Origin of a Classic: The Family (1973)

 One of the most popular sketches on The Carol Burnett Show was The Family, which premiered during season 7 (1973-4). Burnett & Harvey Korman played Eunice & Ed Higgins, who always seemed to be squabbling. And, then, there was Mama, as played by Vicki Lawrence, who, ironically, was the youngest cast member.

If you've seen the infomercials hawking a Burnett DVD collection, you've probably seen a clip of Mama scolding Eunice by telling her that "you've got splinters in the windmills of your mind".

30 sketches, all written by the veteran team of Dick Clair & Jenna McMahon, aired between 1973-8, and the last was in a short-lived revival a couple of years after Burnett left CBS. Mama's Family, starring Lawrence, launched on NBC in 1983, then moved into syndication from 1986-90.

From 1974, Mama, Eunice, & Ed play Sorry!:

Ya know, I can relate as far as Sorry! goes, because I actually had that game as a youth. Like Monopoly, it takes forever to finish.

I've caught up with these sketches via Carol Burnett & Friends, currently on Me-TV.

Rating: A-.