The Carol Burnett Show/Trivia

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Acting for Two: Many sketches would have Carol playing twins, usually to spoof films in which actresses like Bette Davis did the same. Examples include "A Swiped Life" and "Cobumble".
    • One question period had Carol tell a childhood anecdote in which she actually pretended to be a set of twins, complete with changing of clothes, etc.
  • Blooper: Of course a compilation of them was released.
  • Edited for Syndication: The intros with the audience and non-musical sketches were edited into the half hour 1978 show Carol Burnett and Friends.
  • Enforced Method Acting: According to Carol, the reason behind Ms. Wiggins's trademark walk was due to the fact that the skirt she was given was too large and walking that way was the only way to keep it from falling off.
  • Hey, It's That Guy! / Retroactive Recognition:
    • To put it simply, anybody with a pulse from 1967 to 1978 will have guest-starred on the show.
    • Hell, even some of the audience members were (and are) recognizable. Modern viewers will likely find Hannibal Lecter being in the audience rather hilarious.
    • "A Special Evening with Carol Burnett": Eunice's psychiatrist will be familiar to Golden Girls fans as the pyromaniac in the episode "'Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas".
  • Keep Circulating the Tapes: The first five seasons of the series (1967-1972) are co-owned with Bob Banner, preventing them from subsequent syndication and home video releases. With Banner's death in 2011, the outcome of this looks uncertain.
    • The bulk of the musical numbers have not been seen since the original network airings due to licensing issues. Eventually, a DVD collector's edition of the show which includes the musical numbers was released by mail order offering only 2 episodes per $19.95 disc, the extra money going for the licensing.
  • Throw It In: The show would only do two takes a sketch, meaning even flubbed lines would get thrown in the broadcast.
  • What Could Have Been: In interviews, Tim Conway said that in the 80s he was offered a chance to star in a Mr. Tudball spin-off. He declined because he didn't see much potential for storylines, plus the fact that Carol would not be playing Miss Wiggins.
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