Alex Carson
Carol Burnett is a beloved comedic icon that rose to fame on The Carol Burnett Show. That successful variety show made Carol a household name, and also made her rich. Despite this, Carol continued to perform in various capacities after her seminal show came to an end, and still tries to keep active today! Join Facts Verse as we explore Carol Burnett’s lifestyle at 88 years old.
Actress Carol Burnett was born in San Antonio, Texas, on April 26, 1933. Her parents were alcoholics, and they left Carol to live with her grandmother when she was young. Her grandmother took her to Hollywood, and the two shared a passion for Golden Age cinema. It was this passion that led Carol down the path to becoming a performer in her own right. But first, she had to find her footing.
After attending Hollywood High School, Carol studied theater at the University of California. While attending the school, she began seeking out acting roles. She ended up finding some in both theater and television, but found her initial success thanks to a novelty song that she performed in a nightclub act. The song called “I Made a Fool of Myself Over John Foster Dulles”. Although the name of John Foster Dulles might not ring many bells nowadays, he was then the Secretary of State. The success of the novelty song opened the gates for Carol to get her first big break on television, performing on The Paul Winchell Show in the year 1955.
In addition to her time on The Paul Winchell Show, Carol also had numerous other television successes throughout the 1950s. She appeared alongside Buddy Hackett on the 1956 sitcom Stanley, and a regular on Stump the Stars, which a game show where celebrities forced to test their knowledge for the audience. By the end of the 1950s, Carol had become a recognizable figure via her numerous appearances on television. However, she was also becoming a star on Broadway. Carol earned her first Tony nomination with her 1959 appearance as Princess Winifred in the musical Once Upon a Mattress.
As a redhead with a natural proclivity for comedy, Carol felt a great kinship with Lucille Ball. While a younger comedian looking to take over their niche might have intimidated other stars of the time, Lucille took to Carol and became somewhat of a mentor for the younger star. This relationship led to Lucille casting Carol as a guest star on The Lucy Show, which was her successor sitcom to I Love Lucy. The appearance brought Carol to more eyes than ever, and her own series was just around the corner.
In 1967, Carol finally received her own show. The Carol Burnett Show was an overnight success, and turned it’s titular star into a household name. The series was a variety show, and was the last majorly successful variety show of it’s kind. After it’s start in 1967, The Carol Burnett Show lasted until 1978. Over this time period, Carol also expanded her resume by appearing in a few notable films, including Robert Altman’s 1978 feature A Wedding. By the time The Carol Burnett Show was over, Carol was wealthy enough to never have to work another day in her life. However, she has continued performing sporadically up until today.
In recent years, the majority of Carol’s appearances in the media have been on television programs. Burnett appeared on the hit series Hot in Cleveland and Glee, and even appeared on the recent revivals of the nostalgic classics Mad About You and Hawaii Five-0. Today, it is estimated that Carol worth around $45 million dollars. Much of which she accumulated as a result of her time on The Carol Burnett Show. Carol’s net worth situates her well above many other stars of the time, and close to superstars like Dick Van Dyke. Dick is worth an estimated $50 million, only a little more than Carol.
Carol’s wealth has allowed her to live a luxurious lifestyle, and she arguably deserves it after all that she has given to the entertainment industry. Carol has had the opportunity to own and occupy numerous expensive properties in her time. Including a house with a beautiful ocean view in Montecito, Santa Barbara, which she purchased for $2 million in 1999. Carol initially had plans to remodel and then sell the home. Having even attempted to sell the property for as much as $50 million. However, Carol is still living in the property.
In 2008, Carol sold an apartment at Trump Towers that overlooked Central Park. The apartment sold for nearly $6 million. Carol also still currently owns an apartment in Manhattan, and also owns a sizable property in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This property featured on the cover of Architectural Digest in 1996. If you’re enjoying this video so far, be sure to hit the like button to show your support! As well, subscribe to the channel if you’d like to be among the first to know when more Facts Verse videos are on their way!
