Carol Channing - Childhood and Education

Childhood and Education

Channing was born in Seattle, Washington, the only child of George and Adelaide (née Glaser, 1886–1984) Channing. A city editor at the Seattle Star, her father took a job in San Francisco and the family moved when Carol was two weeks old. Her father later became a successful Christian Science practitioner, editor, and teacher. She attended Aptos Middle School and Lowell High School in San Francisco. At Lowell, Channing was a member of its famed Lowell Forensic Society, the nation's oldest high-school debate team.

According to Channing's 2002 memoir, when she left home to attend Bennington College in Vermont, her mother Adelaide informed Channing that her father George, whom Carol had believed was born in Rhode Island, had actually been born in Augusta, Georgia. Adelaide said that George's father was German American and his mother was African American. Channing's grandmother had moved with George to Providence for his opportunities. According to Channing's account, her mother reportedly did not want to be surprised "if she had a black baby".

As she was of majority European-American ancestry, Channing continued to identify as white as a performer on Broadway and in Hollywood. She revealed her African-American ancestry in her autobiography, Just Lucky I Guess (2002). Her autobiography contains a photograph of her mother but has no photos of her father or son. The book says her father's birth certificate was destroyed in a fire.