Carol Channing facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Carol Channing
Channing in 1973
Born	Carol Elaine Channing (1921-01-31)January 31, 1921 Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Died	January 15, 2019 (aged 97) Rancho Mirage, California, U.S.
Alma mater	Bennington College
Occupation	Actress singer dancer comedian
Years active	1941–2017
Spouse(s)	Theodore Naidish ​ ​ (m. 1941; div. 1944)​ Alex Carson ​ ​ (m. 1953; div. 1956)​ Charles Lowe ​ ​ (m. 1956; died 1999)​ Harry Kullijian ​ ​ (m. 2003; died 2011)​
Children	1
Signature

Carol Elaine Channing (January 31, 1921 – January 15, 2019) was a famous American actress, singer, dancer, and comedian. She was well-known for her exciting performances and her unique, easily recognizable voice. Carol Channing starred in many popular shows on Broadway and in movies.

She became famous for playing the main characters in two big musicals: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (starting in 1949) and Hello, Dolly! (starting in 1964). For her role in Hello, Dolly!, she won a special award called the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. She played Dolly on Broadway many times, even until 1995. Carol Channing was also nominated for other Tony Awards for her work in shows like The Vamp, Show Girl, and Lorelei.

In movies, she won a Golden Globe Award and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Muzzy in Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967). She also appeared on TV variety shows and played The White Queen in Alice in Wonderland (1985). Carol Channing was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Tony Award in 1995. She kept performing and meeting fans even when she was in her 90s.

Early Life and Beginnings

Carol Channing was born in Seattle, Washington, on January 31, 1921. She was the only child of Adelaide and George Channing. Her father, George, had a diverse background. He became a Christian Science teacher and editor. When Carol was two, her family moved to San Francisco, California.

She went to Aptos Junior High School and Lowell High School in San Francisco. She graduated in 1938. When she was 17, Carol went to Bennington College in Vermont to study drama. Her mother told her about her father's family background before she left for college.

Carol Channing said she first wanted to perform on stage when she was in fourth grade. She felt very drawn to acting after seeing the famous singer Ethel Waters perform. She enjoyed making her classmates laugh by joking about her teachers. This experience helped her feel comfortable performing in front of people.

She often entertained her classmates every Friday night at Bennington College. During her junior year, she started trying out for roles on Broadway. She got a small part in a show, and a newspaper called The New Yorker mentioned her performance. This made her decide to leave college and pursue acting. It took her four years to find another acting job. During that time, she performed at small events and even worked at Macy's bakery.

A Star on Stage and Screen

Stage Career

Carol Channing's first job on stage in New York City was in a show called No for an Answer in 1941. She was 19 years old. She then moved to Broadway in Let's Face It!. Five years later, she had a big role in Lend an Ear (1948). This show helped her become a star.

David Burns and Channing in Hello, Dolly! (1964)

Carol Channing said that the famous artist Al Hirschfeld helped make her a star. He drew a picture of her as a flapper, which helped her get the main role in the musical Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. In this show, she played Lorelei Lee. Her song from the show, "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend," became very famous. In 1950, Time magazine featured her on its cover as a new Broadway star.

In 1961, Carol Channing was nominated for a Tony Award for her role in the show Show Girl. She became even more famous as the star of Jerry Herman's musical Hello, Dolly! in 1964. Her performance as Dolly Levi won her the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. The writer of the play, Thornton Wilder, loved the musical so much that he came to see it every week.

Carol Channing was often invited to important events, including those at the White House. She sang "Hello, Lyndon" for President Lyndon B. Johnson's campaign in 1964. In 1967, she was the first celebrity to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show. Hello, Dolly! ran on Broadway for nearly 3,000 performances, becoming the longest-running musical at the time.

Peter Palmer and Channing in Lorelei (1973)

She played Lorelei Lee again in the musical Lorelei, which started in 1973. This show broke box office records in Oklahoma City. The street in front of the Music Hall was even renamed Channing Square Drive in her honor. Lorelei later moved to Broadway and ran for 320 performances. Carol Channing also performed in two revivals of Hello, Dolly! in New York City and toured with it across the United States.

Film Roles

Carol Channing also appeared in several movies. These include The First Traveling Saleslady (1956), where she gave Clint Eastwood his first on-screen kiss. She was also in the movie Skidoo. Her most famous film role was as Muzzy in Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967), which starred Julie Andrews. For this role, she was nominated for an Academy Award and won a Golden Globe Award. She was very thankful to Julie Andrews for helping her with her character.

Because of her success, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz wanted Carol Channing to star in her own TV show. The pilot for The Carol Channing Show was filmed in 1966, but it was not picked up as a series.

Channing performing with Pearl Bailey in 1973

TV Appearances

Throughout her career, Carol Channing made many guest appearances on TV shows. In the 1960s, she was on The Andy Williams Show. In 1974, she was part of the TV special Free to Be... You and Me, which won an Emmy Award and a Peabody Award. In 1985, she played the White Queen in Alice in Wonderland.

In 1986, she appeared on Sesame Street and sang a funny version of "Hello, Dolly!" called "Hello, Sammy!" to Sammy the Snake. In 1993, she made a fun guest appearance on The Nanny, playing herself.

In 2003, Carol Channing recorded the audiobook of her autobiography, Just Lucky, I Guess. While recording, she received a call from her childhood sweetheart, Harry Kullijian. This led to them getting married a few months later. In 2012, a documentary about her life and career, called Carol Channing: Larger Than Life, was released.

Personal Life

Carol Channing was married four times. Her first husband was Theodore Naidish, a writer, whom she married in 1941. She learned to speak Yiddish from his family.

Her second husband was Alexander F. Carson, a Canadian football player and private detective. They married in 1950 and had one son, Channing Carson.

In 1956, Carol married her manager, Charles Lowe. Her son later took his stepfather's last name, becoming Chan Lowe. Carol filed for divorce from Charles Lowe in 1998, but he passed away before the divorce was finished.

In 2003, Carol Channing reconnected with her junior high school sweetheart, Harry Kullijian. They married on May 10, 2003. They performed together at their old junior high school to raise money for arts education. They also created the Dr. Carol Channing and Harry Kullijian Foundation to support arts education in California schools. Harry Kullijian passed away in 2011.

Carol Channing died from natural causes on January 15, 2019, at her home in Rancho Mirage, California. She was 97 years old. The day after she died, the lights on Broadway were dimmed to honor her.

Legacy and Honors

The handprints of Carol Channing in front of The Great Movie Ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort

• In 1970, Carol Channing was the first celebrity to perform at a Super Bowl halftime show.
• In 1973, it was revealed that she was on a list of political opponents of President Nixon. She later said this was the highest honor in her career.
• In 1981, Carol Channing was welcomed into the American Theater Hall of Fame.
• In 1984, Lowell High School in San Francisco named its auditorium The Carol Channing Theatre in her honor.
• In 1988, the city of San Francisco declared February 14, 1988, to be "Carol Channing Day."
• In 1995, she received a Lifetime Achievement Tony Award.
• In 2004, she was given an honorary doctorate in Fine Arts from California State University, Stanislaus.
• In 2004, she received the Oscar Hammerstein Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre.
• In 2010, she received a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars.

Theater Performances

Filmography

Discography

Awards and Nominations

Images for kids

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  Carol Channing's signature

See also

In Spanish: Carol Channing para niños