THIS TIME TOGETHER is 100 percent Carol Burnett -- funny, irreverent, and irresistible.

Carol Burnett is one of the most beloved and revered actresses and performers in America. The Carol Burnett Show was seen each week by millions of adoring fans and won twenty-five Emmys in its remarkable eleven-year run. Now, in This Time Together, Carol really lets her hair down and tells one funny or touching or memorable story after another -- reading it feels like sitting down with an old friend who has wonderful tales to tell.

In engaging anecdotes, Carol discusses her remarkable friendships with stars such at Jimmy Stewart, Lucille Ball, Cary Grant, and Julie Andrews; the background behind famous scenes, like the moment she swept down the stairs in her curtain-rod dress in the legendary "Went With the Wild" skit; and things that would happen only to Carol -- the prank with Julie Andrews that went wrong in front of the First Lady; the famous Tarzan Yell that saved her during a mugging; and the time she faked a wooden leg to get served in a famous ice cream emporium. This poignant look back allows us to cry with the actress during her sorrows, rejoice in her successes, and finally, always, to laugh.


From the Hardcover edition.

During the past few years, I've zigzagged across the country appearing in various theaters performing Laughter and Reflection: A Conversation with Carol, Where the Audience Asks the Questions. It's just the audience and me. The evening lasts ninety minutes, beginning with seven minutes of old Q & A clips from our TV variety show to give the audience an idea of what the evening is going to be like. Then I come out onstage and ask for the lights to be bumped up, so I can see everyone.

Lights up.

Me: Tonight is all about any questions you might have for me . . . about our show, the people I've worked with, moments that stand out in your memory that you're curious about--anything at all. So just raise your hands, and here we go!

It's always a little scary, because I'm working without a safety net. There are no "plants" in the audience, because if the event feels pre-planned, it takes the fun out of it. The audience can tell it's off the cuff, and through the years people have been pretty enthusiastic--and aren't at all shy about raising their hands. When I call on someone I never know what the question will be. I have to say, it keeps the ol' gray matter ticking and the blood pumping.

However, through the years there have been questions that were asked over and over, which gives me a breather by allowing me to count on being able to tell some set stories. If these questions weren't asked (for instance, if the audience was sitting on its hands), often I could bring up the subject myself and tell the story anyway. (Whew!)

What follows are some of these stories that I've shared over the years in response to various questions. Some have to do with our gang on the variety show, embarrassing moments, famous people, not-so-famous people, family, and so on. Since I'm not planning on doing too many more of these story evenings in the future, I figured I'd write up my favorite stories for my grandkids and anybody else who might enjoy them--who might have some fun and laughs and maybe some nostalgic moments as well.

Many years ago, in 1986, I wrote a memoir called One More Time, which was couched as a letter to my three daughters, telling them all about my growing up in a dysfunctional yet loving family. That book didn't take my life beyond age twenty-six. This time I'm emphasizing episodes and anecdotes that have brought me to the present time, although I've also included a few stories from childhood that bear repeating. Originally I began writing this book as a simple series of anecdotes, but as I got into it I found that I went into more detail than I usually do onstage. I also found myself writing about things that I haven't talked about onstage but which resonate with me. Some of them are even serious. These thoughts and feelings just kind of poured out onto the page. They might not be as amusing as some of my other remembrances, but they're memories I'd like to share. So what follows is a kind of memoir peppered with anecdotes here and there. I hope you enjoy it.

"These short memories, of the people Burnett met and interviewed over the years, on- and off-camera, bring it back -- the golden age of variety shows....Burnett has a writer's eye for the moment, the detail, the slip that reveals character. She's never mean and always grateful."