Today, Carol Burnett is 88 years old, and living in her Santa Barbara property with her third husband, a musician by the name of Brian Miller. Carol set to perform a string of shows before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. With dates set in many major locations across the nation. However, the dates had to postponed due to the virus. And Carol subsequently spent time isolating with her husband and their cat at their home.
At 88 years old, Carol is still keeping active. She wakes up early in the morning, keeps an orderly house, has a healthy breakfast, and tries to walk on the treadmill for at least 30 minutes everyday. Besides walking on the treadmill, Carol and her husband are also sure to get out and take walks. A habit that they maintained even during the strictest days of the COVID-19 quarantine. Carol and Brian live in a gated community, and maintain healthy social relationships with their neighbors. All in all, it appears as if Carol is living an idyllic life with her third husband. Although she has been through a lot to get where she is today.
Carol was married twice previously before finding lasting love with her third husband. Carol’s first marriage started before she even became famous. In 1955, Carol married her college sweetheart, who was a man by the name of Don Saroyan. Like Carol, Don was an aspiring entertainer. The two made the decision after becoming married to move out to New York City and try to start an acting career together. When Carol started getting more roles than her husband. He didn’t take it lightly, Problems started developing between the two in their marriage, and they divorced in 1962.
After divorcing Don Saroyan in 1962, Carol didn’t wait long before finding a second husband. Carol’s second husband was a television producer by the name of Joe Hamilton. And the two married in 1963, just a year after Carol’s first divorce. Joe went on to produce The Carol Burnett Show. Just as she had done when trying to start an acting career with her first husband, Carol was once again mixing business and her personal life. However, her marriage to Joe ended up being a good deal more successful than her first.
Joe Hamilton had been married previously, and had a whopping total of eight kids before marrying Carol. While these eight children may have been more than enough for the average couple to worry about, Carol and Joe weren’t content. Carol and Joe ended up having three kids together, named Jody, Erin, and Carrie. Carol and Joe were married for a little over two decades before eventually divorcing. Meaning the two were married for much longer than Carol and Don had been. Carol would later go onto remarry, but she has never had any other children of her own besides the three that she had with her second husband. Not long after Carol and Joe divorced, Joe died of cancer in 1991.
While Carol had only waited a year to remarry the first time. She was much more cautious after the end of her second marriage. Carol waited nearly 20 years before marrying her third husband, Brian Miller. Although Brian isn’t nearly the celebrity that Carol is. He is still somewhat of an interesting figure in the entertainment industry. Brian is a musician, working as the principal drummer of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. Notably, Brian is about 20 years younger than Carol, although this age difference has never gotten in their way. The two married in 2001, and their marriage appears to have survived through isolation in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sadly, one of the three children that Carol had with her second husband ended up passing away in the early 2000s. That child was Carrie Hamilton, who suffered from serious drug addiction issues throughout her life. In 2002, Carrie died of lung cancer, and the event greatly devastated her mother. Carol ended up writing about the death of her daughter in the book Carrie and Me: A Mother-Daughter Love Story. This isn’t the only way in which drug addiction has affected Carol’s kids, as Erin Hamilton currently suffers from issues with drug addiction. Erin has a child of her own, and Carol and Brian petitioned for custody of him in 2020.
Carol has yet to return to performing in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it appears that the tour dates that she cancelled at the start of the pandemic have been rescheduled for 2022! If Carol keeps up her healthy lifestyle, hopefully we can look forward to seeing her continue to pop up every now and then in the entertainment industry! In the meantime, the beloved comedic icon has left behind plenty of great works that fans can enjoy while she basks in her Santa Barbara life of luxury.
At the age of 88, beloved comedic actress Carol Burnett certainly seems to be doing incredibly well for herself! Comment down below to share if you were glad to hear that Carol is still doing well, or if you’re going to try to track down a ticket to one of her upcoming performances. As always, like this video to show your support, and subscribe and hit the notification bell if you’d like to be among the first to know when more Facts Verse videos are on their way!
