(CNN) — Carol Burnett is glad she and TV audiences had some time together when they did.
In a speech accepting a new Golden Globe award named in her honor, Burnett talked about the effort it took to put on her variety show that ran for 11 seasons starting in 1967.
“Sometimes I catch myself daydreaming about being young again and doing it all over,” she said. “Then I bring myself up sharp when I realize how incredibly fortunate I was to be there at the right time.”
Burnett, whose trailblazing career spans six decades, said what she and her collaborators did then “could not be done today,” as “the cost alone would be prohibitive.”
A 28-piece orchestra, 12 dancers, and 65 costumes per week did not come cheap, she said.
Burnett dedicated the award to “all those who made my dreams come true and to all those out there who share the love I have for television and who yearn to be part of this unique medium who has been so good to me.”
“I’m just happy our show happened when it did and I can look back and say once more, I’m so glad we had this time together,” she said.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced last month it was establishing a new award named for the TV icon.
At the time, the group said The Carol Burnett Award will be given out annually to someone who “has made outstanding contributions to television on or off the screen.”
Burnett is one of the most decorated actors in comedy.
She became a Kennedy Center Honors recipient in 2003, earned the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2013 and received a Screen Actors Guild Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015.
The Golden Globes has another special award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, that has traditionally been awarded to those with achievements in the film industry. This year it went to actor Jeff Bridges.
Oprah Winfrey was last year’s recipient and used the moment to give a rousing speech about gender equality and sexual harassment.
