Carol Burnett Turns 90

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

Lemonada Media

Society & Culture, Film Interviews, Tv & Film

4.8 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 26 April 2023

⏱️ 59 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Today, on her 90th birthday, a celebration of Carol Burnett! After seven decades in the industry, Burnett sat down with Sam to discuss her upbringing in the Hollywood Arms Apartments (4:25), a mysterious envelope of money that allowed her to study at UCLA (8:00), a generous loan that catapulted her to New York City (13:06), and her “big break” in 1957 (23:30).

Then, we walk through how Julie & Carol at Carnegie Hall came to be (31:40), finding her place in “a man’s game” on network television (40:15), and her fond memories of The Carol Burnett Show and everyone who made it possible (43:56). Finally, before we leave, a conversation on divine intervention (52:00) and what she's grateful for today (56:37).

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Pushkin. This is talk easy. I'm San Frigo, so welcome to the show. Today on her 90th birthday a celebration of Carol Burnett.
0:47.0	For more than half a century, she's remained a powerful comedic force,
0:51.3	starting with her titular program, The Carol Burnett Show, which ran from
0:55.6	1967 through 1978.
0:59.1	In that intervening decade, Burnett through her undeniable comedic talent, dismantled the Boys Club of network
1:06.6	television. Whether it's her gift for physical comedy, her quick wit, or note-perfect impressions, Burnett has inspired a generation of performers.
1:16.0	Kristen Whig, Laura Dern, Lisa Kudro, Taraji P Henson, Bill Hader, Steve Kral, Allison Janney, Amy Polar, all of whom, by the way, will be honoring
1:27.4	the Trailblazer and Carol Burnett 90 years of laughter and love, airing tonight on NBC at 8.7 Central. The Televise birthday
1:37.3	special will be available to stream on Peacock starting tomorrow April 27th.
1:43.6	But for today, I wanted to return to this conversation with Burnett that we had back in 2020.
1:50.5	In revisiting this conversation, I remember thinking how strange this all it was, to be
1:56.3	quarantined, taping a podcast in a closet with Carol Burnett, who I am sure had no idea who I was at the start of this phone call.
2:06.8	And yet, by the end, as we walked through her upbringing in California, an act of Kismet
2:12.1	that led her to New York City, the creation of her seminal
2:15.6	variety show, how she grappled with grief.
2:19.0	I felt deeply connected to that
2:25.0	the voice on the other line. And it's my hope as we celebrate her 90th birthday
2:26.0	through this recorded phone call that you will too.
2:30.0	So, this is Carol Burnett Burnett now and forever. Happy birthday.
2:35.6	Hello?
2:40.2	Hello?
2:41.2	Hi.
	...

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