Carol Burnett Screws Over Vicki Lawrence

Look at the credits. She is there the longest and only gets a 'with credit,' while the other two get co-starring and also starring.

This episode has the long lost mama family with dick van dyke

She was funny as hell as Mama, but I never got into the sitcom based on the skits from the Carol Burnett show. It was stretched out to accommodate a 30 minute format and it didn’t work for me.

This is one version of the story I've heard...

Carol's marriage to alkie Joe Hamilton was on the rocks (no pun intended) and that was part of Carol's decision to end her successful variety show "The Carol Burnett Show"

In the last seasons of the show, the Mama's Family sketches had become the breakout segments of the show. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that those sketches were good enough to create a new show around.

Unfortunately, Joe got his production deal moving before Carol and her people did. Joe pitched the idea of a sitcom, got enough interest to film a pilot, and got Vicki Lawrence to sign on to play Mama. Vicki has said that when she agreed she assumed that it would be a joint Carol and Joe production.

But after Vicki had committed to (what she later discovered) was Joe's production, Carol approached her about appearing as Mama in a new series. Vicki was confused - she didn't know that Carol was separating her self and her career from Joe in anticipation of a divorce.

Carol was hurt and upset with Vicki. And even though Carol appeared in Joe's production of the "Mama's Family" series while it was a network show - she didn't own it - and she resented Vicki and those she felt had betrayed her.

Carol took a few more years to finally leave Joe and end the marriage - and based on this version of events - Carol was having a hard time with separating her personal feelings about the divorce from her work.

I know there were several years here VL and CB were on the outs. VL wrote her memoir around the time of it. She was gracious to Burnett in it but also seemed hurt and outraged.

Vicki gets a 'with,' while latecome Conway gets a 'also starring' and DVD gets a costarring credit, despite ruining the show.

Vicki can be a real bitch by many accounts

But Carol seems to have been at fault in this case

Why did Carol fall for and marry Joe when he was a married father with 8 children?

He was an alcoholic and those were the only adult models Carol had ever know.

What does an adult-child of alcoholics, who has grown up with little or no family support, want most? A family.

In the days of her youthful damaged psyche, Joe was an established producer who seemed to have it all - later on as Carol grew and matured - not so much

R3 When Mamas Family started on NBC Carol was a frequent guest star as Eunice. It was cancelled the second year in 1984.

Between 1984 and 86, Carol and Joe Hamilton got divorced. Joe Hamilton made a deal with Lorimer to make new episodes in syndication. THAT was when Carol called Vicki pissed off, and suggested that they do Eunice and Mama. This explains why Eunice appears in the Aunt Fran episodes but not the Aunt Iola episodes.

Both very talented ladies. I'm sorry to hear Vicki might be a bitch.

Remember when Vicki briefly had a talk show?

Vicki Lawrence could kiss Carol's ass 24hrs a day for 4,000 yrs and it still wouldn't reflect how much Vicki owes Carol her career. Vicki had NO experience whatsoever. She was just a high school student in some hick town who wrote Carol a fan letter saying everyone says she looks like Carol. Somehow this lead to Carol casting her on the show. But to say Vicki was a complete an utter nobody would be an understatement.

True, R9

But Vicki proved to be incredibly talented and a critical part of "The Carol Burnett Show" ensemble-cast success

If Vicki hadn't been an incredibly talented young unknown - she never would have made it

She NEVER wouldn't made it without Carol, period, end of discussion.

I remember as a teenager being shocked when suddenly a big hit on the radio was "The Night The Lights Went Out in Georgia" by.... that lady on the Carol Burnett Show? It seemed so incongruous.

Vicki was my favorite in the cast. Completely underrated.

But I agree - she owes Carol everything.

R3 Carol gave her approval to the NBC show. In fact, according to Vicki, Carol was the one who had to persuade her to take the role, as Vicki initially wasn't interested in dong the character on a weekly basis. But she reconsidered. The Hamilton's were separated at the time of the show, which is why Carol did a handful of appearances, because they were not on the best of terms. But she was 100% behind the initial series.

The syndication show is when all the drama you described took place. And Vicki got caught up in all the drama.

The NBC show took off because they did a TV movie that got great reviews and ratings.

It seemed such an unlikely #1 hit, but there it was.

To Vicki's credit, she has always acknowledged that she owes her career to Carol.

And wow, R1, I have been wanting to see that long lost Family sketch for years. Now there is only one I haven't seen -- it aired on Oct 15, 1977 and the synopsis is, "Mama drops in on a newly divorced Eunice unannounced."

[quote]She NEVER wouldn't made it without Carol, period, end of discussion.

And yet we continue to discuss it, R11

Maybe try stamping your foot while you scream...

Vicki might owe Carol the opportunity, she does not owe Carol her talent, those are hers.

Vicki may have been lucky but Carol was also lucky who else besides Vicki could she have had that Much Chemistry with as a sister on her show? Gloria Loring?

Also Joe Hamilton didn't pay the performers well...

A big reason that big-dicked Lyle Waggoner left the show

Joe wrote the theme song so he wouldn't have to pay royalties too!

Joe was at least a functional alcoholic in those years

I can't imagine a young Carol Burnett being a step-mother to Joe Hamilton's EIGHT children from his previous marriages

[quote]his explains why Eunice appears in the Aunt Fran episodes but not the Aunt Iola episodes.

"Aunt" Iola? Turn in your gay card!

I didn't know about the divorced-with-eight-children part. My word, Carol!

And what was that Fade Out - Fade In brou-ha-ha about?

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