Burnett; Lawrence occasionally played Mrs. Tudball.

Movie parodies

A regular feature of The Carol Burnett Show was its many movie parody sketches, many of which were written or co-written by Stan Hart, Arnie Kogen and Larry Siegel, all prolific contributors for Mad magazine, with each authoring dozens of the magazine's own movie satires. In the early seasons, the movie take-off would begin as a "Metro Golden Mouth" production with Burnett doing her Tarzan yell as a parody of the MGM Lion. In addition, the show featured shorter movie parody sketches as part of a tribute to a specific studio or director.

The curtain dress worn by Burnett in the Went with the Wind! sketch Curtain Dress.JPG
The curtain dress worn by Burnett in the Went with the Wind! sketch

Went with the Wind!

Perhaps the show's best known movie parody is the 1976 Gone with the Wind sketch entitled "Went with the Wind!" It features the famous scene in which Starlett O'Hara must fashion a gown from window curtains, and Burnett, as Starlett, descends a long staircase wearing the green curtains complete with hanging rod. When Korman as Ratt Butler compliments her "gown", she replies, "Thank you. I saw it in the window and I just couldn't resist it." The outfit, designed by Bob Mackie, is now in the Kennedy Center Honors collection of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. [9] [10]

Other movie parodies

A list of other movie parody sketches on The Carol Burnett Show include:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carol Burnett</span> American comedian and actress (born 1933)

Carol Creighton Burnett is an American comedian, actress, and singer. Her comedy-variety series, The Carol Burnett Show, which originally aired on CBS, was one of the first to be hosted by a woman. Burnett has performed on Broadway, on television, and in dramatic and comedic film roles. She has received numerous awards and accolades, including seven Golden Globe Awards, seven Primetime Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and a Grammy Award. Burnett was awarded 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Conway</span> American actor and comedian (1933–2019)

Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway was an American actor, comedian, writer, and director. Conway is perhaps best known as a regular cast member (1975–1978) on the TV comedy The Carol Burnett Show where he portrayed his recurrent iconic characters Mister Tudball and the Oldest Man. Over his career he received numerous accolades including five Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. He received the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1999 and was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 2002.

<i>The Carol Burnett Show</i> American variety/sketch comedy television show (1967–1978)

The Carol Burnett Show is an American variety/sketch comedy television show that originally ran on CBS from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 279 episodes, and again with nine episodes in fall 1991. It starred Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, and Lyle Waggoner. In 1975, frequent guest star Tim Conway became a regular cast member after Waggoner left the series. In 1977, Dick Van Dyke replaced Korman but it was agreed that he was not a match and he left after 10 episodes.

<i>Mamas Family</i> American sitcom (1983–1990)

Mama's Family is an American sitcom television series starring Vicki Lawrence as Mama. The series is a spin-off of a recurring series of comedy sketches called "The Family" featured on The Carol Burnett Show (1967–78) and Carol Burnett & Company (1979). The sketches led to the television film Eunice, and finally the television series.

In theatre, breaking character occurs when an actor fails to maintain the illusion that they are the character they are supposedly portraying. This is considered unprofessional while performing in front of an audience or camera. British English uses a slang term, corpsing, to specifically describe one of the most common ways of breaking character—when an actor loses their composure and laughs or giggles inappropriately during a scene. The British slang term is derived from an actor laughing when their character is supposed to be a corpse. If the breaking of character is particularly serious, it normally results in an abandonment of a take in recorded or filmed drama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harvey Korman</span> American actor and comedian (1927–2008)

Harvey Herschel Korman was an American actor and comedian who performed in television and film productions. He is best remembered as a main cast member alongside Carol Burnett, Tim Conway and Vicki Lawrence on the CBS sketch comedy series The Carol Burnett Show (1967–1977) for which he won four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vicki Lawrence</span> American actress, comedian, and singer (born 1949)

Vicki Lawrence, sometimes credited as Vicki Lawrence Schultz, is an American actress, comedian, and singer. She is best known for her character Mama. Lawrence also originated many other characters on CBS's The Carol Burnett Show from 1967 to 1978, the variety show's entire series run.

