Annie Palmen

Annie Palmen (born Anna Maria Palmen, 19 August 1926 – 15 January 2000) was a Dutch singer, best known for her participation in the 1963 Eurovision Song Contest. Palmen was born in IJmuiden. She started her career singing with dance orchestras around the city of Haarlem, then sang on various radio stations before her first hit record , "Ik zal je nooit meer vergeten", in 1958. In 1960, Palmen took part in the Dutch Eurovision selection, with the song "Wat een geluk" ("What luck"). In a somewhat odd selection process, each of eight songs was performed twice by different artists and a public vote chose the best song. A professional jury then decided which of the two artists would take the song to Eurovision. "Wat een geluk" was duly chosen as the song, but in the head-to-head with Rudi Carrell, Palmen lost out. Palmen returned in 1963 in a more straightforward procedure, performing three songs from which a professional jury would pick a winner. The song "Geen ander" ("Nobody Else") was chosen to go to the eighth Eurovision Song Contest, held in London on 23 March. Before the contest however, the lyrics to the song were completely rewritten, and it became "Een speeldoos" ("A Musical Box"). From a field of 16, "Een speeldoos" was one of four songs (the others being the entries from Finland, Norway and Sweden) which failed to score. This was the Netherlands' second successive 'nul points' showing, following that of De Spelbrekers the previous year. In 1967, Palmen became a featured singer with the Boertjes van Booten orchestra on the monthly television programme Mik for channel KRO, playing the role of Drika. This was a success and raised her profile. However, after the cancellation of Mik in 1972, Palmen dropped out of sight. Palmen died in Beverwijk on 15 January 2000, after a long illness of an undisclosed nature, aged 73.