Lily Tomlin

Lily Tomlin (born Mary Jean Tomlin on September 1, 1939 in Detroit, Michigan), is an American actress and comedian. She first became well-known for her character skits on television's Laugh-In, in which she created several indelible characters that have stayed with her and become associated with her throughout her career, including the gum-chewing, wisecracking, snorting telephone operator Ernestine (famous for her lines "One ringy dingy, two ringy dingy" and "A gracious good morning to you ... Have I reached the party to whom I am speaking?") and the bratty five-year-old Edith Ann, rocking in her oversized rocking chair and making rude noises (famous for her line "And that's the truth!").

Tomlin was the daughter of a factory worker and a housewife who moved to Detroit from Paducah, Kentucky during the Great Depression. Tomlin attended Wayne State University, where her interest in the theater and performing arts began. After college, Tomlin began doing stand-up comedy in Detroit nightclubs. Tomlin joined the Laugh-In cast in 1969. AT&T offered Tomlin $500,000 to film a commercial using her character Ernestine, but Tomlin turned the offer down because she thought the commercial would compromise her artistic integrity.

Tomlin is noted for her wide range. For example, she played Linnea Reese, a strait-laced mother of two deaf children who has an affair with a country singer played by Keith Carradine, in Nashville; secretary Violet Newstead in Nine to Five; and a sickly heiress in All of Me. Tomlin also voiced of the character of Ms. Frizzle for the Magic School Bus cartoon series (1994-1997). Tomlin currently plays presidential assistant Deborah Fiderer on the TV show The West Wing.

Tomlin starred in the 1985 hit one-woman Broadway show The Search For Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, written by her long-time romantic partner, Jane Wagner. The show won Tomlin a Tony Award. Tomlin revived the show for a brief run in 2000.

Though Tomlin is now open about being lesbian, the media doesn't focus on this aspect of her personal life. In fact, many of her fans are unaware of her sexual orientation. Tomlin came out in 2000 on the New York City cable-access TV program Gay USA. Actually, Tomlin frequently referred to Wagner, but avoided saying point-blank that she herself was, in fact, gay.

Tomlin was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame in 1998. In 2003 she won the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.


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In 2003 she won the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. All her films were made at East Coast studios and it is believed White never visited Hollywood who would honor her contribution to the film industry with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Tomlin was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame in 1998. Her film, The Exploits of Elaine, has been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. Actually, Tomlin frequently referred to Wagner, but avoided saying point-blank that she herself was, in fact, gay. Pearl White's place in film is seen as a benchmark in the evolution of both cinema genres and the role of women. Tomlin came out in 2000 on the New York City cable-access TV program Gay USA. She was buried in the Cimetière de Passy.

In fact, many of her fans are unaware of her sexual orientation. Her last few years were spent in a painful alcoholic haze and she died from cirrhosis of the liver at age 49 in the American Hospital in the Paris suburb of Neuilly. Though Tomlin is now open about being lesbian, the media doesn't focus on this aspect of her personal life. In 1933 she had to be hospitalized which led to an addiction to the drugs used to lessen her suffering. Tomlin revived the show for a brief run in 2000. Over the years, White's alcohol use increased substantially, possibly in an attempt to numb the chronic pain from the injuries resulting from her film stunts. The show won Tomlin a Tony Award. Together they acquired a home near Cairo, Egypt and White further expanded her cultural horizons by touring with her companion throughout the Middle East and the Orient.

Tomlin starred in the 1985 hit one-woman Broadway show The Search For Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, written by her long-time romantic partner, Jane Wagner. The poor girl from Missouri hobnobbed with the elite of European society, and in time became involved with Greek businessman, Theodore Cossika who shared her interest in travel. Tomlin currently plays presidential assistant Deborah Fiderer on the TV show The West Wing. Living in a fashionable town house in the exclusive Parisian suburb of Passy, she also owned a villa in Rambouillet. Frizzle for the Magic School Bus cartoon series (1994-1997). A shrewd businesswoman, she invested in a successful Parisian nightclub, a Biarritz resort hotel/casino, plus a profitable stable of thoroughbred race horses. Tomlin also voiced of the character of Ms. Pearl White's childhood poverty made her frugal with money.

