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==Family Life==
==Family Life==


She has been married four times. Her first husband, Theodore Naidish, was a writer; her second, Alexander Carson, was center for the [[Ottawa Rough Riders]] [[Canadian football]] team (they had one son, Channing Lowe, who is a cartoonist and who took his step-father's surname). In 1956 she married her manager and publicist, Charles Lowe. They remained married for 42 years, but she abruptly filed for divorce in 1998. He died before the divorce was finalized.
She has been married four times. Her first husband, Theodore Naidish, was a writer; her second, Alexander Carson, was center for the [[Ottawa Rough Riders]] [[Canadian football]] team (they had one son, Channing Lowe, who is a cartoonist and who took his step-father's surname). In 1956 she married her manager and publicist, Charles Lowe. They remained married for 42 years, but she abruptly filed for divorce in 1998. He died before the divorce was finalized.


On [[May 10]], [[2003]], she married Harry Kullijian, her fourth husband and junior high school sweetheart, who reunited with her after she mentioned him fondly in her memoir. The two performed at their old junior high school, which had become Aptos Middle School, in a benefit for the school. At [[Lowell High School (San Francisco)|Lowell High School]], they renamed the school's auditorium "The Carol Channing Theatre" in her honor. The City of [[San Francisco, California]] proclaimed [[February 25]], [[2002]] to be '''Carol Channing Day''', for her advocacy of gay rights and her appearance as the celebrity host of the [[Gay Pride Day]] festivities in Hollywood. She shared the stage with Richard Skipper, well known Carol Channing Tribute Artist. Richard recently did a benefit for The Dr. Carol Channing-Harry Kullijian Endowment For The Arts. Carol and Harry were in attendance.
On [[May 10]], [[2003]], she married Harry Kullijian, her fourth husband and junior high school sweetheart, who reunited with her after she mentioned him fondly in her memoir. The two performed at their old junior high school, which had become Aptos Middle School, in a benefit for the school. At [[Lowell High School (San Francisco)|Lowell High School]], they renamed the school's auditorium "The Carol Channing Theatre" in her honor. The City of [[San Francisco, California]] proclaimed [[February 25]], [[2002]] to be '''Carol Channing Day''', for her advocacy of gay rights and her appearance as the celebrity host of the [[Gay Pride Day]] festivities in Hollywood. She shared the stage with Richard Skipper, well known Carol Channing Tribute Artist. Richard recently did a benefit for The Dr. Carol Channing-Harry Kullijian Endowment For The Arts. Carol and Harry were in attendance.

Revision as of 16:46, 10 December 2007

Carol Channing
Carol Channing in 2000
Born
Carol Elaine Channing
Spouse(s)Harry Kullijian 2000 - present
Charles Lowe 1956-1999 (his death)
Theodore Naidish
Alexander Carson
Websitehttp://www.carolchanning.org

Carol Elaine Channing (born on January 31, 1921 in Seattle, Washington) is an American singer and actress. The winner of three Tony Awards (including a lifetime achievement award), a Golden Globe and an Academy Award nominee, Channing is best remembered for two roles: Lorelei Lee in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and Dolly Gallagher Levi in Hello, Dolly!.

She is easily recognized by her distinctive voice and wide eyes. Her unusual mannerisms and personality are frequently parodied. One famous impression was done by comedian Ryan Stiles on the hit show Whose Line is it Anyway?.

Childhood and Education

Channing was born, an only child, on January 31, 1921 in Seattle, Washington. Her father was George Channing, a journalist, whose newspaper career took the family to San Francisco when Channing was only two weeks old; her mother was the former Carol Glaser. She went to school at Aptos Junior High School, where she met an Armenian-American man named Harry Kullijian with whom she fell in love. They lost touch when she went to Lowell High School in San Francisco. At Lowell, Channing was a member of its famed Lowell Forensic Society, the nation's oldest high school debate team.

When she left home to attend Bennington College in Vermont, her mother, Channing stated much later in her memoirs, informed her that her father, a journalist whom she had believed was born in Rhode Island, actually was the son of a German American father and an African American mother and born in Augusta, Georgia, and that the only reason she was telling her was so Channing wouldn't be surprised "if she had a black baby".[1] Channing kept her heritage secret so she would not be typecast on Broadway and in Hollywood, ultimately revealing it only in her autobiography, Just Lucky I Guess, published in 2002 when she was 81 years old. Channing's autobiography, although containing a photograph of her mother, displays none of her father or son.

