Johnny Haymer

Who was Johnny Haymer?

Johnny Haymer was an American actor who played Staff Sergeant Zelmo Zale, a recurring character in the television series M*A*S*H. Another high-profile role was that of the painfully unfunny stand-up comedian in the Woody Allen film Annie Hall. Haymer also was one of the announcers for the Nipsey Russell-hosted game show Your Number's Up, and appeared as one of the servers in the original McDonald's "You deserve a break today" commercial, and in the mid-1980s, provided his voice for the characters Swindle, Vortex, Highbrow, and Caliburst in The Transformers. He played butler Walter Pinkerton to puppet Madame in 1982-83 on Madame's Place. Haymer also appeared in the next-to-last episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, "All Our Yesterdays". Haymer also appeared on The Golden Girls, in 1986, episode "It's a Miserable Life" as a judge. This was only a brief role, and only lasted a few minutes.

Haymer was born Haymer Flieg in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Jewish immigrants. He graduated from the University of Missouri in 1942, majoring in speech and specializing in dramatic impressions. He died in Los Angeles, California, from cancer at age 69.