Most people know Carol Burnett. Fewer people know the man she married first. His name was Don Saroyan. He was an actor and a TV production worker, and he stood beside Carol at the very start of her career.
There is not a lot of public information about him, and some websites mix up the facts. This article uses trusted sources such as IMDb, Wikipedia, Britannica and the Golden Globes website. When a detail is unclear, we say so.
Quick Bio of Don Saroyan
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Don Saroyan |
| Born | October 4, 1928 |
| Birthplace | Omaha, Nebraska, USA |
| Died | November 24, 1990 |
| Place of death | Los Angeles, California, USA |
| Age at death | 62 |
| Jobs | Actor, production coordinator, sound crew member |
| Best known for | Being the first husband of Carol Burnett |
| Known screen work | Blast of Silence (1961), Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In (production, 1972 to 1973), Airwolf (1986) |
| Wife | Carol Burnett |
| Wedding date | December 15, 1955 |
| Marriage ended | December 1962 (divorce) |
| Children with Carol | None. Carol’s three daughters are with her second husband, Joe Hamilton |
Who Was Don Saroyan?
Don Saroyan was born on October 4, 1928, in Omaha, Nebraska. He later moved to California and went to college in Los Angeles. He wanted to work in show business, and he found jobs both in front of the camera and behind it.
He never became famous like his first wife. Because of that, many details of his early life are hard to confirm. Some small websites give a different birth year or add stories that have no clear source. IMDb gives the birth date above, and we use it here.
How Don Met Carol Burnett
Carol Burnett finished Hollywood High School in 1951. A stranger sent her an envelope with $50 for her first year at UCLA. She planned to study journalism, but she changed to theater arts and English. She found out that she loved making people laugh.
Don and Carol became a couple at UCLA. Several sources describe him as her college sweetheart. They shared the same dream of working in entertainment, and they both wanted to leave Los Angeles and try their luck in New York.
The $1,000 Loan That Changed Their Lives
Here is the best-known story about the two of them. In 1954, Carol and some classmates performed at a party. After the show, a man and his wife came to talk to her. The man asked what she wanted to do with her life.
Carol said she wanted to be on a musical comedy stage in New York, but she did not have the money. The man offered her and her boyfriend, Don, a $1,000 loan each. According to Wikipedia, the man was a rich businessman from La Jolla, California, who made his money in the shipbuilding industry.
The loan had no interest. The man set three rules, and Carol has told this story many times:
- Never tell anyone his name.
- Use the money to go to New York.
- If you become successful, help other people.
Carol and Don left college and moved to New York. Carol has said she paid the money back five years to the day. She also kept the promise to help others. She has given money to school programs, and in November 2025 UCLA said she had started a new scholarship for theater students.
Early Married Life in New York
Don and Carol got married on December 15, 1955. Life in New York was not easy. Carol worked as a hat-check girl and went to many auditions. In 1955 she took a small part on a children’s TV show. She also joined a group of young actresses who put on a show at the Rehearsal Club, a boarding house for women who wanted to act.
Her big step came in 1959, when she performed in the Broadway musical Once Upon a Mattress. It brought her a Tony Award nomination. That same year she became a regular on The Garry Moore Show, and she won her first Emmy Award in 1962.
Don was also trying to build his own career in New York and later in Hollywood. Sadly, we could not find reliable details about his jobs during these years. What we do know is that his name appears in credits from the late 1950s onward.
Don Saroyan’s Acting and TV Career
IMDb lists a small number of roles for Don. They were mostly short parts in TV shows and low-budget films. He also worked in production and sound.
| Year | Title | Role or job |
|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Decoy (TV series) | Salesman |
| 1959 | Cuban Rebel Girls | Sound department |
| 1961 | Blast of Silence | Lori’s Boyfriend |
| 1965 | McHale’s Navy (TV series) | The MP |
| 1965 | The Fugitive (TV series) | Officer |
| 1967 | Occasional Wife (TV series) | Gypsy Father |
| 1972 to 1973 | Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In (TV series) | Production coordinator |
| 1986 | Airwolf (TV series) | Joseph Scarelli |
| 1986 | The Magical World of Disney (TV series) | Dick |
Blast of Silence is a small crime film that people still talk about today. It is the title with the best audience score on his IMDb page. His work on Laugh-In shows that he also had skills behind the scenes.
