RIP PETER PALMER

1931-2021

Peter Palmer was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He is best remembered for his role as Abner Yokum in the 1956 Broadway production and 1959 film adaptation of the musical comedy LI’L ABNER.  He won a 1956 Theatre World Award for the role. On stage, he starred opposite Edie Adams (later Mrs. Ernie Kovacs) as Daisy Mae.  The stage musical was also the debut of Valerie Harper, who later appeared on Broadway with Lucille Ball in WILDCAT.  Throughout the 1950′s, the comic strip Li’l Abner by Al Capp was one of the most-read strips in history, and references became a part of pop-culture, mentioned on several episodes of “My Favorite Husband” even on “I Love Lucy.”  

In 1981, Lucille Ball cast Palmer (above right) in her one and only (official) directing credit – a pilot for NBC titled “Bungle Abbey” starring Gale Gordon. This failed sitcom about a group of monks, was one of Lucille Ball’s few projects for the Peacock network, who had wooed Lucy away from CBS with much fanfare in 1980. For the pilot, he was re-united with his LI’L ABNER film co-star William Lanteau. Lanteau first appeared with Lucille Ball in The Facts of Life (1960). In addition to an episode of “The Lucy Show,” Lanteau did four episodes of “Here’s Lucy,” and the 1964 special “Mr. and Mrs.” 

Palmer died in Florida at the age of 90. He was married twice and had six children.