"As the Stomach Turns" is a series of comedy sketches parodying the soap opera As the World Turns featured on The Carol Burnett Show, with one installment airing on Carol Burnett & Company. The sketch was created by show writers Kenny Solms and Gail Parent. The Carol Burnett Show introduced the series during its first season in 1967–68 and continued to air new installments for the remainder of its 11-season run, through its final season in 1977–78. The final installment of "As the Stomach Turns" did not air until September 8, 1979, on a different four-week summer series titled Carol Burnett & Company. This was the only installment of "As the Stomach Turns" that did not air on The Carol Burnett Show, which completed its run almost a year and a half earlier on March 29, 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thelma Harper</span> Fictional character

Thelma Harper, better known as Mama, is a fictional character played by American actress Vicki Lawrence. Mama is a purse-lipped, thickset senior citizen in her mid-to-late 60s. She has lived in an unspecified part of the Southern United States called "Raytown" for her entire life, evident from the southern drawl of her speech and customs. Mama is an exaggerated version of a prototypical middle twentieth century lower middle class grandmother in the United States South. The character was originally created for Carol Burnett, however, Burnett preferred to play Mama's daughter Eunice Harper Higgins, resulting in Mama as Lawrence's claim to fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big Chuck and Lil' John</span> 1979 American TV series or program

Charles "Big Chuck" Schodowski and "Lil' John" Rinaldi – together commonly known as Big Chuck and Lil' John – are a duo of entertainers who served as late-night horror hosts of The Big Chuck and Lil' John Show on television station WJW in Cleveland, Ohio from 1979 to 2007. In addition to hosting a movie with a live audience, they also performed original sketch comedy routines. At the end of each sketch was a very distinctive laugh voiced by comedian/actor Jay Lawrence, who was a disc jockey for KYW radio in Cleveland during the early 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eunice Harper Higgins</span> Carol Burnett comedic role

Eunice Higgins is the main character in "The Family" comedy sketches played by Carol Burnett and featured on The Carol Burnett Show (1974–78) and Carol Burnett & Company (1979). Eunice also was featured in her eponymous CBS TV movie, which aired in 1982. The film starred Carol Burnett as Eunice; Ken Berry as Eunice's well-to-do brother, Philip ; Harvey Korman as Eunice's husband, Ed Higgins; Betty White as Eunice's sister, Ellen Harper-Jackson; Vicki Lawrence as Eunice's "Mama", Thelma Harper; and Dick Clair as the voice of Eunice's father Carl Harper. The film takes the Harper family on a 23-year journey.

Carol Burnett & Company is an American four-episode summer variety/sketch comedy television show starring Carol Burnett, Tim Conway, Vicki Lawrence, Kenneth Mars and Craig Richard Nelson. The series served as a continuation of The Carol Burnett Show (1967–1978) and aired on ABC on four consecutive Saturday nights from August 18, 1979, to September 8, 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mrs. Danvers</span> Main antagonist of Daphne du Mauriers 1938 novel Rebecca

Mrs. Danvers is the main antagonist of Daphne du Maurier's 1938 novel Rebecca. Danvers is the head housekeeper at Manderley, the stately manor belonging to the wealthy Maximillian "Maxim" de Winter, where he once lived with his first wife, Rebecca, whom she had adored obsessively. In the 1940 film version, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, the character was played by Judith Anderson, who was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Family (sketch)</span> Sketches featured on The Carol Burnett Show

"The Family" is a series of comedy sketches featured on The Carol Burnett Show, with one final installment airing on Carol Burnett & Company. The Carol Burnett Show introduced the skit starting in the 1973–1974 season. Overall, it aired new installments of the skit for the last five seasons of its total 11-season run; the skit aired from the 1973–1974 season to the 1977–1978 season on the show. The final installment of "The Family" aired on September 8, 1979, after Burnett's CBS show had concluded, on a four-week summer series entitled Carol Burnett & Company. This was the only installment of "The Family" that did not air on The Carol Burnett Show. Altogether, there were 31 appearances of "The Family" sketches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Went with the Wind!</span>

"Went with the Wind!" is a comedy sketch featured on the eighth episode of the tenth season of The Carol Burnett Show. It originally aired in the United States on CBS on November 13, 1976, and is a parody of the 1939 American historical drama film Gone with the Wind. The sketch was written by two young writers, Rick Hawkins and Liz Sage. In 2009, TV Guide ranked the sketch #53 on its list of "Top 100 Episodes of All Time".

