It was a surprise to many of her admiring fans that the legendary Carol Burnett was not already immortalized with her handprints in the iconic Hollywood cement. That fact finally changed on Thursday as she was surrounded by friends, co-stars and family at a brief ceremony outside of the TCL Chinese Theater.
Before cementing herself for decades of tourists to visit, she said, “I grew up just a few blocks from here, Yucca and Wilcox. It was a block north of Hollywood Boulevard. And when I was a little girl, I can’t begin to count the times my grandmother and I would walk up her to Grauman’s Chinese Theater. Betty Grable was one of my favorites, and I remember bending down and putting my hands on her handprints, never dreaming that someday I’d be putting my hands here 80 years later.”
Apple TV+ was one of the organizers of the special event, in part to campaign for Burnett’s supporting actress role on the recent comedy series “Palm Royale” starring Kristen Wiig. Show creator Abe Sylvia, producer/director Tate Taylor and co-stars Laura Dern, Julia Duffy, Mindy Cohn and Allison Janney were on hand to help celebrate.
Dern said, “Of the almost 200 people who have their handprints here, Carol has known or shared with the screen with 127 of them. She has worked with everyone from Douglas Fairbanks to Whoopi Goldberg, Gloria Swanson to Robin Williams, Lana Turner, Harpo Marx, George Burns, Elizabeth Taylor, Bob Hope, Jimmy Stewart, Betty Grable, Jack Lemmon, and I could keep going and going.”
The ceremony host was Jimmy Kimmel, just steps away from his own Disney theater for “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” He opened by saying that network executives wanted her to star in a comedy series instead of variety since it “was a man’s game reserved for stars like Milton Berle and Jackie Gleason and Dean Martin.” Even her own mother would “give her a smack when she crossed her eyes or acted funny because she wanted her to behave like a little lady.” He added, “Most of all, she is a thoughtful and kind and absolutely delightful human being.”
Also speaking was Bob Odenkirk, who starred and produced “Better Call Saul,” for which Burnett appeared on the final season over a year ago. He added, “My parents loved ‘The Carol Burnett Show,’ and so did all seven Odenkirk kids… I couldn’t believe I was watching adults being funny and silly and genuinely happy to be around each other.”
Others in attendance were her former co-star Dick Van Dyke and costume designer Bob Mackie. All three of them are members of the TV Academy Hall of Fame. Also celebrating were Bill Hader, Jane Lynch, Maya Rudolph, Peter Gould and Vince Gilligan.
Burnett is a seven-time Emmy winner, including one last year for her 90th birthday special. She has won a Grammy Award and received a Presidential Medal of Freedom, Kennedy Center Honors, Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, SAG life achievement award and the Carol Burnett Award at the Golden Globes.
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