Vicki Lawrence facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Vicki Lawrence
Lawrence in 2024
Born	Vicki Ann Axelrad (1949-03-26) March 26, 1949 (age 76) Inglewood, California, U.S.
Other names	Vicki Lawrence Schultz
Occupation	Actress comedian singer
Years active	1967–present
Spouse(s)	Bobby Russell ​ ​ (m. 1972; div. 1974)​ Al Schultz ​ ​ (m. 1974; died 2024)​
Children	2

Vicki Lawrence (born Vicki Ann Axelrad, March 26, 1949) is a famous American actress, comedian, and singer. She is most recognized for playing her hilarious character, Mama (Thelma Harper). Vicki Lawrence also created many other characters on CBS's The Carol Burnett Show. She was a part of this popular variety show from 1967 to 1978, staying for its entire run.

The funny "The Family" skits, where Mama first appeared, became so popular that they led to Vicki Lawrence getting her own TV show called Mama's Family. In this show, her Mama character became the main focus and grew even funnier. Since 2001, Vicki Lawrence has continued to perform as Mama in a live comedy show called "Vicki and Mama: A Two Woman Show." She has also made many guest appearances on TV shows as her famous Mama character.

In 1973, Vicki Lawrence had a huge hit song in the USA called "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia". This song reached number one in both the United States and Canada. Later, in 1991, Reba McEntire covered the song, and her version also became very popular. Vicki Lawrence also had number one hits in Australia, like "He Did with Me" in 1974. She has been nominated for several Emmy Awards and Golden Globe Awards, winning an Emmy in 1976. She also appeared in the Disney Channel show Hannah Montana and the Fox sitcom The Cool Kids.

Early Life and Big Break

Vicki Ann Axelrad was born in Inglewood, California. Her family's last name was later changed to "Lawrence." She went to Morningside High School and graduated in 1967.

Originally, Vicki wanted to be a dental hygienist. She even attended UCLA while working on The Carol Burnett Show. She later changed her major to theater arts but left college after two years.

Discovering Her Talent

In high school, Vicki joined a musical group called The Young Americans. Being with this group gave her lots of experience. She toured, performed at the Oscars, and met famous performers like Johnny Mathis and Louis Armstrong. She also performed on The Andy Williams Show.

During her senior year, Vicki entered a local contest called Miss Fireball of Inglewood. A newspaper reporter wrote that Vicki looked a lot like a young Carol Burnett. Vicki's mother encouraged her to write a letter to Carol Burnett, including the newspaper article. Carol Burnett saw the letter and called Vicki's father. She then went to see the Miss Fireball contest. Vicki won, and Carol Burnett crowned her.

Joining The Carol Burnett Show

Carol Burnett was looking for an actress to play her younger sister on her new show. After a few months of auditions, 18-year-old Vicki Lawrence got the part. She was specifically chosen to play "Chrissy" in the "Carol and Sis" sketches.

Once Vicki started working on The Carol Burnett Show, Carol Burnett and Harvey Korman became her mentors. Harvey Korman taught her many sketch comedy skills, like how to listen carefully for cues and how to speak in different accents. Vicki has often said that working on the show was like attending the "Harvard school of comedy." She learned a lot from Carol Burnett and they became very close friends.

Career Highlights

Becoming "Mama"

On The Carol Burnett Show, from left to right: Carol Burnett, Vicki Lawrence, and Dinah Shore in a sketch, 1977.

Vicki Lawrence as Thelma "Mama" Harper, 2009.

Vicki Lawrence is most famous for her comedy and acting on CBS's The Carol Burnett Show. She was the only cast member, besides Carol Burnett herself, who stayed for all 11 seasons, from 1967 to 1978. After the show ended, Vicki and her husband, Al Schultz, moved to Hawaii for a few years before returning to Los Angeles.

The Family Skits and Mama's Family

In the seventh season of The Carol Burnett Show, Vicki Lawrence introduced her famous Mama character in a comedy sketch called The Family. This skit was only meant to be a one-time thing, but audiences loved it so much that it became a regular part of the show for the next five seasons. Vicki played Mama, a strict, older widowed mother to the often unlucky Eunice (played by Carol Burnett, even though Vicki was 16 years younger). "The Family" sketches created some of the most memorable and funny moments on The Carol Burnett Show.

