'Palm Royale' season finale: Who's pregnant? Who's shot? Who isn't who we thought?

Welcome back to the Shiny Sheet recap of "Palm Royale," our rundown of the new Apple TV+ series set in Palm Beach.

Each week, we look at five Palm Beach-related or key moments in that week's episode of the series that premiered March 20.

This week is the season finale, Episode 10, "Maxine Throws a Party" — and boy, was it a whopper.

More: Timeless: Mindy Cohn on 'Palm Royale,' Palm Beach, Ann Holiday and hitting her stride

For this episode, we put together four key revelations, along with two bonus Palm Beach tidbits you might miss if you aren't a local.

Watch out: There are spoilers ahead, so if you don't want to know, stop reading right now and come back after you've watched.

It's finally here: The Beach Ball.

Maxine Dellacorte (Kristen Wiig), our eager social climber, finally hit the peak of having her own Palm Beach gala.

Well, kind of her own. She has to share hosting duties with Evelyn (Allison Janney), and the ball is dedicated to Norma (Carol Burnett).

We have two big questions going into this episode: What will go wrong?

And what questions will be left when the episode ends?

Let's get into it.

1. Norma isn't Norma.

It was a real struggle to decide which revelation to tackle first.

This one seemed like the biggest because honestly — who saw this coming?

At the beginning of the episode, we see Norma propose to Robert (Ricky Martin), under the guise that it will protect her fortune and his, um, reputation. She acknowledges that she won't have "conjugal rights" in the marriage because Robert is gay. But she also laments her age and Maxine's control of her money.

"We spend decades scrapping for money and power and our 8 inches in the Shiny Sheet," Norma tells Robert.

When Maxine realizes that the astronaut from Episode 9, who is pretty much the only reason President Richard Nixon is coming to the soiree, flew the coop, she enlists Robert to fill in. He leaves Mitzi (Kaia Gerber) alone with Norma — but we'll get to that development in our second point.

Robert agrees to pose as the astronaut, saying he's doing it for Norma and Maxine.

Later, as Ann Holiday (Mindy Cohn) presents a glowing retrospective of Norma's life — was anyone else expecting a bit more oomph to that slideshow? Maybe some discovery, and not the glowing, "Happy 50th Beach Ball, Norma dear. Oh gosh, we just love you so much!" — Robert sits with Axel Rosenhips (Paul Sand), whom we learned earlier in the series was Norma's one true love.

When Robert asks Axel what happened between Axel and Norma, Axel spins a tale of lost love, telling Robert that he met Norma at their Swiss boarding school. Norma's father died while Norma was there, and soon after his death, Axel says Norma found her roommate Agnes at the bottom of a flight of stairs.

When Axel says that Agnes was a diabetic — Norma is diabetic, something she keeps a closely guarded secret — it's like a light switch flips on in Robert's brain.

"I followed her back to Palm Beach, but she just cut me right out," Axel says. "She wouldn't see me."

Robert realizes what happened: Norma is actually Agnes, and she killed the real Norma.

As Norma gleefully watches Maxine's breakdown — again, just wait a minute and we'll get to that — Robert kneels next to her and says, "I can't believe I considered spending my life with you — Agnes."

Norma's eyes get huge and she turns to him. "Why did you call me that?" she asks. Unfortunately, we don't get closure on this, but it seems pretty clear that this may be Norma's big secret.

2. Mitzi is pregnant, and Maxine unfurls.

Mitzi confides to Norma early in this episode that she is pregnant and in a lot of trouble.

Norma, of course, is overjoyed to learn a new secret. We can tell she's already mentally making a catalogue to put together a new Rolodex, like the one Linda burned earlier in the series that was full of the secrets of some of the richest and most powerful people in the world.

Maxine is kind of losing it little by little throughout the episode: First, she has to break up a fight between Dinah (Leslie Bibb) and Evelyn, then she capitulates to Douglas' (Josh Lucas) desire to use the Dellacorte mansion to start a club, then she finds out from Evelyn that Norma has been "playing possum" and pretending she can't talk.

So when Mitzi and Norma slip backstage as the president arrives and Mitzi confesses to Maxine that Mitzi is pregnant, Maxine encourages her to confront the man who got her pregnant — thinking that it's Perry (Jordan Bridges), who returned for the Beach Ball as an agent for Nixon to see what he could learn from Axel, a Democratic fundraiser.

"Women need to have the balls to say what they want or they're never gonna get it. Never," Maxine says.

Mitzi hesitantly walks to confront her baby's father — which she does just as Maxine starts to hit her stride on stage during her lavish performance of "Is That All There Is?"

As the president watches from a table right in front of the stage — where he is joined by Perry, Dinah and Douglas — Mitzi whispers into Douglas' ear, and we can see him say, "Really?"

Let's remember, Maxine had a miscarriage early in their relationship, and she wasn't able to have a child after that. Her husband impregnating someone else is a real slap in the face given her infertility.

