Carol Burnett, Take a Bow

There is good news today for Carol Burnett and her many, many fans. On January 30, this talented entertainer will be honored with a well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild. Carol has been making us laugh for over half a century, and she’s one of my all-time favorite funny ladies. 

I became a fan back in the 1950s. That’s when she appeared on the Garry Moore Show. She soon had her own TV show, which had me rolling in the aisles each week. My favorite sketch? The Gone with the Wind parody. Watching Carol as Scarlet O’Hara in a dress with the curtain rods as giant shoulder pads made me laugh so hard my husband almost called for an ambulance. Her line, “I saw it in the window and couldn’t resist,” is a classic.

Several years later, I attended one of Carol’s Q&A shows in San Diego. Imagine my delight at being called on to ask a question! “Who do you think is the funniest person working in showbiz today?” I asked.

Carol replied, “Tom Hanks.”

Although Tom Hanks can be very funny indeed (remember the movie Big?), I think the correct answer to my question is “Carol Burnett.”

Way To Go, Screen Actors Guild!

It was such a treat to watch the great Rita Moreno receive her well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild last Saturday evening. Rita gave one of the best acceptance speeches I have ever heard. And she sang part of it – to the joy of everyone attending the SAG Awards event and TV viewers like me.

This versatile actress can sing, dance, and perform both comedy and drama with the best of them. She’s won numerous awards, including an Oscar for West Side Story, a Golden Globe, a Tony and two Emmys. The Internet Movie Data Base lists over 140 film and TV acting credits for Rita. In addition to West Side Story, she’s appeared in such films as Singin’ in the Rain, The King and I, Carnal Knowledge, Marlowe, The Four Seasons, Pagan Love Song, The Ritz, Blue Moon, The Toast of New Orleans, Angus, and King of the Corner. She’s been in numerous popular television shows, and won Emmys for her outstanding work on The Muppet Show and The Rockford Files. Her autobiography, “Rita Moreno: A Memoir,” was published last year and received excellent reviews.

I had the good fortune to talk with Rita when she was one of the guests on our Movie Addict HQ radio show celebrating the 60th Anniversary of Singin’ in the Rain. She’s delightful, candid and remarkably entertaining.

The Screen Actors Guild definitely got this one right!