

An artist and actress who channeled a rebellious spirit into raw, autobiographical theater before her life was cut tragically short.
Carrie Hamilton entered the world as the daughter of comedy titan Carol Burnett, a legacy that brought both opportunity and intense scrutiny. Her early years were marked by a public struggle with addiction, a story she would later confront with unflinching honesty. After finding sobriety, Hamilton redirected her creative energy into acting, with roles on television shows like 'Fame,' and into music. But her most profound work emerged in collaboration with her mother. Together, they adapted Burnett's memoir into the stage play 'Hollywood Arms,' a project that showcased Hamilton's growing skill as a playwright. Her own one-woman show, 'Hidden Sky,' further revealed a writer of depth and vulnerability, exploring themes of recovery and self-discovery. Hamilton's life and career were a testament to resilience and artistic courage, making her death from cancer at age 38 a profound loss. She is remembered not just as a famous child, but as a formidable creative voice who was just beginning to be heard.
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Carrie was born in 1963, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
The biggest hits of 1963
#1 Movie
Cleopatra
Best Picture
Tom Jones
#1 TV Show
Beverly Hillbillies
The world at every milestone
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Apple Macintosh introduced
European Union officially established
Euro currency enters circulation
She was named after Carrie Nations, the temperance activist, a choice her mother later found ironic given Hamilton's struggles.
She was in a punk band called 'The Lowlifes'.
The Carol Burnett Award for humor and empowerment, given by the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, was established in her memory.
She was married to musician and writer Mark Taper.
“I write to understand the things I can't forget.”