Carol Burnett's life story reads like a movie of the week. The daughter of alcoholic parents, she literally grew up in Hollywood, raised on welfare by her beloved grandma "Nanny" in a one-bedroom apartment. A scholarship led Burnett to UCLA's theatre department, where she intended to become a playwright. But after singing at a private party, a wealthy guest was so impressed, he gave Burnett $1,000 to travel to New York to seek fame and fortune, and she quit college.

She worked in summer stock and nightclubs until landing her first TV job on a children's show. In 1957, she gained national recognition with her novelty song "I Made a Fool Of Myself Over John Foster Dulles," a lovesick paean to President Eisenhower's famously solemn Secretary of State. It epitomized the kind of humor that later became Carol Burnett's hallmark-smart, funny satire.

By 1958, Burnett was performing musical comedy on Garry Moore's daytime variety series. When the popular show moved to prime time, Burnett went with it. Her TV success was matched on Broadway, where she was a huge hit as the awkward tomboy Princess Fred in the musical "Once Upon A Mattress."

Burnett won her first Emmy in 1962 as a member of the ensemble cast of "The Garry Moore Show." A second Emmy came her way for "Julie and Carol at Carnegie Hall," which teamed her with her friend Julie Andrews in a 1963 TV special.

The versatile Burnett seemed like a natural for her own series, but "The Carol Burnett Show" didn't hit the airwaves until 1967. It was the ideal showcase for Burnett's many and varied talents. With the able support of cast mates Harvey Korman, Lyle Waggoner, Vicki Lawrence, and, later, Tim Conway, Burnett built a repertoire of sketch characters that inhabited every level of society. She could deftly play the broadest of broads, the most refined of ladies, and everything in between.

The cast was particularly skilled at satirizing Hollywood films, soap operas, and TV commercials, and Burnett excelled in her hilarious parodies of celebrated movie divas "Starlet O'Hara," "Mildred Fierce," and "Nora Desmond." Her most recurring characters included hopelessly incompetent office worker Mrs. Wiggins, the cleaning lady, and the star of the soap opera "As The Stomach Turns." Then, of course, there was her famous Tarzan yell.

Carol Burnett's innate likeability was most apparent in the regular segment when she was just being herself, answering questions from the studio audience. She ended each Q&A session by tugging on her ear, an affectionate signal to her beloved Nanny.

After "The Carol Burnett Show" ended in 1978, winning more Emmys for its star, she continued to shine in television and movie roles. In the early 1990s, Burnett appeared on weekly TV in two different series, although neither could scale the comedic heights of her legendary show. But a role on "Mad About You" as Helen Hunt's eccentric mother won Burnett her most recent Emmy in 1997.

After an absence of thirty-one years, Burnett made a triumphant return to Broadway in 1995, starring in the backstage farce "Moon Over Buffalo," followed in 1999 by the Stephen Sondheim musical revue "Putting It Together."

Carol Burnett overcame a painful childhood to become one of America's most popular entertainers. She continues to delight audiences as a versatile comedienne, accomplished singer, and gifted dramatic actress. At a time when showbusiness is dominated by increasingly youthful performers, Carol Burnett is living proof that there's no substitute for talent and experience. As Newsweek reporter Harry F. Waters noted, "Loving Carol Burnett is a national habit. Just when we forget we're hooked, it all comes back.

-- Jane Garcia