So we can't really blame Maxine for completely coming undone on stage, under the spotlight.

She calls out Raquel (Claudia Ferri) — "Wave those big sausage fingers in the air" — and then Evelyn — "She's got nothing" — and then Dinah — "She tried to warn me but I didn't listen to her."

And then Maxine tearfully describes her love for Douglas, "the most wonderful boy."

"We were so in love," she says. "Until — until about four minutes ago, when I found out he was (ahem) my manicurist."

Of course, Maxine didn't say, "Ahem." But this is a family publication.

It gets really dark, as Maxine discusses suicide and death, but says she isn't ready for her "final disappointment."

"But as I stand here in front of you, I know that when I breathe that last breath, that I'm gonna ask myself: Is that all there is?" Maxine says.

It's right about then that Nixon decides he's had enough cottage cheese. He tries to leave, but Maxine rushes after him, shouting at him to stay, saying that if he leaves he'll be sorry.

"This is what an American woman looks like, Nixon!" she yells at him.

Of course, this is just before ...

3. Mary tried to shoot the president, but got Robert instead.

Mary (Julia Duffy) is wonderfully unhinged throughout this entire series, but especially so in this episode.

In week nine, Mary told Linda that she planned to kill Nixon, then beaned Linda and locked her in a room at the Rollins mansion.

Mary shows up to the Beach Ball and makes it through security. They check her purse, and she makes some complaint about a right to privacy, but they let her into the gala.

Virginia (Amber Chardae Robinson) finds Linda, but lets the door slam behind her, locking them both into the room.

Enter Evelyn, who leaves the Beach Ball in a huff with her boyfriend Eddie (Jason Canela) after Norma tells Evelyn that she won't get half of the proceeds from the event.

Evelyn — decked out in one of her old showgirl outfits for her lover — and Eddie find Linda and Virginia, who sprint to the Beach Ball to try to stop the would-be assassin Mary.

Mary stands on a balcony overlooking the stage as Maxine melts down. During the chaos of Nixon's departure, Mary tries to take her shot, but Linda intervenes, knocking Mary down as she pulls the trigger.

The bullet meant for Nixon instead strikes Robert, who is holding back Maxine and trying to comfort her.

He stumbles backwards and falls on the steps leading to the stage, and while everyone seems hellbent on holding each other back, NO ONE HELPS ROBERT.

There are all of these law enforcement officers around, and no one can render first aid to a man who's just been shot? No?

Meanwhile, the Palm Beach Police Department's own Tom Sanka (Rick Cosnett) — fresh off locking lips with Robert in the pool house — finds Linda alone on the balcony with the gun right next to her, obviously setting it up that the attempted assassination will be pinned on Linda.

4. A new club may be coming to Palm Beach.

How many times can we do a recap and say that Douglas really stepped in it?

Let's hope we get to keep counting with a second season.

Maxine is at first hesitant when Douglas brings up the club in front of Pinky (Roberto Sanchez) and Raquel.

Pinky corners Douglas and implores/threatens him: The deal must be done.

"It's the house or nothing," Pinky says of the Dellacorte mansion, telling Douglas that he bought all of the land around the estate and the mansion can't be a doughnut hole in the middle.

And then he threatens to cut off Douglas' pinkies. Douglas, understandably concerned, pulls Maxine aside and manages to convince her to go along with the club scheme by saying that it will be their legacy.

"This is our chance to create something lasting," Douglas says. "There is no one to leave this house to. There's no kids. No legacy."

Again, this is a dig at Maxine's infertility. Cold, Douglas. Super cold.

Douglas gets choked up, and the whole thing feels like a put-on.

Maxine breaks the news to Norma after finding out that Norma can talk.

"Douglas has decided to turn the house, our house, into a club, and I agree with him," Maxine says, rewriting history. "We made this decision together, because it's best for our family."

She threatens to send Norma back to assisted living at Destiny Vistas, then leaves to get ready for Nixon's arrival.

So, what are our questions for a possible second season?

Is the club happening?

Will Norma take back control of her fortune?

Will Robert live, and will he reveal the truth about Agnes/Norma?

Will Maxine leave Douglas?

Will Linda be arrested? Or will they find Mary?

Two Palm Beach highlights

1. Richard Nixon visited Palm Beach so much, he had a wing in a house here.

Last week, we covered Nixon's love of cottage cheese, and his frequent visits to Palm Beach.

Palm Beach Daily News' own Darrell Hofheinz shared a fascinating tidbit: Nixon visited Palm Beach so frequently that he had a wing in a house at 1055 N. Ocean Blvd.

More: House with “Nixon wing” for late president brings $13 million

The house was sold for about $13 million in 2016, from a trust on which Nixon's daughter, Patricia Nixon Cox, was a trustee to casino owner William M. Rickman Jr., Darrell reported.

The oceanfront mansion had been home to Mamdouha S. Bobst and her husband Elmer Bobst, the latter of whom was one of Nixon's lifelong friends and advisers.

