Carol was backed by a wonderful supporting cast including Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, Lyle Waggoner, and relative newcomer Vicki Lawrence (she was only 18 when cast on the show). The skits were so hilarious, sometimes it was hard for everyone to keep a straight face, especially Korman. He would dang near laugh before the punchline was delivered. One of the more popular recurring skits was Mama's Family, which cast Lawrence as the head of a Southern family who constantly bickered. Carol played Eunice, the daughter who loved being the center of attention and berating her lazy husband Ed (played by Korman). The skits proved so popular that it begat a series of its own for 7 seasons and 130 episodes.
I love this photo, especially with Vicki cracking up
Another popular recurring motif was spoofs of classic movies. Notable send-ups included Gone With The Wind, Pillow Talk, Snow White (with a terrifiic Ruth Buzzi as a demented fairy godmother) and a truly hilarious take off on Norma Desmond (with Carol having a field day taking the star to an even further level of craziness).
The Carol Burnett show ran for an astounding 11 seasons for an impressive 278 episodes. Winning tons of Emmys and Golden Globes and setting a new benchmark for all variety shows that followed. There is a loyal fan following of this amazing series and rightfully so. It was the perfect mix of entertainment for people of all ages.
Here's a perfect example of a hilarious skit, only one minute long but very funny...
2 comments:
Monty, my favorite skit was Mama's Family. I even loved the spinoff show that followed. It never fails to crack me up.
I think I've already mentioned this, but I really loooove the movie spoofs hahaha... and soap opera spoofs....
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