Lily Tomlin

Lily Tomlin’s career began in stand-up comedy, but it was television that broke her into the mainstream: She joined the cast of Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In in 1969, and while Tomlin’s most notable fictional creations were women—like Ernestine the telephone operator—her ability to gender bend into male characters made the comedian a crucial part of television’s cultural influence. Tomlin’s career has seen her play opposite Steve Martin and Dustin Hoffman in film, behind the camera as producer of 1995’s The Celluloid Closet, and she’s regularly appeared on primetime shows, from Murphy Brown to Desperate Housewives. Tomlin turns 72 this year, but she still tours regularly as a stand-up. 

Updated 01/25/2011