RIP Betsy Palmer

[actor61]

I learned yesterday that Betsy Palmer died in a hospice in Connecticut last May, and was very saddened by the news. In the mid 1980s, I was in a production of "Mame" with her at the Burt Reynolds Dinner Theatre in Jupiter, Florida and we became good buddies. What a pro she was, and what a wonderful lady she was. Bawdy. Kind. Funny. Generous. Smiling. I still cherish the card she gave me on opening night. Inevitably, the old pros are leaving us and who knows what actors coming up will become the revered old pros of the future. Betsy was really one of a kind, and had a remarkably varied and impressive career. She'll probably be best known for her role in "Friday the 13th" and she told me that at one time, it really bothered her that that was what she would be remembered for, but in later years she came to relish the fact that people recognized her from that movie. There's a charming clip on You Tube of her describing why she agreed to do "that piece of shit" - she needed a new car!

 

My memories of her make me smile. She was truly a happy, charming soul and I know she's having a great time in heaven regaling fellow actors with her war stories just as she regaled me backstage at Burt's. God bless her and keep her in His arms.

[TruHart1]

I always thought her smile was one of the brightest and most genuine in the entertainment business!

 

http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11114/111146553/4605870-7535066182-Betsy.jpg

 

TruHart1

[+ WilliamM]

When I was a teenager in Framingham, MA, Betsy Palmer appeared in "South Pacific" for three or four summers in a row, usually for two weeks. The Carousel may have been the biggest tent theater around (Ella Fitzgerald, Anthony Perkins, Gertrude Berg and Ethel Merman also appeared there, among many others)

 

I always had jobs while going to high school. so I only saw Berg and Fitzgerald. Many times I have regretted missing Betsy Palmer. When she died, The New York Times had a very good obit -- well deserved.

[+ purplekow]

I remember her only from her stints on game shows. She was always bright and charming and just a little suggestive. I've Got A Secret may have been the one i saw her on the most but I think I recall her on What's My Line and Password as well as MatchGame

[+ WilliamM]

I believe Betsy Palmer was a regular panelist on I've Got a Secret along with Henry Morgan and Bess Myerson. As a kid, I remember seeing the show as a member of the studio audience with my parents. Garry Moore took questions from the audience. And Betsy Palmer was on the panel that night.

[actor61]

I believe Betsy Palmer was a regular panelist on I've Got a Secret along with Henry Morgan and Bess Myerson. As a kid, I remember seeing the show as a member of the studio audience with my parents. Garry Moore took questions from the audience. And Betsy Palmer was on the panel that night.

She did that show for 10 or 11 years, I think, and loved it. There's a lengthy interview with her (can't remember on what site) in which she describes her relationship with the other panelists. She and Henry Morgan didn't get along very well at first and there was a period of time where things were very frosty between them but they ended up close friends. When I worked with her, we'd often gossip about various people. She had definite likes and dislikes and could be very catty but in a gentle, funny way. She really was a lot of fun to work with and boy could she "work a room". She played Vera Charles in the production of "Mame" I did with her, and I thought her version of "Man in the Moon" was even funnier than Bea Arthur's in the original. She and I had an entrance together at the very top of the show and she used to hold my hand in the wings every night and say, "How are you, darling boy? Ready to do this epic?" Great lady.

[+ WilliamM]

I do remember that Betsy Palmer took Garry Moore's place as moderator the few times he was away from I've Got a Secret. I am not surprised that Betsy was a nice person. You are lucky to have known her. The night I saw the show in person Gloria Swanson had a secret.

[Guest Starbuck]

There's a lengthy interview with her (can't remember on what site) in which she describes her relationship with the other panelists.

 

Is this is?

 

http://classicshowbiz.blogspot.com/2011/08/interview-with-betsy-palmer.html

 

She and Henry Morgan didn't get along very well at first and there was a period of time where things were very frosty between them but they ended up close friends.

 

Betsy and Henry on "I've Got a Secret" ...

 

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F3hbf0VXttA/TjupJW0ma9I/AAAAAAAAG90/FRqgx37YvTg/s400/Screen+shot+2011-08-05+at+1.23.45+AM.png

 

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yXJA7MFtieI/TjupMlWgm8I/AAAAAAAAG94/NH5Qi4I-1ws/s400/Screen+shot+2011-08-05+at+1.23.37+AM.png

[+ WilliamM]

http://www.emovieposter.com/images/moviestars/AA130730/200/playbill_betsy_palmer_signed_b_HP05137_L.jpg

 

From 1987: "Mame" with Carole Cook, Betsy Palmer and Lorna Luft in Juniper, FL.

 

Dear Actor61, That's the closest I could find from the mid-1980s. William

[actor61]

http://www.emovieposter.com/images/moviestars/AA130730/200/playbill_betsy_palmer_signed_b_HP05137_L.jpg

 

From 1987: "Mame" with Carole Cook, Betsy Palmer and Lorna Luft in Juniper, FL.

 

Dear Actor61, That's the closest I could find from the mid-1980s. William

That's it. Carole played Mame, Betsy played Vera and Lorna played Gooch. We ran through the holidays - Thanksgiving through New Year if I remember correctly. Loni and Burt were married during that run, so the theatre got a lot of publicity. One night backstage, Liza, Ann-Margaret and Loni were all in Lorna's dressing room. Pretty impressive. Carole got the stomach flu during the run and a dreadful understudy went on for her; the show never fully recovered after that, although Carole did. Betsy and I did a lot of beach walking during the run as the theatre was across the street from Jupiter Beach. On matinee days, we often had lunch together between shows. Great memories.

[actor61]

Another tidbit about "Mame". It was directed by Charles Nelson-Reilly who also had a great deal of fame due to game shows, particularly "Match Game". He was one of the most intelligent, articulate and best directors I have ever worked for. And a theatre historian of the first rank. He knew everybody and counted among his closest friends people like Shirley Booth, Julie Harris, Beverly Sills, and Jerry Herman for whom he had been the original Cornelius in "Hello Dolly". When I first told friends that I was going to be in a show with Betsy Palmer and directed by Charles Nelson-Reilly, the response was usually, "So, you'll play Password during the breaks?" But it turned out to be a very rewarding and enriching experience, mostly due to Charles. Oh, the stories he told!!!

[+ WilliamM]

Somewhere I have a tape of Beverly Sills farewell gala at Linciln Center. It was broadcast on PBS in 1980 or 1981. I believe Charles Nelson-Reilly was there. The head table was very small just Beverly Sills, Dinah Shore, Mary Martin and Ethel Merman.

 

I contributed very little here, beyond finding the playbill. I received much in response, with your wonderful stories!