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

The "The Family" skits, where Mama first appeared, were a huge hit! This led to Vicki getting her own TV show called Mama's Family. Her character, Mama, became the main focus and grew even funnier. Since 2001, Vicki has continued to perform as Mama in a live 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 number one song in the USA and Canada called "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia". It was a big hit! She also had a number one song in Australia in 1974 called "He Did with Me." Vicki has been nominated for several awards, including the Emmy Award, which she won in 1976. She was also nominated for Golden Globe awards for The Carol Burnett Show. Later, she appeared in the Disney Channel show Hannah Montana and the Fox show The Cool Kids.

Early Life and Big Break

Vicki Ann Axelrad was born on March 26, 1949, in Inglewood, California. Her dad, Howard Axelrad, was an accountant, and her mom was Anne Alene. When Vicki was young, her family legally changed their last name to "Lawrence." She graduated from Morningside High School in 1967.

At first, Vicki thought about becoming a dental hygienist. She even went to UCLA while working on The Carol Burnett Show. She later changed her major to theater arts but left college after two years.

In high school, Vicki joined a musical group called The Young Americans. She toured with them and performed at big events like the Oscars. She even met famous singers like Johnny Mathis and Louis Armstrong and performed on The Andy Williams Show. This gave her lots of experience!

During her last year of high school, 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 mom, who loved writing fan letters, encouraged Vicki to write to Carol. Vicki sent the newspaper article along with her letter.

Carol Burnett saw the letter and called Vicki's dad. She said she would come to the Miss Fireball contest. Vicki won the contest, and Carol Burnett was asked to crown her! It was perfect timing because Carol was looking for an actress to play her younger sister on her new show. After a few months of auditions, 18-year-old Vicki got the part. She played Chrissy in the "Carol and Sis" sketches.

When Vicki started on The Carol Burnett Show, Carol Burnett and Harvey Korman became her mentors. Harvey taught her many comedy skills, like how to listen for more than just her cue lines. He also helped her learn different accents. Vicki has said that working on the show was like attending the "Harvard school of comedy." She learned so much from Carol and Harvey and says she and Carol are still very close friends.

Becoming a Star: The Carol Burnett Show

On The Carol Burnett Show, L-R: Carol Burnett, Vicki Lawrence, and Dinah Shore in the sketch "Went with the Wind!", 1977.

Vicki Lawrence is most famous for her comedy and acting on CBS's The Carol Burnett Show. She was on the show from 1967 to 1978. She was the only cast member, besides Carol Burnett herself, who stayed for all 11 seasons. After the show ended in 1978, Vicki and her husband Al Schultz moved to Hawaii with their children. But after a few years, they moved back to Los Angeles, where they still live.

The Famous "Mama" Character

Vicki Lawrence as Thelma "Mama" Harper, 2009

In the seventh season of The Carol Burnett Show, Vicki first played her famous Mama character. This was in a comedy sketch called The Family. It was only supposed to be a one-time skit. But audiences loved it so much that it became a regular part of the show for the last five seasons. Vicki played Mama, a strict, older mother to the unlucky Eunice (played by Carol Burnett). Even though Vicki was 16 years younger than Carol, she perfectly played the role of the elderly Mama. "The Family" sketches created some of the most memorable and funny moments on The Carol Burnett Show.

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

More 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. Vicki also played Dan's old high school friend, Phyllis, 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 played Mamaw Stewart (the grandmother of Jackson and Miley Stewart) in the hit Disney series Hannah Montana. She starred alongside Billy Ray Cyrus and his daughter Miley Cyrus. In 2011, she was 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.

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

Her Music Career

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

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

Her next song, "He Did With Me," reached number one in Australia 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 Fun Work

Vicki Lawrence has also been a host for TV shows. She hosted the daytime NBC 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 different versions of the Pyramid game show. She was known for her fun chats with host Dick Clark on Pyramid. She also appeared on Hollywood Squares as herself and as Mama.

Vicki hosted her own talk show called Vicki! from 1992 to 1994. She was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Talk Show Host several times for this show. In 1997, she hosted The Vicki Lawrence Show, but it only lasted five weeks.

In 2018, Vicki promoted The Carol Burnett Show and other classic TV shows on the MeTV network. Today, she still tours the country with her "two-woman" show. In the first half, she performs as herself, and in the second half, she performs 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 in 1975) and Garrett Lawrence Schultz (born in 1977). Al Schultz passed away on June 19, 2024.

Vicki Lawrence is also involved in causes she cares about, like women's rights, helping animals, and protecting the environment.

Vicki and her family appeared on Celebrity Family Feud in July 2015. Vicki has also shared her experience with a health condition called chronic idiopathic urticaria (CIU) to help others learn more about it. She worked with the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America to become a spokesperson for the "CIU & You" campaign. She appeared on The Doctors in 2015 to talk about her story and the campaign.

Filmography

Discography

Albums

Singles

What Else Has Vicki Lawrence Done?

Vicki has also written two books:

• Vicki!: The True-Life Adventures of Miss Fireball (1995) – This book tells her life story.
• Mama for President: Good Lord, Why Not? (2008) – This book is a funny look at what it would be like if Mama ran for president.