Carol Burnett has something big brewing with the Bruins. Burnett, a UCLA alumnus and Hollywood icon, announced two major gifts to the school. It is an endowment to establish a scholarship at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, and an endowment of the more than 140 industry awards and honors Burnett has received during his 70-year career.
These awards include seven Emmy Awards, ranging from Outstanding Performance in a Variety or Music Program in 1962 (“The Garry Moore Show”) to a pre-recorded variety special in 2023 (“Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter and Love”). She has also won six Golden Globe Awards, a Grammy Award, a Tony Award, a Presidential Medal of Freedom, a Kennedy Center Honor Award, multiple Peabody Awards, a Stephen Sondheim Award, a 1976 Creative Circle Award (shaped like a golden typewriter), a SAG Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Globe’s first Carol Burnett Lifetime Achievement Award in television.
As part of her donation, Ms. Burnett also included temporary items such as a hand-drawn drawing of her in costume from “The Carol Burnett Show,” a still-boxed doll of her dressed in the CBS variety show’s iconic Scarlett O’Hara curtain hanger costume, and other photographs and memorabilia. An exhibit honoring Barnett will be on rotating display in the lobby of UCLA’s Freud Playhouse.
Also included is another award (above) worthy of UCLA’s endowment. The June 1952 “Spotlight Award” recognized Barnett as the “Most Outstanding Newcomer” in UCLA’s one-act program for the spring 1952 semester.
The timing of the donation coincides with Thursday’s announcement of the Carol Burnett Endowed Undergraduate Scholarship at the Music Theater. Under this scholarship, one undergraduate student each year in the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television’s Ray Bolger Musical Theater Program will receive what is called a “substantial award” to help cover tuition and fees.
“I am thrilled that the Carol Burnett Scholarship donation to the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television will provide students with the same opportunities that UCLA provided me when I enrolled fresh out of high school,” Burnett said in a statement. “I found my true passion at UCLA, and my hope with this scholarship is that it will do the same for many others for years to come.”
This year’s grant recipient is Alexa Cruz, a first-year theater major and Class of 2029 graduate. Cruz’s community theater experience includes performing songs related to past Burnett roles, such as “Little Girls” (from “Annie”) and “Shy” (from “Once Upon a Mattress”). Burnett made her Broadway debut as Winifred the Wibegone in Once Upon a Mattress, for which she was nominated for a Tony Award in 1960, and starred as Miss Hannigan in the 1982 film version of Annie.
“As a first-generation college student, this scholarship will help me continue pursuing my dream of becoming an actress and will make my goal feel more attainable,” Cruz said. “This financial aid will greatly support the cost of my education. I am truly humbled by this opportunity and excited to continue pursuing my degree and my passion for musical theater at UCLA.”
More recently, Burnett has appeared in “Better Call Saul,” “The Hux,” and “Palm Royale,” produced by fellow UCLA graduate Abe Sylvia.
Burnett and Sylvia are scheduled to visit UCLA on Thursday to introduce the season 2 premiere of “Palm Royale” at the James Bridges Theater.
“Carol Burnett led one of the most visionary, entertaining, and prolific careers in the history of multiple entertainment industries,” said Celine Parreñas Shimizu, dean of the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television. “Every time something stood in her way, she created a new path. She created new shapes within the industry for herself and others to thrive. Her approach to her craft is perfectly aligned with the spirit we teach our talented students at TFT. Carol Burnett’s voice has always been and will always be a part of our story as we train the next generation to follow her bold and tenacious example.”
