Three13 · Film & Comedy Feature
Lily TomlinFrom Detroit to theApex of Comedy
How a Wayne State student from Detroit became Ernestine, earned an Oscar nod for Nashville, won a Tony for a one-woman show, and — six decades in — found a whole new audience on Grace and Frankie.
Mary Jean "Lily" Tomlin was born on September 1, 1939, in Detroit, and attended Wayne State University in the city before moving to New York to pursue comedy. Over a career spanning more than fifty years, she has moved from stand-up to sketch comedy to film to a Tony-winning one-woman Broadway show to a Netflix series that introduced her to a new generation — a rare arc of sustained reinvention built on character work so precise that her creations feel like people you've met.
Ernestine, Edith Ann, and Laugh-In
Tomlin joined Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In in 1969, and within months her characters were national fixtures. Ernestine, the snorting, imperious telephone operator, and Edith Ann, the philosophical little girl in an oversized rocking chair, were built from observation so exact they transcended sketch. Tomlin didn't play characters — she inhabited entire lives, complete with backstories and private logic.
"One ringy dingy… two ringy dingy…" — Ernestine the telephone operator, Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
That character-driven approach would define everything that followed, from her stand-up albums to her stage work to her film roles.
Nashville and the One-Woman Show
In 1975, Tomlin earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress as Linnea Reese, a gospel singer and mother of deaf children, in Robert Altman's Nashville — a dramatic turn that proved her range extended far beyond comedy. A decade later, she premiered The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, a one-woman Broadway show written by her longtime partner and collaborator Jane Wagner, in which Tomlin played more than a dozen characters. It won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play and cemented her as one of the great solo performers in American theater.
A Career in Motion
1939
Born Mary Jean Tomlin in Detroit, Michigan, on September 1. She would later attend Wayne State University in the city before moving to New York to pursue comedy.
1965
Begins her career in stand-up and sketch comedy in New York clubs, developing the character work that would become her signature.
1969
Joins Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, where her characters Ernestine the telephone operator and Edith Ann the little girl become national sensations.
1975
Stars in Robert Altman's Nashville, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress as gospel singer Linnea Reese.
1977
Appears in The Incredible Shrinking Woman and continues building a film and television career that spans comedy and drama.
1985
Premieres The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, a one-woman Broadway show written by Jane Wagner that wins the Tony Award for Best Actress.
2014
Honored at the Kennedy Center Honors, recognizing a career spanning more than fifty years across stage and screen.
2015–2024
Stars as Frankie Bergstein in the Netflix series Grace and Frankie, earning multiple Emmy nominations across seven seasons and introducing her to a new generation.
Recognition
- ◆Academy Award nominee — Best Supporting Actress for Nashville (1975)
- ◆Tony Award — Best Actress in a Play for The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (1986)
- ◆Multiple Emmy Awards across television career
- ◆Grammy Award for Best Comedy Recording
- ◆Kennedy Center Honors (2014)
- ◆Mark Twain Prize for American Humor (2003)
Learn More
Frequently Asked
Is Lily Tomlin from Detroit?+
Yes. Lily Tomlin was born Mary Jean Tomlin on September 1, 1939, in Detroit, Michigan, and attended Wayne State University in the city before moving to New York to pursue comedy. She is one of Detroit's most celebrated exports to film, television, and theater.
What is Lily Tomlin famous for?+
Lily Tomlin is famous for her work as a comedian and actress, especially her characters Ernestine the telephone operator and Edith Ann on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1969–1973), her Oscar-nominated role in Nashville (1975), her Tony-winning one-woman Broadway show The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (1985), and her role as Frankie Bergstein in Netflix's Grace and Frankie.
Was Lily Tomlin nominated for an Oscar?+
Yes. Lily Tomlin was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Linnea Reese in Robert Altman's 1975 film Nashville. She has also won a Tony Award, multiple Emmy Awards, a Grammy, the Kennedy Center Honors, and the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.
What is Grace and Frankie?+
Grace and Frankie is a Netflix comedy series (2015–2022) starring Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda as two women whose husbands leave them for each other, forcing them to form an unlikely friendship. Tomlin's performance as Frankie Bergstein earned her multiple Emmy nominations and introduced her work to a new generation of viewers.
About This Feature
This Three13 feature draws on verified public sources including Wikipedia, the Kennedy Center, and Lily Tomlin's official website. All factual claims — birth date, Wayne State University attendance, the Laugh-In characters, the 1975 Nashville Oscar nomination, the Tony-winning Search for Signs of Intelligent Life, and the Kennedy Center Honors — are drawn from the cited sources above. The portrait is sourced from Wikimedia Commons and used editorially.