Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to
the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
Today’s Question: Who is your favorite UCLA alum?
Jami’s Take: Carol Burnett
Ohio State is to NCAA football what Carol Burnett is to UCLA alum: They’re both best-in-class. With no disrespect to the myriad notable UCLA alumni who have brought joy to my life with their films, music, athleticism, and even their historical influence, none have given me quite as much as Ms. Burnett.
For those unfamiliar with Burnett’s work, it would be seemingly faster to read an entire encyclopedia than a list of the comedian, actress, writer, and singer’s credits and accolades. Best known for her variety sketch comedy television series, “The Carol Burnett Show,“ she was the first woman to host her own TV variety show. You might also recognize her from roles such as Ms. Hannigan in the 1982 film “Annie,” Theresa Stemple (the mother of Helen Hunt’s character) on “Mad About You,“ and Dotty Otley/Mrs. Clackett in Peter Bogdanovich’s 1992 film ”Noises Off.“
Her list of awards and honors is lengthy, too: seven Primetime Emmys, six Golden Globes, a Tony Award, a Kennedy Center Honors, and multiple Peabody Awards, just to name a few. As of last week, Burnett actually donated all of her more than 140 awards to UCLA, to be displayed on rotation in the lobby of the school’s Freud Playhouse, in conjunction with the announcement that she was starting an endowment to fund a scholarship at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. She has credited the school with helping her find her true passion—and thank goodness for that, or my life would personally be lacking tremendously. Obviously.
As a child, I spent countless hours watching Annie (if you added up all my viewings, it would probably amount to years of my life). What can I say? I’m a theater kid! But while other theater kids were dreaming of playing that little red-haired orphan, I was always a Ms. Hannigan girlie. To this day, I could write an entire essay around Burnett’s choices in that role, evidence of her comedic genius that stuck with me from an early age.
Perhaps no moment in film makes me laugh harder than when she walks past a painting in the hallway, perfectly hung, and tilts it askew. It has no bearing on the plot, but we learn so much about her character from that one ridiculous choice, and even when I know it’s coming, it sends me into a fit of giggles. This is saying something, too, because the “Easy Street” musical number is one of the best musical numbers ever set to film.
By the time I was in middle and high school, I had graduated from “Annie” to “The Carol Burnett Show.“ Of course, I loved the classic “Went With the Wind” skit—something my grandmother showed me as a gateway to the rest of the show, but “The Dentist” and “Mildred Fierce” have also stuck with me. To this day, my boyfriend and I often spend our Saturday mornings watching reruns, laughing hysterically over our morning coffee and tea.
High school is also when I discovered both “Noises Off,“ a film that has become a sort of comfort film for me, and “Julie and Carol at Carnegie Hall,” a 1962 TV special filmed at the famous concert hall in New York City, both pieces that hold great personal meaning to me.
As a theater and film girlie, women who broke the mold have always inspired me, and Burnett certainly did so, paving the way for so many who followed in her footsteps. It is impossible to untangle all the comedians and performers whose work influenced me from the influence she had on them, and according to her, it is impossible to untangle that from her time at UCLA.
So for the joy she brought to my life and the groundbreaking work she’s done on stage and screen, I’m adding one more accolade to the pile: Best UCLA alumna.
Matt’s Take: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
In the world of entertainment alone, UCLA is practically second to none in famous alumni. In addition to the legendary Carol Burnett, they also boast some of my favorites, including Sara Bareilles, Jim Morrison, Randy Newman, John Williams, Sean Astin, Mila Kunis, Nicholas Cage, Francis Ford Coppola, James Dean, Will Forte, Randall Park, Rob Reiner, Ben Stiller, and Gabrielle Union, just to name a few.
But this is a sports blog, so I am going to go with an athlete for this one. While you could look to iconic Bruins like John Wooden, Jackie Robinson, Arthur Ashe, Florence Griffith Joyner, Troy Aikman, Reggie Miller, Katelyn Ohashi, Kerri Strug, Cobi Jones, Brad Friedel, Gail Devers, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Karch Kiraly, Lisa Fernandez, Michelle Kwan, and many more, one illustrious name sticks out most to me.
Not only is this person arguably the greatest of all time in his sport, but he has gone on to have one of the most interesting and prodigious post-sports lives of anyone ever. This is, of course, the great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
With 20 seasons in the NBA, Abdul-Jabbar was a 19-time All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA Team member, an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team selection, and a record six-time MVP. He won six NBA championships and held the league’s scoring record for 39 years before honorary Buckeye LeBron James broke it in 2023.
As a Bruin, he won three national championships playing for Coach Wooden, and was thrice named the national player of the year, and the Final Four Most Outstanding Player. You simply cannot make a basketball Mount Rushmore without Kareem.
But his greatness did not stop when he stepped off the court. Abdul-Jabbar has gone on to be a prolific writer and activist, occasional actor, and more. From playing pilot Roger Murdock in the iconic comedy “Airplane!” to showing up in dozens of TV shows and movies, Kareem proved that there was more to him than just his otherworldly athleticism.
But what really makes Abdul-Jabbar stand out to me is his writing. Not only was he a staff writer on the revival season of one of my favorite shows, “Veronica Mars,” but he has also written 17 books, ranging from children’s stories to memoirs of playing for John Wooden to co-authoring a thrilling trilogy of novels focusing on Sherlock Holmes’ older brother, Mycroft, with Anna Waterhouse.
I devoured all three of those books, along with the comic book additional volume. They were smart, witty, excellently plotted, and put a new, exciting spin on characters that we have known for generations.
On top of all of that, Kareem has been a cultural ambassador for the United States; on the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition; and (due to his passionate coin collecting) the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee. For decades, Abdul-Jabbar has written and spoken about racial, religious, and public health issues.
So, for me, there is no one better to represent UCLA, or the United States, quite frankly, than an icon that spans all corners of American life, than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