Why Did the Marriage End?
Don and Carol divorced in December 1962, after about seven years of marriage. Neither of them has given a long public explanation. Some entertainment news sites say the two grew apart while Carol’s career was growing very fast. These sites also say the divorce was calm and friendly. Treat these reasons as reports, not as proven facts.
One thing is clear. By 1962, Carol was a TV star. She was on The Garry Moore Show, she had won an Emmy, and she had worked with Julie Andrews on a special from Carnegie Hall. Life was moving fast for her.
In May 1963, Carol married television producer Joe Hamilton. They had three daughters together: Carrie, Jody and Erin. Later, in 2001, she married drummer Brian Miller. Her own show, The Carol Burnett Show, ran on CBS from 1967 to 1978.
Later Life and Death
After the divorce, Don kept working in film and television. IMDb shows him as a production coordinator on Laugh-In in the early 1970s. His last acting credits are from 1986, in Airwolf and The Magical World of Disney.
Don Saroyan died on November 24, 1990, in Los Angeles. He was 62 years old. We could not find a reliable source that explains the cause of his death, so we do not guess.
Common Mix-Ups About Don Saroyan
Because he is not well known, the internet has some wrong information about him. Here are the most common mistakes:
- Mixing him up with William Saroyan. William Saroyan was a famous Armenian-American writer from Fresno, California. He was a different person. We found no reliable source that links the two men.
- Wrong birth year. A few websites say he was born in the early 1930s. IMDb says 1928.
- Children with Carol. Some websites say Carol and Don had children. Reliable sources list Carol’s three daughters as Joe Hamilton’s children.
- Wrong jobs. A few pages call him a famous producer or a writer with many hits. IMDb shows mostly small acting parts and production work.
When you read about Don Saroyan, check the facts on a trusted site first.
Why His Story Still Matters
Don Saroyan was not a big Hollywood name. Still, his story shows how many stars have a quiet person next to them in the early days. He and Carol took a big risk together. They left school, moved across the country and trusted a stranger’s kindness.
That choice led to one of the longest and most loved careers in American comedy. Don’s path was quieter, but he kept working in the business for more than thirty years.
Final Thoughts
Don Saroyan lived a quieter life than the star he married, but his story is worth knowing. He helped Carol Burnett take her first big step toward New York, and he built a small but steady career of his own. If you write or share his story, stay with facts from trusted sources and be careful with sites that repeat rumors.
Frequently Asked Questions About Don Saroyan
1. Who was Don Saroyan?
Don Saroyan was an American actor and production worker. He is best known as the first husband of comedian Carol Burnett.
2. When and where was Don Saroyan born?
He was born on October 4, 1928, in Omaha, Nebraska.
3. When did Don Saroyan die?
He died on November 24, 1990, in Los Angeles. He was 62.
4. How did Don Saroyan meet Carol Burnett?
They met as students at UCLA. Sources call them college sweethearts.
5. When did Don Saroyan and Carol Burnett marry?
They married on December 15, 1955.
6. When did they divorce?
Their divorce was final in December 1962, after about seven years of marriage.
7. Did Don Saroyan and Carol Burnett have children?
No. Carol’s three daughters, Carrie, Jody and Erin, are with her second husband, Joe Hamilton.
8. What was the $1,000 loan?
A rich stranger offered Carol and Don $1,000 each so they could move to New York. He asked them to keep his name secret and to help others later.
9. What shows and films did Don Saroyan work on?
His credits include Blast of Silence, The Fugitive, McHale’s Navy, Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In and Airwolf.
10. Is Don Saroyan the same person as William Saroyan?
No. William Saroyan was a well-known writer. Don Saroyan was an actor and production worker.
