Barr, Roseanne (1952-…), is an American comedian and actress who gained national fame as the star of the television comedy series “Roseanne” (1988-1997, 2018). In the series, she played a wisecracking wife and mother in a working-class family. In 1993, Barr won an Emmy Award as outstanding lead actress in a comedy series for her performance on the show. The success of the series made her a national celebrity. She has attracted publicity for her outspoken opinions and for her personal life, including her turbulent marriage to the American actor and comedian Tom Arnold.
Roseanne Cherrie Barr was born in Salt Lake City on Nov. 3, 1952. At first, she performed under her maiden name of Roseanne Barr. She was married to Bill Pentland from 1974 to 1990. Later in 1990, she married Tom Arnold. She then was billed as Roseanne Arnold. After they divorced in 1994, she dropped her second name and simply called herself Roseanne. After divorcing her third husband, Ben Thomas, in 2002, she began using her maiden name again.
Barr worked as a window dresser and waitress until she began performing in comedy clubs about 1981. She made a few appearances on television beginning in 1985 before “Roseanne” made her a star. She was the host of a daytime talk show from 1998 to 2000. Barr made her motion-picture debut in She-Devil (1989). Her other films include Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991), Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1994), and Meet Wally Sparks (1996). She wrote two autobiographies, Roseanne: My Life As a Woman (1989) and My Lives (1994), and a collection of humorous essays, Roseannearchy: Dispatches from the Nut Farm (2011).
See also Comedy, Stand-up ; Goodman, John .
