Screen legend Carol Burnett reflected on her career — and even shared some details about her personal life — more than seven decades after getting her start in Hollywood.
Burnett, 92, went from dreams of becoming a journalist to taking on Broadway before she became a sitcom star. However, rejection was one thing she never took personally. The acting legend always knew she would make it big.
“I can’t remember what I was auditioning for. Might have been a commercial or something. … I was just starting out, and it was kind of narrowed down to between me and another girl. I thought I had it, but I didn’t,” Burnett recalled during the Wednesday, January 14, episode of the “IMO” podcast. “I don’t know where this came from, but I thought, ‘It’s her turn. It’s not my turn. My turn will come. It’s her turn.’”
Burnett kept a similar mindset throughout her career, and always knew when it was her turn to shine. Keep scrolling for the biggest revelations from the actress’ “IMO” podcast episode:
Her Strange Experiences With Money
Burnett recalled “desperately” wanting to go to UCLA for college, but her family couldn’t afford it. However, something changed when the actress received an anonymous letter.
“The letter had my name, typewritten, address, there was a three-cent stamp on it,” she said. “They hadn’t mailed it. Somebody put it in there. I opened it up and there was a $50 bill, and to this day, I do not know where that came from. … I said, ‘I’m going to UCLA.’”
This was only the first time this happened to Burnett. Years later, after becoming involved in the UCLA theater department, Burnett had a dream of being on Broadway. One of her theater professors took a few students to a black-tie event in San Diego where the actress met “a very wealthy businessman” who lent her money to move.
“He said, ‘OK, I’m going to lend each one of you $1,000 and if you can, pay it back in five years,” Burnett said. “Stipulations, you must use the money to go to New York. You must never reveal my name. And if you are successful, you must help others out.”
Burnett paid it back “five years to the day.”
Being a Woman in the ‘Betty Crocker Era’ of Hollywood
A female comedian was not able to call writers and tell them a sketch “sucks,” Burnett recalled.
“If I did it as a woman in that time, I would be considered a bitch. What I would do would be, if a sketch wasn’t working and we’re in the rehearsal hall, call the writer. I said, ‘Oh, guys, I’m having a little difficulty with it. Can you come down and help me out?’” the actress said. “They’d come down, and everything would be hunky dory. But, now, it’s so much better.”
Was Carol Burnett Friends With Lucille Ball?
“She was my pal,” Burnett said about the late comedian, revealing they met in New York City. The women talked for “20 minutes” and before leaving said, “Kid, if you ever need me for anything, you call me.”
Three years later, Burnett got Ball to guest star on her NBC special and they “had the best time.” This led to a years-long “great” friendship.
Ball died on Burnett’s birthday in April 1989.
“She always sent me flowers on my birthday,” Burnett recalled. “I got up one morning, and she had died on my birthday. I got flowers that afternoon. ‘Happy birthday, kid.’”
What Happened to Carol Burnett’s Daughter Carrie?
Burnett shared her late daughter Carrie with second husband Joe Hamilton. They are also parents to daughters Jody, 58, and Erin, 57.
“My darling Carrie got into drugs as a teenager, and it took a lot. It was three rehabs and family sessions. The last rehab we sent her to, she was so angry with me,” Burnett recalled. “I said, ‘I have to love her enough to let her hate me,’ and we did.”
Carrie “sobered up” at age 17, Burnett recalled.
“We were doing great. She was doing great until she got sick,” Burnett added, “But, boy, we went through it.”
Carrie died at age 38 in January 2002 from pneumonia as a complication of lung cancer, which spread to her brain.
