Comedian Lily Tomlin: Here's the House She Grew Up In: Detroit, Michigan

As a child, Lily Tomlin didn't briefly live in Michigan, nor did her family just move here for a few years and leave, nor did she re-locate for school. Nope, she was born here...in Detroit, as Mary Jean Tomlin on September 1, 1939. She grew up here, went to grade school, high school, and college.....all during her child and teen years.

During the Great Depression in late 1938/early 1939, Lily's parents – Guy, a factory worker, and Lillie Mae, a nurse's aide - moved to Michigan from Kentucky not long before Lily was born. They moved into a working-class neighborhood in one of Detroit's suburbs: Highland Park, at 223 Louise Avenue.

In 1951 when Lily was 12 years old, “I Love Lucy” made its television debut...and Lucy quickly became one of Lily's favorite comedians. She also took note of other female comedians at the time, such as Imogene Coca, who co-starred on “You Show of Shows” with Sid Caesar. Lily also took note of other female comics who appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show” and other TV programs.

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Surprisingly, a show biz career isn't what she set out for. After graduating from Cass Technical High School in 1957, Lily enrolled in Wayne State University to study biology and medicine. While in college, she also took theater arts classes – which changed her course in life, and she set out to try her hand at being an entertainer. She auditioned for a play, she changed her major, and soon began performing in local coffee houses.

Lily honed her chops doing stand-up comedy in Detroit, and in 1965 moved to New York where she believed she could make a good career out of comedy.

She did.....and still does.

In the gallery below are a few photos of the house where she grew up in Highland Park/Detroit.