‘Palm Royale’: Vicki Lawrence Talks Reuniting With Carol Burnett & Developing Lottie’s Accent

[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Palm Royale Season 2 Episode 8.]

We’re so glad we had this time together — again! The last time Carol Burnett and Vicki Lawrence worked together was in 1978, when the beloved comedy/variety series The Carol Burnett Show ended its 11-season run. In the eighth episode of Palm Royale‘s second season, actor/singer Lawrence, one of the Burnett show’s legendary ensemble cast, popped up as Lottie, the spry, centenarian mother to Burnett’s scheming Palm Beach society queen Norma Dellacorte.

“I feel like I was right back where I always was,” Lawrence told TV Insider. “It was very comfortable and so good to see Carol and so good to meet all those lovely ladies that I’m a fan of. It was a fun set, a fun group.”

Below, Lawrence shares more about guesting on the zany 1970-set series that this week took its glamorous, back-stabbing, money-grabbing circle of Palm Beach frenemies to the Alps.

Do you and Carol still spend time together?

Vicki Lawrence: I see her quite often. I go up north and visit her in Santa Barbara. We laugh a lot. We went to one of the local restaurants one night, and she invited some friends. When we left, the maitre d’ said, “I haven’t heard that much laughter in this restaurant ever.” It’s always good to see her and reminisce about the good old days.

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How did this role come about?

Abe [Sylvia, Palm Royale creator and executive producer], I guess, contacted Carol and said, “I have this really good part in Season 2, and I would love to offer it to Vicki. Would you be OK with that? ” And Carol said, “OK, yes, go.” So, he called me. When he gave me the offer, I was so excited because all those women are so gorgeous. The costumes, the makeup, everything is beautiful. I couldn’t wait to see what I was going to get to do. I did not see a nun coming.

Not a traditional nun though! You’re playing Carol’s mother, as you did in The Family sketches on The Carol Burnett Show where you were Thelma Harper to her Eunice Harper Higgins.

Abe thought that would be extremely hysterical and people that got it would love it and people that didn’t would still enjoy the episode. With Mama and Eunice, Mama was mean. She was really not a very nurturing mother. Agnes and Lottie have a much more close, loving relationship. Norma could go to her for advice, and she would be honest and loving about it. Thelma, not so much. She was a totally dysfunctional mother.

Carol has one line where she says, “Shut up, mother.” It was such a Eunice moment.

Yeah, it was hard not to laugh because it was so reminiscent.

Any more insight into Lottie?

She’s still a feisty old gal. She kind of reminded me of my mother-in-law who was crazy fun, tough to the bitter end. That’s the way I played Lottie. And yeah, she was, I guess, a little bit of a tramp when she was young. [Laughs]

How did you develop Lottie’s accent?

Abe said, “I want her to be anywhere in the Germanic countries. Just give me a good European accent.” I was like, “What the hell do I do?” So, I started thinking and I remembered Dr. Ruth. I Googled a lot of Ruth Westheimer videos and started trying to copy her voice. Whenever I would have to go back in and shoot, I’d have to get Dr. Ruth on a video again and listen. 

Any stories from shooting at The Timberline Lodge in Mt. Hood that doubled for the Alps?

It was a crazy kind of place. If it’s not haunted, it should be. Probably the funniest thing that happened was Mindy [Cohn] and Amber [Chardae Robinson] and I got stuck in the elevator one night. It was dinnertime and we were going up to the restaurant. I think they were more scared than I was. I thought it was humorous and was sending videos to everybody. I have videos of them being frightened to death plastered against the wall with their eyes as big as an owl’s and me sending videos to Allison Janney [saying], “Could you please send help and send vodka?” Luckily, we weren’t stuck for too long. They did come and rescue us, but it was fun.

Had you met anyone in the cast previously?

Carol had her 90th birthday party, and it turns out we’re all fans of each other. I always feel like it was so long ago — who even remembers me? Carol’s a legend, maybe I’m the Ethel to her Lucy. I still am amazed when people as talented as Kristen [Wiig] or Allison or Laura [Dern, who executive produces] are fans of mine. I am shocked. I had met Laura, but I’m not sure she remembers because she was much younger, the mid-90s. I had a self-defense gal on my talk show. She said, “You should come into my self-defense class, and I will teach you how to shoot.” I took a girlfriend with me. We went to the class, and Laura and her mom Diane Ladd showed up. We were the crazy girls in the back of the room giggling most of the day. Diane in particular. She really got into that gun moll thing. But the other girls, no, I was just fan.

At the end of 208, it seems Lottie may have poisoned Douglas with Schnapps. Is Lottie capable of murder?

Yeah, I think she would do whatever she needed to do to protect her daughter and to keep things the way she wants them.

This streams New Year’s Eve. What are your plans?

I’m not much of a party girl. I’ll be home. Champagne and Palm Royale!

Palm Royale, Wednesdays, Apple TV