Eunice is a 1982 American made-for-television comedy-drama film starring Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, Ken Berry and Betty White which is based on characters of a recurring series of comedy sketches called "The Family" featured on The Carol Burnett Show (1974–78) and Carol Burnett & Company (1979). The film was broadcast as a "CBS Special Presentation" on March 15, 1982 and served as a precursor to the spin-off television sitcom Mama's Family. It was directed by Roger Beatty and Harvey Korman.

"Mrs. Wiggins" is a series of comedy sketches featured on The Carol Burnett Show, with one installment airing on Carol Burnett & Company. The Carol Burnett Show introduced the skit series during its ninth season in 1975–76 and continued to air new installments for the remainder of its 11-season run, through its final season in 1977–78. However, the final installment of "Mrs. Wiggins" would not air until August 18, 1979 on a different four-week summer series titled Carol Burnett & Company. This was the only installment of "Mrs. Wiggins" that did not air on The Carol Burnett Show, which had completed its run almost a year and a half earlier on March 29, 1978. All together, there were 19 installments of "Mrs. Wiggins" sketches.

"A Special Evening with Carol Burnett" is the two-hour series finale of the American variety/sketch comedy television show The Carol Burnett Show. It is the 279th overall episode of the show and the 24th episode of the eleventh and final season which aired on CBS on Wednesday, March 29, 1978 from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. EST.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Oldest Man</span>

The Oldest Man, sometimes referred to as Duane Toddleberry, is a recurring character from comedy sketches featured on The Carol Burnett Show. The character was created by Tim Conway during his run on the show and is noted for Conway's performance of slapstick and ad-libbed humor. The character has been revisited in Conway's live comedy tour with fellow actor Harvey Korman from 2003 until Korman's death in 2008, twice on The Queen Latifah Show between 2014 and 2015, in a sketch in the Motion Picture & Television Fund, and also in the collector's edition DVD titled Together Again, which includes new sketches starring Tim Conway and Harvey Korman in their classic roles from The Carol Burnett Show.

"Cinderella Gets It On!" is a musical comedy sketch featured on the 12th episode of the 9th season of The Carol Burnett Show. It originally aired in the United States on CBS on November 29, 1975, and is an adaptation of Charles Perrault's folk tale Cinderella that is set in the 1970s disco era. The sketch was written by Gary Belkin and Roger Beatty and featured music composed by Arthur Malvin. The sketch was directed by Dave Powers.

References

  1. 1 2 Hyatt, Wesley (2006). Emmy Award Winning Nighttime Television Shows, 1948-2004. McFarland & Company. p. 239. ISBN   978-0-7864-2329-3.
  2. ↑ "Vicki Lawrence". Archive of American Television. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 Hyatt, Wesley (2006). Emmy Award Winning Nighttime Television Shows, 1948-2004. McFarland & Company. p. 240. ISBN   978-0-7864-2329-3.
  4. ↑ Burnett, Carol. "Featurette: Fabulous Firsts". Carol Burnett Show: The Lost Episodes Limited Edition (7 DVD Collection).
  5. ↑ Burnett, Carol. "Featurette: Fabulous Firsts". Carol Burnett Show: The Lost Episodes Limited Edition (7 DVD Collection).
  6. ↑ Lambert, Bruce (May 30, 2008). "Harvey Korman of 'Burnett Show' Dies at 81". New York Times . Retrieved December 5, 2016.
  7. ↑ Jarvis, Zeke (2006). Make 'em Laugh!: American Humorists of the 20th and 21st Centuries. Greenwood. p. 112. ISBN   978-1-4408-2994-9.
  8. ↑ King, Susan. "Tim Conway's life off script", Los Angeles Times , November 11, 2013. Accessed September 6, 2016.
  9. ↑ Magazine, Smithsonian; Rhodes, Jesse. "Carol Burnett—We Just Can't Resist Her!". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
  10. ↑ "National Museum of American History Collects Legendary Burnett Costume". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
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