The "Nixon Wing" had a bedroom and bathroom, plus space for Secret Service staff.

The mansion was just four lots south of the "Winter White House" used by the Kennedy family, at 1095 N. Ocean Blvd.

2. The Coconuts are real — but they weren't, and aren't, like that.

One of the highlights of the Beach Ball is a performance by the Coconuts, which Evelyn introduces as "a Palm Beach institution." The Coconuts, men dressed in grass skirts and wearing coconut bras, gave us life with their rendition of "There Is Nothing Like a Dame" from the 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical "South Pacific."

The Coconuts weren't song-and-dance men.

Historically, they were island gentlemen known for throwing the biggest, most exclusive New Year’s Eve bash on the island.

In that era of the late 1960s, they were more likely to hire dancers than be the dancers themselves — and it's safe to say that remains the case.

Coconuts typically have membership in several Palm Beach clubs – think the Bath & Tennis, the Everglades and Palm Beach Country Club.

Former Palm Beach Post columnist Thom Smith described the Coconuts’ founding thusly: “Begun in the '30s by the island's young bachelors as a thank-you to those who had hosted them over the year, it is the island's oldest party in terms of longevity — and the ages of its attendees.”

But that’s at odds with a 1965 column from the Post-Times — in Section C, titled, “for WOMEN” — which said the Coconuts were founded in the early 1920s, then disbanded in 1925 “as members were married or lost interest.”

The original Coconuts held costume parties that were elaborately decorated. Flo Ziegfeld, of Ziegfeld’s Follies, was a Coconut, and once brought his showgirls to a Coconuts ball, the Post-Times column reported.

The club and its parties were revived in the 1950s, the column said.

Either way, in those early days, they were known as "The Cocoanuts," a slight difference in spelling.

The early Cocoanuts parties also weren't necessarily on New Year's Eve. The first was in February 1920, as noted in an article in The Palm Beach Post: "There is to be a tropical ball given by a group of young men styling themselves 'The Cocoanuts,' at the Country Club on Wednesday evening, but someone has suggested that it would be much more in keeping with the weather if they had an arctic ball instead and asked everyone to wear his fur coats and winter apparel," the article said.

An article the next day said that the Cocoanuts "surely take the palm for Palm Beach parties thus far in the season, and if everything that was said and done went into print — well, someone would certainly write an editorial about it all!"

The paper also printed the list of those invited to that Tropical Ball, which was hosted by early Cocoanuts including Caleb Bragg, Addison Mizner, Jim Hyde, Jim Blair Jr. and Roddy Wanamaker.

Notable names on that list, for locals and those from places farther afield: Mr. and Mrs. Charles Amory; Mr. and Mrs. Harry Payne Bingham; Mr. and Mrs. Frederick Singer; Fred and Charles Inman; Condé Nast; Herbert Pulitzer; Francis Riggs; and Harold Vanderbilt.

In 1921, the Cocoanuts held their ball in March, with it heralded in The Palm Beach Post as "one of the very smartest parties of the year — certainly one of the most exclusive." It was held at the Palm Beach Country Club, which was transformed by Mizner into a jungle. The party kicked off at 11 p.m. and dinner was served at 1:30 a.m. Those who attended dressed as a tennis player, maharajah, "Campbell's soup kid," Hawaiian, pirate, medieval person, Shakespearean performer, fortune teller and princess.

Clippings from The Palm Beach Post, Post-Times (The Post’s predecessor) and Palm Beach Daily News through the years list among the parties’ attendees a who’s who of Palm Beach society through the decades.

There’s actor Douglas Fairbanks with Wendy Vanderbilt, pictured at the same party on Dec. 31, 1967, that was attended by Eunice Shriver, maiden name Kennedy.

On Dec. 31, 1973, the Coconuts’ gala was attended by Rose Kennedy and her son, Sen. Edward Kennedy; former Ambassador to New Zealand Tony Akers and his wife Jane; and Estée Lauder and her husband, Joe.

When the Coconuts threw their 100th anniversary New Year’s Eve party on Dec. 31, 2022, the membership roster included chairman Alex Fanjul and honorary chairman Rodney Dillard, as well as Kane Baker, Girard Brownlow, Robert Evans, Alexander Griswold, John Grace, Bingo Gubelmann, Daniel Hanley, Leonard Lauder, Troy Maschmeyer, William Matthews, Michael McCarty, Christopher Meigher, George Merck, Blair Meyer, David Ober, Christopher Orthwein, Blakely Page, Harold Paull, Oliver Quinn, Caldwell Colt Robinson, Wilbur Ross, Earl E.T. Smith Jr., Percy Steinhart and George Summers.

Kristina Webb is a reporter for Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at kwebb@pbdailynews.com. Subscribe today to support our journalism.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: 'Palm Royale' Episode 10 recap: Maxine melts down at the Beach Ball