Carol Burnett didn't realize she did the Tarzan yell on “Palm Royale”
"It just came out that way," Burnett tells 'Entertainment Weekly.'
There are few sounds in American television as iconic as Carol Burnett's Tarzan yell.
The beloved comedian brings her signature sound to episode 4 of Palm Royale, "Maxine Rolls the Dice." But she didn't necessarily intend to.
Burnett portrays Norma Dellacorte, the reigning queen of Palm Beach society thanks to all the secrets she hoards and uses for blackmail. The show begins with Norma in a comatose state, but in episode 4, she finally wakes up — and can only communicate through grunts and yells.
The first startling indication of her consciousness is Burnett's beloved yell. But Burnett didn't even know what she'd done at first. "I didn't realize I was doing it," she tells Entertainment Weekly. "She was supposed to go [makes gentle moaning sound]. But I guess from all the years of doing the Tarzan yell, it just came out that way."
That was much to the delight of the cast and crew, including Burnett's most frequent costar on the series, Kristen Wiig. "I've been watching her as long as I've been alive," Wiig says. "It was a career highlight for me."
Burnett says she was willing to do it again the way it was written, but the team wanted to keep things as is.
"Honest to God, it wasn't on purpose," she says. "But it happened, so they kept it in."
New episodes of Palm Royale drop every Wednesday on Apple TV+.
Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.
Related content:
Bob Odenkirk refused to kill Carol Burnett's character on Better Call Saul
Carol Burnett reflects on her most iconic roles, from Annie to The Carol Burnett Show
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.