Jane Wagner

Jane Wagner
Wagner in 2011
Born (1935-02-26) February 26, 1935 (age 91)
Morristown, Tennessee, U.S.
OccupationsScreenwriter, director, producer
Spouse
​
(m. 2013)​
AwardsPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special
1974 Lily

Jane Wagner (born February 26, 1935) is an American writer, director and producer. She is known for her creative collaborations with her wife Lily Tomlin.

Early life and education

Wagner was born and raised in Morristown, Tennessee, where she developed an interest in writing. She attended Morristown High School, where she wrote for the school newspaper. At 17, she moved from East Tennessee to New York City, where she studied painting and sculpture at the School of Visual Arts and pursued an acting career.

Career

Early in her life, she toured with the Barter Theatre of Abingdon, Virginia, and later became a designer for such firms as Kimberly-Clark and Fieldcrest.

Wagner made her writing debut with the CBS afternoon special J.T. (1969), for which she won the Peabody Award — and drew the attention of Tomlin, who was looking for someone to help develop the Laugh-In character Edith Ann. It was the beginning of a collaboration that continues to this day. In 1977, she and Tomlin co-wrote and co-directed Tomlin's Broadway debut, the one-woman show "Appearing Nitely."

Wagner has been nominated for Grammy Awards, with Tomlin, for the comic's recorded albums and has won three Emmy Awards and a Writers Guild of America award, also with Tomlin, for the comic's television specials.

Wagner wrote and directed Moment by Moment, starring Tomlin and John Travolta, and wrote The Incredible Shrinking Woman, which starred Tomlin.

The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe won Wagner a Special Award from the New York Drama Critics' Circle and a New York Drama Desk Award. The film adaptation of the play brought Wagner a Cable ACE Award.

Wagner won a second Peabody for the ABC special, Edith Ann's Christmas: Just Say Noel (1996).

Honors, awards and nominations

Annie Award
1997: nominated – Best Individual Achievement: Writing in a TV Production – Edith Ann's Christmas: Just Say Noel

Drama Desk Award
2001: nominated – Outstanding Revival of a Play – The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe
1986: won – Unique Theatrical Experience – The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe

Emmy Award
1993: nominated – Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special – The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe
1981: won – Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Program – Lily: Sold Out
1981: nominated – Outstanding Writing in a Variety, Music or Comedy Program – Lily: Sold Out
1976: won – Outstanding Writing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Special – The Lily Tomlin Special
1976: nominated – Outstanding Comedy-Variety or Music Special – The Lily Tomlin Special
1974: won – Outstanding Writing in Comedy-Variety, Variety or Music – Lily

Peabody Award
1996: won – Edith Ann's Christmas: Just Say Noel
1970: won – J.T.

Tony Award
2001: nominated – Best Revival of a Play – The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe

Lambda Literary Award

2020: won – Lambda Literary Visionary prize

Personal life

Wagner met her future wife, actress Lily Tomlin, in March 1971. After watching the after-school TV special J.T. written by Wagner, Tomlin invited Wagner to Los Angeles to collaborate on Tomlin's comedy LP album And That's The Truth. On December 31, 2013, Wagner and Tomlin married in a private ceremony in Los Angeles after 42 years together.

Works and publications

References

  1. ↑ Jones, Christopher (January 6, 2014). "Congratulations!: Lily Tomlin Marries Longtime Partner Jane Wagner". Instinct Magazine. Instinct Publishing, Inc. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  2. ↑ Smith, Liz (January 3, 2014). "Was life a 'Cabaret' for Bob Fosse? Yes, no, maybe". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on January 7, 2014. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  3. ↑ Shulman, Randy (April 27, 2006), "Lily Tomlin – The actress discusses her career, her upcoming show at Bethesda's Strathmore, and life with her partner Jane Wagner", Metro Weekly, retrieved July 3, 2007
  4. ↑ "Jane Wagner". Tomlin/Wagner. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  5. ↑ "AND THAT'S THE TRUTH". Chicago Tribune. November 8, 1994. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  6. 1 2 Appler, Michael (July 2, 2020). "Lily Tomlin and Jane Wagner Recall Falling in Love With Each Other 50 Years Ago". Variety. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  7. ↑ "Appearing Nitely". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League, Inc. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
  8. ↑ "About Lily Tomlin". Comedy College. American Public Media. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
  9. ↑ "Best Comedy Recording: This Is A Recording". 14th Annual GRAMMY Awards. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  10. ↑ Gardner, Chris (June 29, 2020). "Writer Jane Wagner to Join Wife Lily Tomlin, Hilton Als for Lambda Literary Conversation". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Lily Tomlin is "The Incredible Shrinking Woman" in Shout's Collector's Edition!". The Virginian-Pilot. November 19, 2017. Archived from the original on October 1, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  12. ↑ Brody, Richard (September 9, 2019). "Revisiting "Moment by Moment," Lily Tomlin and John Travolta's Wrongly Despised 1978 Melodrama". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Jane Wagner DIRECTOR". Playbill.
  14. ↑ "Edith Ann's Christmas". The Peabody Awards. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Jane Wagner". IMDb. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  16. 1 2 3 "Jane Wagner". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Jane Wagner". Television Academy. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  18. ↑ "Edith Ann's Christmas". www.peabodyawards.com. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  19. ↑ "Lily's Long Bloom". Washington Post. October 26, 2003. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  20. ↑ Tomlin, in Shulman, Randy (April 27, 2006). "Lily Tomlin". Metro Weekly. Washington, D.C. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  21. ↑ Silverman, Stephen M. (January 7, 2014). "Lily Tomlin Marries Jane Wagner After 42 Years Together". People. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  22. ↑ Takeda, Allison (January 7, 2014). "Lily Tomlin Marries Girlfriend Jane Wagner After 42 Years Together: "They Are Very Happy," Rep Says".