Watching, that is. I got the DVD of Once Upon a Mattress, in which Burnett plays the nasty Queen Agravaine. I remember watching the show on TV in the 50s, when she was Princess Winifred, and howling and rolling on the floor.

And about an hour after I finished watching the DVD, lo and behold on PBS was the American Masters presentation about Carol Burnett - it was absolutely marvelous, and I laughed over and over again.

I watched the Carol Burnett show for all of its 11 years, hardly missing a show, and remember having to run to the bathroom during commercials because I laughed so hard. Who else remembers the Carol Burnett show? One of my favorites is, of course the Gone With the Wind skit. The other one I remember, and laugh every time, is the skit when Tim Conway told the joke about the Siamese Twin elephants, and everyone on the stage broke up.

By Dawnk777 on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 07:29 am:

I watched many of the shows, too, when I was a babysitting teenager, and when I was at home, too. I loved that show. We DVR'ed the American Masters Program, but I haven't watched it yet. Now, I can't wait. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

There was recently an article in the local newspaper about the American Masters Show. I didn't realize that the Carol Burnett Show started in fall of 1967! Of course, I was only 7yo, then and I'm sure I was in bed by 8pm. So, I only got to watch the later shows. It ended when I graduated from high school and I remember being sad, when it ended.

By Karen~admin on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 10:34 am:

*I* remember that show! LOL

Gotta love PBS - particularly when they are doing their membership drive. They show some wonderful things then.

By Dana on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 10:45 am:

I was a regular watcher as well. In highschool, I would babysit every Sat night and watch the show.

Gone with the Wind was a great one, and I remember laughing so hard with the curtains on her shoulders.

My other favorite was Mrs /A-whihh-gins/ with Tim Conway. It was always best when he couldn't control his laughter.

By Marcia on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 10:51 am:

It was definitely one of my favourite shows as a little girl!!!

By Nicki on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 12:47 pm:

I have great memories of watching Carol Burnette with my dad. I remember he'd laugh so hard he's have tears at times!
This makes me want to rent the DVD. :-)

By Mom2three1968 on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 12:57 pm:

I remember the show too! It was fun watching it with my mom. It was so much fun and they were classic. I'd like to get her shows on dvd that would be neat to have! I also remember the show Love American Style, I used to stay up to watch that show with my mom because I didn't need to get up for school in the morning because I had afternoon kindergarten!

By Dawnk777 on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 01:48 pm:

I have got to watch that PBS show sometime today!

By Hol on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 02:37 pm:

Oh yes, Carol Burnett was one of my favourites! That was when TV was GOOD and the comedies were clean. I LOVED the cast of the CB Show, the way Harvey Korman and Tim Conway played off each other. They would crack each other up, and it would make you laugh just seeing them laugh when they were trying to do the skit.

Yes, Ginny the "Gone With The Wind" skit is priceless, as is the elephant skit. I was newlywed with my young husband deployed in the late sixties, early seventies, and I can remember watching on our little black and white TV in our tiny apartment.

I loved "Love American Style", too, in the early seventies. By then, we had gotten colour TV. I remember watching it when I was pregnant with DD (36 years ago! Yikes!)

I wish there was good TV today. Hardly any of the shows of TV will be considered "classics" thirty years from now. And CB Show and others, proved that comedy didn't have to be dirty to be hilarious.

Ginny, thanks for reviving a wonderful memory.

By Cocoabutter on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 02:41 pm:

When I was really little, like 4 or 5, my mom and dad only had one car. My dad worked 2nd shift, and there were times when we took him to work and kept the car, then we'd go and get him at 11:00. We had to leave at 10:30, and that was right in the middle of the Carol Burnett Show. I used to always watch the first half hour and get really bumbed because we had to leave.

But I don't remember much of it. I do remember Vicki Lawrence-- I think I liked her more than Carol. (But I didn't like her show Mama's Family.)

By Wandilu on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 05:39 pm:

Carol Burnett was a big part of my life.I absolutely loved that show!! I remember laughing so hard at them laughing at themselves !!!!

By Luvn29 on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 07:39 pm:

Okay, everyone's going to shoot me, but I never did like that show...of course, I'm only twenty-eight, so maybe that's part of it??? But, I just don't like slapstick humor!

However, I do feel like she is an icon, and I loved the Vicki Lawrence show that she had (the talk show)!

By Hol on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 09:06 pm:

Another "blast-from-the-past" that only Ginny, myself and a few others would remember was "Laugh In". I LOVED that show. And "The Smothers Brothers Show", too.

By Marcia on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 09:40 pm:

I remember Laugh In, but I was pretty small watching it.

By Dawnk777 on Sunday, November 11, 2007 - 11:34 pm:

I was young when Laugh-In was on, but I definitely remember it! That was on earlier in the evening, so I remember watching it as a kid. January 22, 1968, so I would have been 8 years old. I always thought it was funny when Ruth Buzzi would hit Henry Gibson over the head with her purse.

Gary and I watched the Carol Burnett show tonight. I didn't realize she'd had such a rough childhood with both of her parents being alcholics. It's a good thing she had Grandmother to be a role model and often a parent.

By Nicki on Monday, November 12, 2007 - 01:46 am:

I remember "Laugh In"! I also recall my mom wasn't too fond of my watching it when I would babysit at the neighbor's house. She wasn't sure I was old enough for some of the material, lol. I imagine it was pretty mild compared to some of the shows today.

By Ginny~moderator on Monday, November 12, 2007 - 05:44 am:

I remember Laugh In with great pleasure. But, I borrowed some CDs from the library, collections from Laugh-In, and discovered that most of it wasn't funny to me now. Now, Carol Burnett is still funny to me. Go figure.

By Bobbie~moderatr on Monday, November 12, 2007 - 10:05 am:

I love Carol Burnett too. I caught her show on PBS and she is quite the lady for sure. She is a prime example with enough drive you can do whatever you dream. Very accomplished lady, with a lot of pain in her past.

By Sandysmom on Monday, November 12, 2007 - 10:33 am:

I used to watch Carol Burnett with my parents, and I remember it being so funny. It would be nice if they started showing reruns on a regular basis.

By Sandysmom on Monday, November 12, 2007 - 10:37 am:

Wasn't Mama's Family a spinoff of the Carol Burnett show?

By Bobbie~moderatr on Monday, November 12, 2007 - 10:47 am:

Yes, Mama's Family started out as a skit on the Carol Burnett show and I loved that show too.

By Hol on Saturday, November 24, 2007 - 01:00 am:

I just saw on Amazon where "Love American Style" is available on DVD now. I didn't realize that "Happy Days", "The Love Boat" and "Wait Til Your Father Gets Home" (kind of like "King of the Hill") were all spin-offs from LAS. Who knew?

By Dawnk777 on Saturday, November 24, 2007 - 03:22 pm:

I loved "Love American Style!" LOL! I watched it all the time!

By Reds9298 on Saturday, November 24, 2007 - 05:49 pm:

I used to laugh my butt off at the Carol Burnett Show!! She was HYSTERICAL! I used to like Mama's Family as well, and DH STILL makes fun of me for it. (I'm 32)

By Bobbie~moderatr on Sunday, November 25, 2007 - 06:56 am:

Mama's family is still on, in reruns and we watch it regularly. My kids think the implied humor, of this type of show, is a hoot.