Joe Palma: Difference between revisions

Eddie Laughton (June 20, 1903 – March 21, 1952), was an American film actor. Born in New York, New York, Palma appeared in over 120 films between 1937 and 1968.

Palma grew up in New York City, and worked as a mortician in the Provenzano Funeral Home, owned by his parents. Eventually, Hollywood called, and Palma hjeaded west. He joined Columbia Pictures in 1937, and received dozens of bit parts over the years.

Today, Palma is best known as Shemp Howard's double. In 1955, Three Stooges member Shemp Howard died of a sudden heart attack. At the time, the Stooges still had four short films left to deliver as written in the terms of their annual contract with Columbia Pictures. By 1995, budget cuts had forced them to utilize stock footage from previous shorts as a matter of survival. As a result, the Stooges managed to complete four films without Shemp. To do this, Palma was made up to resembled the late Stooge, and would be filmed only from the back or side. The few new shots Palma appeared in were then edited together with the recycled footage, and new films were born. ^[1]

Palma spent his last years in the entertainment industry as an assistant to Jack Lemmon. His final film appearance was as a butcher in 1968's The Odd Couple.

Palma died of natural causes on august 14, 1994.

• Fake Shemp

• Joe Palma in the Internet Movie Database