Byron Palmer (21 June 1920 – 30 September 2009) was an American film, television and stage actor under contract with 20th Century Fox.

Early years

Palmer was the second of four children of ''

Harlan G. Palmer Harlan G. Palmer (1885-1956) was a politician, judge, and newspaper publisher in Los Angeles County, California, in the early 20th century. Early life He was born on March 19, 1885, in Le Roy, Minnesota, and attended the University of Minnesota. H ...

''; a politician, judge, and most notably the owner and publisher of the historic ''

Hollywood Citizen News Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

''. While attending ''

Occidental College Occidental College (informally Oxy) is a private liberal arts college in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1887 as a coeducational college by clergy and members of the Presbyterian Church, it became non-sectarian in 1910. It is one of the oldes ...

'', Palmer wrote obituaries for his father's paper and later joined CBS as a page eventually leading him to become a '' CBS'' radio news reporter and announcer. During World War II, Palmer joined the Army Air Forces and ran a radio station on an island in the Pacific. Between news broadcasts, he sang tenor on the air with a quartet called the Music Mates. Soldiers sent him fan mail that persuaded him to take voice lessons after the war.

Film and stage

Palmer made his debut in film in the 1953 film '' Tonight We Sing''. He starred with ''

Jack Palance Jack Palance ( ; born Volodymyr Palahniuk ( uk, Володимир Палагню́к); February 18, 1919 – November 10, 2006) was an American actor known for playing tough guys and villains. He was nominated for three Academy Awards, all fo ...

'' in '' Man in the Attic'', with '' Gordon MacRae'' in '' The Best Things in Life Are Free'' and in several other films including '' Emergency Hospital'' and '' Ma and Pa Kettle at Waikiki'' and the 1956 film '' Glory''. After acting as master of ceremonies for a touring “Hollywood on Ice” show, he starred with ''

Ray Bolger Raymond Wallace Bolger (January 10, 1904 – January 15, 1987) was an American actor, dancer, singer, vaudevillian and stage performer (particularly musical theatre) who started in the silent-film era. Bolger was a major Broadway performer in ...

'' in '' Where's Charley?'' on Broadway in 1948. He was also featured in the early 1950s Broadway revue "Bless You All" with ''

Pearl Bailey Pearl Mae Bailey (March 29, 1918 – August 17, 1990) was an American actress, singer and author. After appearing in vaudeville, she made her Broadway debut in ''St. Louis Woman'' in 1946. She received a Special Tony Award for the title role in ...

''. and the 1956 film '' Glory''.

Television

Palmer hosted the Miss Universe 1958 and Miss Universe 1959 beauty pageants on the CBS and

FOX Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelv ...

television networks. Additionally, he hosted the syndicated variety program "This is Your Music" in 1955 and was co-host of '' Bride and Groom'', which was originally broadcast on CBS and later on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters ...

in the 1950s. Palmer made a number of television appearances, including episodes of '' Perry Mason'' in the 1950s and 1960s,''

The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television program, television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in Septembe ...

'' in 1949, '' The Betty White Show'' in 1954, '' Pete and Gladys'', ''

How to Marry a Millionaire ''How to Marry a Millionaire'' is a 1953 American screwball comedy film directed by Jean Negulesco and written and produced by Nunnally Johnson. The screenplay was based on the plays ''The Greeks Had a Word for It'' (1930) by Zoe Akins and ''L ...

'', '' Lawman'', '' Soldiers of Fortune'', ''

Cavalcade of America ''Cavalcade of America'' is an anthology drama series that was sponsored by the DuPont Company, although it occasionally presented musicals, such as an adaptation of ''Show Boat'', and condensed biographies of popular composers. It was initially ...

'', ''

Matinee Theatre ''Matinee Theater'' is an American anthology series that aired on NBC during the Golden Age of Television, from October 31, 1955, to June 27, 1958. Its name is often seen as ''Matinee Theatre''. The series, which ran daily from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. ...

'' and more.

Personal life

Palmer married his high school sweetheart, JoAnn Ramson, in 1944. He later re-married to beauty queen and actress

Ruth Hampton Ruth (or its variants) may refer to: Places France * Château de Ruthie, castle in the commune of Aussurucq in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département of France Switzerland * Ruth, a hamlet in Cologny United States * Ruth, Alabama * Ruth, Arka ...

in 1954. In 1982, Palmer re-married once again to actress and professional dancer

Georgine Darcy Georgine Darcy (October 14, 1930 – July 18, 2004)Georgine Darcy in the U.S., Social Security Applications and Claim Index, 1936-2007, retrieved froAncestry.com/ref> was an American dancer and actress best known for her role as "Miss Torso" ...

who is best known for her role as Miss Torso in the highly acclaimed

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

film ''

Rear Window ''Rear Window'' is a 1954 American mystery thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and written by John Michael Hayes based on Cornell Woolrich's 1942 short story "It Had to Be Murder". Originally released by Paramount Pictures, the film ...

''.

Filmography

References

External links

* 1920 births 2009 deaths American male stage actors American male film actors American male television actors 20th-century American male actors {{US-actor-stub