90-Year-Old Carol Burnett Speaks About Joke She Took ‘Too Far’

Carol Burnett has had a successful career spanning over six decades in Hollywood as an actress and a comedian. She is also credited for her groundbreaking variety series, The Carol Burnett Show, which graced television screens from 1967 to 1978.

In a recent interview, the 90-year-old shared insights and anecdotes from her journey in the entertainment industry while also highlighting a memorable incident from one of her famous tours. She revealed that during a routine Q&A session with the audience, what began as a typical interaction took an unexpected turn, nearly resulting in disaster.

Carol Burnett shares a joke she took too far

During a candid conversation with Harper’s Bazaar magazine, the comedian recounted a memorable moment from one of her comedy tours. While entertaining the audience, a curious attendee posed an intriguing question about who she would choose to be if given the opportunity to live as a male for 24 hours.

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In her trademark no-nonsense style, Burnett didn’t hold back. With a mix of audacity and dark humor, she admitted that she would relish the opportunity to step into the shoes of the mastermind behind the infamous September 11 attacks in the United States. “I said, ‘I’d be Osama bin Laden, and I’d kill myself,’ ” she recalled.

The comedian expressed deep regret regarding the situation, particularly highlighting the event’s timing, which occurred shortly after the tragic events of September 11. “It never occurred to me,” she told the news outlet.

Burnett reflected on her initial hesitation regarding the suggestion from her producer to include a Q&A session at her events and on the TV show. However, she later discovered that it added significant enjoyment to the experience. “I balked at first, I said, ‘What if they don’t ask anything? Or what if they do and I can’t answer it?’ And he said, ‘Well, we’ll put some plants in the audience.’ And then I thought about it and said, ‘No, it’s got to be real,’” she confessed. “I started to get comfortable, and it turned out to be one of my favorite things that we ever did.”