According to a report from The Associated Press, Brad Lemack ,veteran actress Betsy Palmer died Friday at the age of 88,of natural cause while at a hospice care center in Connecticut. Brad Lemack was Palmer's longtime manager.
Betsy Palmer played Jason Voorhees's mother in the classic horror film "Friday the 13th." She played a sociopath killer in the movie as well.
Betsy accepted to portray the role of Mrs. Voorhees in the movie Friday the 13th because she wanted to buy a $10,000
In an interview she was quoted saying "My agent called and said, 'How would you like to be in a movie?'" "I said, 'Great, I haven't done a movie since the 1960s.' He said, 'It's 10 days' work, they'll pay you $1,000 a day.' I said, 'Great, I want to buy a car. It'll just cover the car. Oh, perfect.' He said, 'There's a drawback.' I said, 'What's that?' He said, 'It's a horror film.' I said, Oh, no.'"
When she made the decision to play the role in Friday the 13th, it opened more doors in the movie industry for Betsy and got her to be one of the famous actresses of her time. In the 1981 sequel of Friday the 13th, Betsy was offered to play Jason's mother again.
The actress had more than five decades in her career in film and television. Among her Tv stints were Wheel of Fortune, Kraft Theatre, Playhouse 90 and Studio One.
Betsy Palmer was also a part of the movies Mr. Roberts, The Long Gray Line, Queen Bee and The Tin Star with Anthony Hopkins.
Betsy's manager claims that Television and film made Betsy Palmer famous, but her greatest professional joy is performing onstage.Palmer's onstage performances on Broadway were - Roar Like a Dove, Cactus Flower and The Eccentricities of a Nightingale.
Betsy however is best known and will always be remembered as Jason's mother in Friday the 13th even if she has appeared in more than 60 films and television appearances.