For example, she played Linnea Reese, a strait-laced mother of two deaf children who has an affair with a country singer played by Keith Carradine, in Nashville; secretary Violet Newstead in Nine to Five; and a sickly heiress in All of Me. Enjoying this type of performance, in 1925 she accepted an offer to star with comedian Max Wall in the "London Review" at the Lyceum Theatre in London, England. Tomlin is noted for her wide range. Silent films could be made in any country and because White was a highly recognizable star worldwide, in France she was offered many roles but chose to perform live on stage in a Montmartre production called, "Tu Perds la Boule" (You Lost the Ball). AT&T offered Tomlin $500,000 to film a commercial using her character Ernestine, but Tomlin turned the offer down because she thought the commercial would compromise her artistic integrity. While living there she made her last film for her friend, the Belgian-born director Edward José (1880-1930), who had directed her in several serials in the USA. Tomlin joined the Laugh-In cast in 1969. Influenced by the French friends she made while working for Pathé, and someone who appreciated different cultures, Pearl White was drawn to the great gathering of artistic genius happening in the Montparnasse Quarter of Paris, France.

After college, Tomlin began doing stand-up comedy in Detroit nightclubs. This marriage did not last and they divorced in 1921 and two years later White made her last American film. Tomlin attended Wayne State University, where her interest in the theater and performing arts began. By 1919, Pearl White was a wealthy young woman when she met and married World War I veteran Major Wallace McCutcheon (1880-1928) who had become an actor, director and cinematographer. Tomlin was the daughter of a factory worker and a housewife who moved to Detroit from Paducah, Kentucky during the Great Depression. For these action-packed films, Pearl White did much of her own dangerous stunt work and as a result she suffered a number injuries that forced her to begin using a stunt double in her later films. Have I reached the party to whom I am speaking?") and the bratty five-year-old Edith Ann, rocking in her oversized rocking chair and making rude noises (famous for her line "And that's the truth!"). While flying airplanes, racing cars, swimming across rivers, and other assorted feats, she did four more successful serials based on the same theme.

She first became well-known for her character skits on television's Laugh-In, in which she created several indelible characters that have stayed with her and become associated with her throughout her career, including the gum-chewing, wisecracking, snorting telephone operator Ernestine (famous for her lines "One ringy dingy, two ringy dingy" and "A gracious good morning to you .. She followed this major achievement with an even bigger box-office winner, The Exploits of Elaine. Lily Tomlin (born Mary Jean Tomlin on September 1, 1939 in Detroit, Michigan), is an American actress and comedian. An enormous box-office success, it made Pearl White a major celebrity and she was soon earning the astronomical sum of $3,000 a week. The Perils of Pauline consisted of twenty episodes that enlarged upon the heroine-in-jeopardy cliffhanger style of film. The film was not about a helpless woman, but one where "Pauline" was the central character in a story involving considerable action for which the athletic and unblinking Peal White proved ideally suited.

Goddard (1879-1951). Gasnier (1875-1963) offered Pearl White the starring role in The Perils of Pauline, a film based on a story by playwright, Charles W. Having gained some degree of public recognition, in 1914 the Pathé director Louis J. She then worked at Lubin Studios and several other of the independents until the Crystal Film Company in Manhattan, gave her top billing in numerous short films.

In 1910, Pearl White was offered a chance by Pathé Frères to perform in The Girl From Arizona, the French company's first American film produced at their new studio in Bound Brook, New Jersey. In 1907 she married fellow actor Victor Sutherland (1889-1968) but they soon separated and eventually divorced. Before too long she was able to join the company full time, touring with the group throughout the American Midwest. At age 18, she joined the Trousedale Stock Company as a part-time performer, working the evening shows while keeping her day job to help support her family.

The daughter of a poor Missouri farmer, Pearl White grew up in Springfield, Missouri where in High School she became interested in acting and participated in a local theatre company. Pearl Fay White, born March 4, 1889 in Greenridge, Missouri, United States – died August 4, 1938 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Auteuil-Neuilly-Passy, France, was a singer and star of silent film. Perils of Paris (1924). Plunder (1923).

The Lightning Raider (1919). The House of Hate (1918). The Fatal Ring (1917). Pearl of the Army (1916).

The Iron Claw (1916). The Romance of Elaine (1915). The New Exploits of Elaine (1915). The Exploits of Elaine (1914).

The Perils of Pauline(1914).