Career

Carol Channing photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1956

Channing was introduced to the stage while doing church work for her mother. In a 2005 interview with the Austin Chronicle, Channing recounted this experience:

"My mother said, 'Carol, would you like to help me distribute Christian Science Monitors backstage at the live theatres in San Francisco?' And I said, 'All right, I'll help you.' I don't know how old I was. I must have been little. We went through the stage door alley [for the Curran Theatre], and I couldn't get the stage door open. My mother came and opened it very easily. Anyway, my mother went to put the Monitors where they were supposed to go for the actors and the crew and the musicians, and she left me alone. And I stood there and realized — I'll never forget it because it came over me so strongly – that this is a temple. This is a cathedral. It's a mosque. It's a mother church. This is for people who have gotten a glimpse of creation and all they do is recreate it. I stood there and wanted to kiss the floorboards."[1]

Channing's first job on stage in New York was in Marc Blitzstein's No For an Answer, which was given two special Sunday performances starting January 5, 1941 at the Mecca Temple (later New York's City Center). Channing then moved to Broadway for Let's Face It, in which she was an understudy for Eve Arden.

Channing had a featured role in a revue, Lend an Ear, where she was spotted by Anita Loos and cast in the role of Lorelei Lee, which was to bring her to prominence. (Her signature song from the production was "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend.") Channing's persona and that of the character were strikingly alike: simultaneously smart yet scattered, naïve but worldly.

Channing came to national prominence as the star of Jerry Herman's Hello, Dolly! She never missed a performance during her run, attributing her good health to her Christian Science faith. Her performance won her the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical, in a year when her chief competition was Barbra Streisand for Funny Girl. She was deeply disappointed when Streisand, who many believed to be far too young for the role, signed on to play the role of Dolly Levi in the film, which also starred Walter Matthau and Michael Crawford.

She reprised the role of Lorelei Lee in the musical Lorelei, and appeared in two New York revivals of Hello, Dolly!, in addition to touring with it extensively throughout the United States. She also appeared in a number of movies, including the cult film Skidoo and Thoroughly Modern Millie, opposite Julie Andrews and Mary Tyler Moore. For Millie she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, and was awarded a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress.

In 1966 she won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago theatre.

William Goldman, in his book The Season, refers to Channing as a classic example of a "critic's darling" — an actress who is always praised by critics no matter the caliber of her work, chiefly because she is simply so unusual and bizarre (other actresses he places in this category include Sandy Dennis and Beatrice Lillie.)

Channing was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Tony Award in 1995[2], and an honorary doctorate in Fine Arts by California State University, Stanislaus in 2004.[3] She and husband Harry are active in promoting arts education in California schools.

Family Life

She has been married four times. Her first husband, Theodore Naidish, was a writer; her second, Alexander Carson, was center for the Ottawa Rough Riders Canadian football team (they had one son, Channing Lowe, who is a cartoonist and who took his step-father's surname). In 1956 she married her manager and publicist, Charles Lowe. They remained married for 42 years, but she abruptly filed for divorce in 1998. He died before the divorce was finalized. After Lowe's death and until shortly before her fourth marriage, the actress's companion was Roger Denny, an interior decorator.[2]

On May 10, 2003, she married Harry Kullijian, her fourth husband and junior high school sweetheart, who reunited with her after she mentioned him fondly in her memoir. The two performed at their old junior high school, which had become Aptos Middle School, in a benefit for the school. At Lowell High School, they renamed the school's auditorium "The Carol Channing Theatre" in her honor. The City of San Francisco, California proclaimed February 25, 2002 to be Carol Channing Day, for her advocacy of gay rights and her appearance as the celebrity host of the Gay Pride Day festivities in Hollywood. She shared the stage with Richard Skipper, well known Carol Channing Tribute Artist. Richard recently did a benefit for The Dr. Carol Channing-Harry Kullijian Endowment For The Arts. Carol and Harry were in attendance.

Theatre credits

Template:S-awards
Preceded by Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical
1964
for Hello, Dolly! 		Succeeded by

Filmography

References In Modern Culture

Carol Channing voices herself "beating" Mike Tyson, a professional boxer, in the "Patriot Games" episode of Family Guy. Actually, she is savagely spanked by Tyson throughout the fight, until he collapses due to lack of stamina (he grew tired of beating Carol so much, and she always got back up, no matter how badly damaged she was).

Ryan Stiles impersonates Carol on the improv comedy show Whose Line is it Anyway? link youtube.com

Notes

  1. ^ "Faires, Robert "The Carol You Don't Know, Austin Chronicle (July 22, 2005) Online Edition". Retrieved 2006-05-10.
  2. ^ "Hodgins, Paul, "Carol Channing: A Lifetime of Experience," Orange County Register (February 4, 2006)". Retrieved 2007-08-21.
  3. ^ "Moran, Frankie, "Carol Channing to Offer Highlights From Her Six Decade Career," North County Times (November 8, 2006)". Retrieved 2007-08-21.
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