Because the Mama character was so popular, CBS made a TV movie called Eunice in 1982. Then, NBC created the sitcom Mama's Family, which focused on Mama's life. Carol Burnett also appeared as Eunice Higgins in the sitcom sometimes. Mama's Family ran on NBC from 1983 to 1985. After NBC canceled it, the show was brought back from 1986 to 1990 in syndication, where it became even more successful. Vicki Lawrence also performs as Mama on stage in her "Vicki Lawrence & Mama: A Two-Woman Show."

Other Acting Roles

Vicki Lawrence has appeared on many other TV shows. These include sitcoms like Laverne & Shirley, The Love Boat, Major Dad, Diagnosis: Murder, and Yes, Dear. She played different characters in two episodes of Murder, She Wrote. She also played Phyllis, Dan's old high school friend, in an episode of Roseanne.

Between the NBC and syndicated runs of Mama's Family, Vicki starred in a comedy pilot called Anything for Love in 1985. She also reunited with Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman, and Tim Conway for special shows looking back at The Carol Burnett Show in 1993, 2001, and 2004. Vicki also did voice-over work as Flo on the animated series Hermie and Friends.

From 2006 to 2011, Vicki Lawrence played Mamaw Stewart (the grandmother of Miley and Jackson Stewart) in the popular Disney series Hannah Montana. In 2011, she played Mrs. Santa Claus in the Hallmark movie Annie Claus Is Coming to Town. From 2018 to 2019, she starred in the Fox sitcom The Cool Kids with Martin Mull, Leslie Jordan, and David Alan Grier.

Vicki Lawrence has also appeared in commercials and on game shows. She was on a celebrity episode of The Weakest Link playing for charity.

Music Career

Cashbox advertisement for "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia," December 9, 1972.

Vicki Lawrence started her singing career on the TV show Johnny Mann's Stand Up And Cheer. She is most famous for her number-one hit song, "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia." Her first husband, Bobby Russell, wrote this song. It was released in November 1972 and sold over two million copies. She received a gold disc award for it on The Carol Burnett Show in March 1973. Her first album, The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia, came out soon after.

In 1991, Reba McEntire re-recorded "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia" for her album For My Broken Heart. McEntire's version was released as a single in 1992 and reached number 12 on the country music chart.

Vicki's next song, "He Did With Me," reached number 75 in the United States. It became her biggest hit in Australia, reaching number one there in November 1973. She followed that with "Ships in the Night" in 1974. In 1979, she released a disco album called Newborn Woman, which included the song "Don't Stop the Music."

Hosting and Other Work

Vicki Lawrence has also been a host for TV shows. She hosted the daytime NBC version of the game show Win, Lose or Draw from 1987 to 1990. She was also a popular celebrity player on many game shows like Match Game, Password, and various versions of the Pyramid game show. She was known for her funny conversations with host Dick Clark. She also appeared on Hollywood Squares as herself and as Mama.

As a talk show host, Vicki Lawrence was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Talk Show Host for her show Vicki! (1992–1994). The show ran for two seasons. In 1997, she hosted Fox After Breakfast, which was renamed The Vicki Lawrence Show, but it was canceled after five weeks.

In 2018, Vicki Lawrence promoted The Carol Burnett Show and other classic TV series on the MeTV television network. She continues to tour the country with her "two-woman" show, performing as herself and as Mama.

Personal Life

Vicki Lawrence was married to singer and songwriter Bobby Russell from 1972 to 1974. Her second husband was Hollywood make-up artist Al Schultz. They married on November 16, 1974, and had two children: Courtney Allison Schultz (born May 3, 1975) and Garrett Lawrence Schultz (born July 3, 1977). Al Schultz passed away on June 19, 2024.

In July 2015, Vicki Lawrence and her family appeared on Celebrity Family Feud. Around 2011, Vicki was diagnosed with chronic idiopathic urticaria (CIU), a skin condition. She has since become a spokesperson for the "CIU & You" campaign, working with the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. She appeared on The Doctors in 2015 to share her story and promote the campaign.

Filmography

Written Works

• Vicki!: The True-Life Adventures of Miss Fireball (1995)
• Mama for President: Good Lord, Why Not? (2008)