The Carol Burnett Show

Burnett as the Charwoman on The Muppet Show

The Carol Burnett Show is a sketch comedy TV series that ran from 1967 to 1978 on CBS. It starred Carol Burnett, along with regular performers Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, Tim Conway, Lyle Waggoner, and Dick Van Dyke.

Carol Burnett's signature character, the Charwoman, was featured on the show as a cartoon character in the opening credits, as well as in many skits and songs over the years. Burnett also performed this character during her appearance on The Muppet Show. Burnett also recorded her segments for Sesame Street on the set of her show, specifically during production of episodes #301 (for bits appearing in Sesame's first season and pilot shows) and #401 (for Sesame's second season).

One of the show's long-running sketches "The Family" (with Burnett, Lawrence, and Korman as squabbling relatives) led to the sitcom Mama's Family (with Burnett and Korman reprising their roles for the first two network seasons and Korman hosting as an Alistair Cooke take-off, before the show re-emerged in syndication without them).

Muppet Mentions

Carol Burnett Show Poppyseed Street credits

Shout! Factory released all eleven seasons of the show in a marathon format on several streaming channels, but each episode was edited down from 52 minutes to 22 minutes. Amazon Prime carried these episodes, including the 12/7/70 broadcast. The "Poppyseed Street" parody was removed, but the episode's end credits feature the actors still in their costumes from that sketch, in front of a set modeled after the Sesame set.

• In a sketch that aired on 10/26/70, Carol and Bernadette Peters are in a bridal shop, discussing their fiancés.

Bernadette: "Harold cries at Donald Duck cartoons."

Carol: "Bruce doesn't understand Sesame Street."

• In a sketch that aired on 11/30/70, Carol and Debbie Reynolds are trying to film a coffee commercial, and Debbie asks the director, "Say, can you get the commercial on that [show] Sesame Street?"

• The episode that aired on 12/7/70 featured a Sesame spoof, "Poppyseed Street," with the cast imitating Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch. Guest stars on this episode included Don Rickles and Mel Torme, with cameos by Lucille Ball, Cass Elliot, Ricardo Montalbán, Dean Martin, Jim Nabors, and Dick Martin. Writers included Gene Moss and Jim Thurman.

• In the same episode, Rickles plays a painter who gets into an argument with Harvey Korman (playing Carol's husband) over how to paint their living room. Rickles yells, "Nobody fires me; I quit!...You remember how to spell it? Maybe you saw it on Sesame Street! Q-U-I-T! Quit!" while writing "QUIT" on the wall with yellow paint.

• In a sketch that aired on 11/24/71, called "Ironstreet & Wife," a detective (played by Shecky Greene) is interviewing a couple who think someone is trying to murder them.

The wife (played by Vicki Lawrence) tells him, "I was standing here in front of this mantel, and someone shot at me, and shot the vase."

The detective (who is hard of hearing), asks her, "That place?"

The detective's wife and partner (played by Carol Burnett) replies, "No, dear, vase. V-A-S-E. Vase."

The woman's husband (played by Harvey Korman) says, "What is this, Sesame Street?"

• In a sketch that aired on 3/22/72, a biker (played by Lyle Waggoner) tells his mother, "The family that shares and shares alike will always have a warm, happy home."

His mother asks him, "Aw, did you just make that up?"

He replies, "No, I seen it on Sesame Street."

Mama's Family

• In the season one episode "Positive Thinking," Eunice gets angry when she finds out most of her lines for a play were given to a scene-stealing actress named Sally. When Sally says Eunice is lucky that the theater would let her on stage, Eunice replies back, "Well, I don't see you on Broadway, Miss Piggy!"

• In the season four episode "Mama on Jeopardy," Vinton says the questions they ask on Jeopardy! are tough and then Thelma (Mama) replies "Vinton, you couldn't answer the questions on Sesame Street." Later, Vinton says "Mama's wrong! The only time Big Bird ever stumped me was with a silent 'K.'"

• In the season four episode "A Big Hand for Mama," Naomi wears a yellow dress and Mama says that she looks exactly like Big Bird.

Connections

Regular Cast and Crew

• Ernie Anderson, announcer (1974-1978)
• Gary Belkin, writer (1973-1978)
• Carol Burnett, star
• Tim Conway, frequent guest (1965-1975), regular (1975-1978)
• Don Hinkley, writer (1967-1972)
• Buz Kohan, writer (1967-1978)
• Harvey Korman, regular (1967-1977)
• Peter Matz, musical director (1971-1978)
• Tom Patchett, writer (1972-1978)
• Jay Tarses, writer (1972-1978)
• Dick Van Dyke, guest star (1976), regular (1977)

Guest Stars

Pearl Bailey Kaye Ballard Ruth Buzzi Glen Campbell Dyan Cannon Art Carney Vikki Carr Carol Channing Charo Cher Petula Clark James Coco

Dom DeLuise Phyllis Diller Marty Feldman Joel Grey Valerie Harper Michael Jackson (with the Jackson 5) Madeline Kahn Jerry Lewis Hal Linden Rich Little Paul Lynde Steve Martin

Ethel Merman Liza Minnelli Rita Moreno Jim Nabors Pat Paulsen Bernadette Peters Vincent Price Juliet Prowse Tony Randall Helen Reddy Lynn Redgrave Don Rickles

Joan Rivers Mickey Rooney Dinah Shore Jean Stapleton Stiller and Meara Lily Tomlin Leslie Uggams Ben Vereen Nancy Walker Lesley Ann Warren Flip Wilson Jonathan Winters

Mama's Family cast/crew

• Carol Burnett played Eunice Higgins (1983-1984)
• Imogene Coca played Gert in "Aunt Gert Rides Again" (1983)
• Richard Dawson appeared in "Family Feud" (1983)
• Harvey Korman played Ed Higgins, Alistair Quince, and directed episodes (1983-1984)
• Jerry Reed played Leonard Oates in "The Return of Leonard Oates" (1983)
• Yeardley Smith played Bonita Rokeke in "Where's There's Smoke" (1986)
• Alex Trebek appeared in "Mama on Jeopardy!" (1988)
• Betty White played Ellen Jackson (1983-1986)
• Fred Willard played Willie Potts in "Mama Buys a Car" (1984)