Barr became a stand-up comedian in 1980. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, she gained fame through her role in Roseanne and other performances. Barr sparked controversy when performing "The Star-Spangled Banner" at a nationally aired baseball game on July 25, 1990. After singing the anthem in what many perceived to be a deliberately disrespectful manner, Barr grabbed her groin and spat. This performance was met with condemnation from baseball fans and sportswriters, and was called "disgraceful" by then-President George H. W. Bush.[1]
Barr has been active and outspoken on political issues. She won nearly 70,000 votes for president in the 2012 presidential election as the nominee of the left-wing Peace and Freedom Party.[2] After Donald Trump announced his candidacy for president in 2015, Kelly Weill of The Daily Beast wrote that Barr "veered right" in her politics.[3] After Roseanne was revived, Trump called her to congratulate her on her show's ratings and thank her for her support.[4] She has frequently defended her support of Trump, and has been criticized for making personal attacks and promoting conspiracy theories and fake news.[5]
Roseanne was revived in 2018 on ABC. A ratings success, it was renewed for an additional season but was canceled after Barr made a tweet condemned as racist by many commentators. Barr referred to the tweet as a "bad joke".[6] In 2022, she announced a comeback comedy special to be released on Fox Nation in 2023.
Stand-up comedian: 1980–1986
While in Colorado, Barr did stand-up gigs in clubs in Denver and other Colorado towns. She later tried out at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles and went on to appear on The Tonight Show in 1985.
In 1986, she performed on a Rodney Dangerfield special and on Late Night with David Letterman, and the following year had her own HBO special called The Roseanne Barr Show, which earned her an American Comedy Award for the funniest female performer in a television special.
Barr was offered the role of Peg Bundy in Married... with Children but turned it down.[15] In her routine she popularized the phrase, "domestic goddess", to refer to a homemaker or housewife. The success of her act led to her own series on ABC, called Roseanne.
Roseanne sitcom, film, books, and talk show: 1987–2004
Main article: Roseanne
In 1987, The Cosby Show executive producers Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner wanted to bring a "no-perks family comedy" to television. They hired Cosby writer Matt Williams to write a script about factory workers and signed Barr to play Roseanne Conner.
The show premiered on October 18, 1988, and was watched by 21.4 million households, making it the highest-rated debut of that season.
Barr became outraged when she watched the first episode of Roseanne and noticed that in the credits, Williams was listed as creator.[16] She told Tanner Stransky of Entertainment Weekly, "We built the show around my actual life and my kids. The 'domestic goddess', the whole thing." In the same interview, Werner said, "I don't think Roseanne, to this day, understands that this is something legislated by the Writers Guild, and it's part of what every show has to deal with. They're the final arbiters."
During the first season, Barr sought more creative control over the show, opposing Williams' authority. Barr refused to say certain lines and eventually walked off set. She threatened to quit the show if Williams did not leave. ABC let Williams go after the thirteenth episode.[16] Barr gave Amy Sherman-Palladino and Joss Whedon their first writing jobs on Roseanne.
Roseanne ran for nine seasons from 1988 to 1997. Barr won an Emmy, a Golden Globe, a Kids' Choice Award, and three American Comedy Awards for her part in the show. Barr had crafted a "fierce working-class domestic goddess" persona in the eight years preceding her sitcom and wanted to do a realistic show about a strong mother "who was not a victim of patriarchal consumerism.
For the final two seasons, Barr earned $40 million, making her the second-highest-paid woman in show business at the time, after Oprah Winfrey.
On July 25, 1990, Barr performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" off-key before a baseball game between the San Diego Padres and Cincinnati Reds at Jack Murphy Stadium. She later said she was singing as loudly as possible to hear herself over the public-address system, so her rendition of the song sounded "screechy". Following her rendition, she mimicked the often-seen actions of players by spitting and grabbing her crotch as if adjusting a protective cup. Barr later said that the Padres had suggested she "bring humor to the song", but many criticized the episode, including President George H. W. Bush, who called her rendition "disgraceful". Barr revisited this incident during her Comedy Central Roast in 2012, wherein she once again belted out the last few bars of the national anthem, without screeching.
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