Carol Burnett Is Enjoying Life As Wife To A Man 23 Years Her Junior

Carol Burnett, the much-loved singer, actress and comedian, has brought a ray of sunshine and laughter onto our screens for the last 60 years. Burnett was born on April 26, 1933, in San Antonio, Texas.

Part of the reason Burnett was able to get into acting was that she moved to live with her grandmother in Hollywood, where she attended Hollywood High School and went on to study theater at UCLA. After performing in nightclubs around New York City post-graduation, Burnett secured her breakout Broadway role as the evil queen in the musical fairytale production, “Once Upon a Mattress.”

Burnett is best known for her variety show “The Carol Burnett Show,” which aired on CBS from 1967 to 1978. “The Carol Burnett Show” was a popular variety show with vaudeville roots featuring dancing, singing, and comedy sketches. It wasn’t long before Burnett became a comedy queen in the acting business. The popularity of her variety show gained her notable roles in film and movies, such as the orphanage owner Miss Hannigan in 1982’s “Annie.”
Despite having wild success in Hollywood, Burnett’s lucky streak didn’t seem to follow into her life outside of acting. The actress’s own personal life has had some trials and tribulations, including her youngest daughter, Carrie, dying from lung cancer when she was only 38 years old.

Well into her 80s, Burnett is continuing to live her best life. She has not officially retired either, so you can expect to hear more from the actress in the future. Read on to learn more about her personal life as well as her 23-year younger husband she leans on these days.

Brian Miller, Carol Burnett (2005), (Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images)
Burnett was at the peak of her career filming “The Carol Burnett Show” just as she began her family with TV producer Joe Hamilton. She welcomed three daughters in the 1960s: Carrie Hamilton, Jody Hamilton and Erin Hamilton. All went on to follow in her footsteps and entered the entertainment business.

Jody, born in 1967, became a film producer and has even produced her mom’s show “Carol Burnett: Show Stoppers.”

Burnett welcomed Erin in 1968. Erin’s talent was singing and she pursued a career in the music industry. According to Closer, her song “Dream Weaver,” a 1998 cover of Gary Wright’s 1975 hit, is her most iconic track. However, Erin also battled drug abuse for many years. Burnett had to step in when things became too much for her daughter and her grandson, Dylan. According to The Blast, Carol stated:

“Throughout her adult life, and since Dylan’s birth, Erin has suffered from severe substance abuse and addiction issues. In the past 19 years, Erin has been in and out of rehabilitation centers and has been institutionalized a total of eight times for a minimum of 30 days each time.”

Burnett’s eldest daughter, Carrie, meanwhile, was born in 1963 and went on to become an actress. Unfortunately, Carrie also had a long battle with drug addiction. In an interview with People, Burnett revealed:

“I put her in a third rehab place and, oh my God, she hated me. I came to the conclusion that I had to love her enough to let her hate me. She got sober and we started bonding. We wound up working together, writing a play together. We worked together in three shows.”

Tragically, just as things were improving, Carrie’s life was cut short when she was diagnosed with lung cancer.

Brian Miller, Carol Burnett (2010), (David Livingston/Getty Images)
Carrie died from complications due to pneumonia in 2002 after cancer spread to her brain. Burnett suffered greatly during this period but had to find a way to get through it. She said: “You don’t get over it, but you cope. What else can you do?”

Luckily for Burnett, she did not have to cope alone. Burnett met the man who would become her third husband in the late ‘90s. At the time, Brian Miller was working as a principal drummer and contractor of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. The two married in 2001. Although the pair have a 23-year age gap, Burnett said this was hardly an obstacle for them.

“He’s funny and not easily intimidated. As we get older, the gap between our ages narrows,” she told People. However, she confessed things may be different if they had the same age gap but were both younger. “If you were 40 and married a 20-year-old, I don’t think you could communicate like (we do),” she explained. In true Burnett fashion, the entertainer presented the situation in a hysterical manner as such:

“Look at our friend Clint Eastwood (whose ex-wife Dina Eastwood is 36 years younger) — I say, if it’s good enough for the fellows, it’s good enough for the girls.”

Miller stood by Burnett’s side during Carrie’s death, and in 2020 when Burnett petitioned to be appointed guardian to Erin’s son Dylan as her daughter’s “addiction issues and other circumstances” were “impacting (Erin’s) immediate family dynamic,” according to CNN. Burnett was already Dylan’s “educational rights holder,” meaning she made decisions over his schooling and eventually won temporary guardianship.

Despite Burnett’s hardships, the comedienne continues to approach life with a sunny disposition while Miller is frequently seen by her side at public events.

Brian Miller, Carol Burnett (2020), (Daniele Venturelli/WireImage)
What are your thoughts on Burnett’s marriage to a man more than 20 years her junior? Do you know any May–December romances that have worked out? Let us know and don’t forget to pass this along to friends and family, too.