Juul Haalmeyer
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May 17, 1949
Juul Haalmeyer | |
|---|---|
 Haalmeyer in 2002 | |
| Born | Julius Anton Haalmeyer May 17, 1949 Haarlem, Netherlands |
| Died | February 28, 2025 (aged 75) Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Citizenship | Canadian |
| Years active | 1969–2025 |
| Known for | Costume designs on SCTV |
| Awards | Emmy nomination |
Julius Anton Haalmeyer (May 17, 1949 – February 28, 2025) was a Dutch-Canadian costume designer, best known for doing costume design on several iterations of SCTV.[1] Haalmeyer also worked as a costume designer for many movies, television shows, theatre productions, concerts wardrobes for various artists and specials like Bridge to Silence, All My Sons, Long Day's Journey into Night, Noddy, the Shining Time Station Family Specials, Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales, Diamonds, Andrea Martin: Together Again, and Ghostwriter.
Juul Haalmeyer was born in Haarlem, Netherlands in 1949 and immigrated with his family to the United States in the late 1950s.[2] He lived in California and Oregon with his family before coming to Vancouver, British Columbia at the age of 18, to avoid being drafted for the Vietnam War.[2] He started his career as a costume designer in 1969, working on TV, movies, and theatre in Toronto.[3]
Personal life and death
Juul Haalmeyer Dancers
The Juul Haalmeyer Dancers were a woefully inept troupe of variety show dancers on the television sketch comedy show SCTV. They premiered on series 4, cycle 1, episode 8, titled Bouncin' Back to You with The Tubes.[4]
Catherine O'Hara wanted bad dancers for the Bouncin' Back to You segment with Lola Heatherton. O'Hara auditioned professional dancers, but they couldn't dance poorly, so she asked Haalmeyer, the show's costume designer, to put something together with whoever was available. O'Hara named the dance group The Juul Haalmeyer Dancers because it sounded similar to the June Taylor Dancers.[5]
The dance group changed with each episode they appeared on, with Haalmeyer being the only constant. The dancers were made up of the show's cast members who weren't busy elsewhere, the show's writers, and miscellaneous crew members who were available.[5]
All the dancers were dressed identically, with Haalmeyer creating the costumes. The choreography and dance routines were kept simple and jointly developed by the dancers. The signature exit move — fingers pointing down while backing up — was developed by Eugene Levy.[5]
The character of "Juul Haalmeyer" was allowed to develop over the course of several episodes and was seen on occasion without the dance troupe. In his final appearance, he and SCTV character Lola Heatherton revealed that they were in a relationship.
Appearances
The Juul Haalmeyer Dancers only appeared on these six episodes of SCTV.[6]
- Series 4, cycle 1, episode 8 — Bouncin' Back to You with The Tubes — (24 July 1981)
- Series 4, cycle 2, episode 1 — CCCP 1 with Al Jarreau — (16 October 1981)
- Series 4, cycle 2, episode 7 — SCTV Staff Christmas Party — (18 December 1981)
- Series 4, cycle 3, episode 3 — The People's Global Golden Choice Awards with Third World — (1 May 1982)
- Series 5, cycle 4, episode 4 — Jane Eyrehead with Robin Williams and America — (26 November 1982)
- Series 5, cycle 4, episode 6 — Christmas with Catherine O'Hara and Andrae Crouch — (17 December 1982)
Juul Haalmeyer also appeared as "himself" (i.e. in character, but without the dance troupe) in:
- Series 4, cycle 2, episode 3 — "Zontar with Bonar Bain and Natalie Cole" — (30 October 1981)
- Series 4, cycle 3, episode 1 — "The Great White North Palace with Tony Bennett" — (16 April 1982)
Haalmeyer can also be glimpsed as an extra in a handful of other episodes.
Charity
Haalmeyer was active in charity work, donating costumes to groups such as the acrobatic/dance group Fantasy Flyers.[7]