Lily Tomlin

Lily Tomlin portrays Roberta Simmons in Season 5 of Desperate Housewives.

Biography
Lily Tomlin was born on September 1, 1939 in Detroit, Michigan. She studied acting under Charles Nelson Reilly, who introduced her to the works of monologist Ruth Draper, a major inspiration for Tomlin's work. One of her first "professional" gigs was as a waitress in Howard Johnson's on Broadway near Times Square. Her comments to customers and staff heard over the eatery's microphone attracted her first big-city audience. She has won two Tony Awards: in 1977, a special Award, and in 1986, the Best Actress (Play) Award for her one-woman show, "The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe," a performance recreated in the film version of the same title, The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (1991). She is known for her "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" (1967) characters Edith Ann and Ernestine the phone operator. After Season 5 of Desperate Housewives finished, the creator Marc Cherry considered making a spin-off series of Karen McCluskey and Lily's character Roberta. It is unknown whether the show will go ahead but there is a strong likelihood of this.

Career
Tomlin has starred or appeared in the following:
 * Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
 * Nashvile
 * Nine to Five
 * All of Me
 * Big Business
 * The Beverley Hillbillies
 * Frasier
 * The Magic School Bus
 * Murphy Brown
 * Orange County
 * The West Wing
 * The Walker
 * 12 Miles of Bad Road
 * Pink Panther 2
 * Desperate Housewives