Carol Burnett to Receive Inaugural Special Golden Globe for Television Achievement

Comedy legend Carol Burnett will receive the inaugural Golden Globe television special achievement award, Variety reports. The new award will be known as the Carol Burnett Award and will "celebrate the highest level of achievement in the medium" according to the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. Burnett, who has won five Globes, more than anyone else in television, will accept the award during the Golden Globes ceremony Jan. 6.

"For more than 50 years, comedy trailblazer Carol Burnett has been breaking barriers while making us laugh," HFPA president Meher Tatna said in a statement. "She was the first woman to host a variety sketch show, The Carol Burnett Show. She was also the first woman to win both the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and Kennedy Center Honors. And now we add another first to her running list: the first recipient -- and namesake -- of the new Golden Globe top honor for achievement in television, the Carol Burnett Award. We are profoundly grateful for her contributions to the entertainment industry and honored to celebrate her legacy forever at the Golden Globes."

Burnett is one of the greatest comedians of all time, and has won, individually or for her eponymous show, 25 Emmys, a Peabody and a Grammy, among numerous other honors, including a Presidential Medal of Freedom. And now her name will be synonymous with special achievement.

The 76th Annual Golden Globe Awards air live Sunday, Jan. 9 at 8/7c on NBC.