Editor-DN
Los Angeles:
David Lynch – the one and only director of “Mulland Drive” and television’s “Twin Peaks,” who portrayed the darkness lurking beneath the wholesome surface of American life. His age was 78 years.
An enigmatic artist who turned his hand to art house and blockbuster film, television, painting and music, Lynch was considered the first and foremost of the great auteurs of American cinema.
“It is with deep sadness that we, his family, announce the passing of David Lynch, the man and artist,” read a statement on his official Facebook page.
“There’s a big hole in the world now that he’s no longer with us. But, as he would say, ‘Keep your eye on the donut, not the hole.'”
The cause and place of death were not disclosed. Lynch, who lived in Los Angeles, developed emphysema after years of heavy smoking.
He burst onto the US indie scene with his groundbreaking 1977 horror “Eraserhead,” a horror and now cult classic shot on a shoestring budget over five years as he kept running out of money.
Lynch earned a devoted following with critically acclaimed films including the sadomasochist mystery “Blue Velvet” (1986) and the surreal thriller “Mulholland Drive” (2001).
But he may be best remembered for his mesmerizing 1990s series “Twin Peaks,” which paved the way for many popular television dramas to follow.
With four Oscar nominations, including three best director nods, the shock-white filmmaker took home just one statuette in 2019.
– ‘fearless’ –
Tributes from all over Hollywood were quickly posted on social media.
“#RIPDavidLynch, a kind man and fearless artist who followed his heart and soul and proved that radical experimentation can create unforgettable cinema,” director Ron Howard wrote.
“David Lynch, RIP. At least that’s what the horse in the fez told me in the dream.
Born in small-town Montana in 1946, the son of a U.S. Department of Agriculture research scientist, Lynch traveled extensively around the Middle East as a young man.
He attended fine arts colleges in both Boston and Philadelphia, where he studied painting.
The one-minute animated film caught the attention of the American Film Institute, where he began work on what would later become “Eraserhead.”
Then there was 1980’s “The Elephant Man,” also shot in black and white and deeply tragic, but decidedly more mainstream and accessible. Lynch earned his first Best Director Oscar nomination.
Based on the diary of Joseph Merrick, the so-called “Elephant Man,” who was born in the United States in 1862 with a condition that left him with a severely deformed physical appearance, starred Anthony Hopkins and John Hurt.
His 1984 adaptation of the sci-fi novel “Dune” into a blockbuster would be one of Lynch’s less well-received efforts, though he still has fans.
Lynch returned to his arthouse roots with “Blue Velvet,” about a young man who comes home from college to find an amputated ear. His investigation uncovers a sinister side of small-town America.
It starred Isabella Rossellini and Dennis Hopper alongside regulars Kyle McLachlan and Laura Dern, and is often cited as his greatest work. It also earned Lynch his second Academy Award nomination for directing.
After winning the Palme d’Or, the top prize at Cannes, in 1990 with “Wild at Heart,” Lynch turned his attention to television with “Twin Peaks,” which captivated Americans since the early 1990s. And surprised.
The story of a Northwestern town reacting to the rape and murder of a famous but troubled high school girl, it was years ahead of its time and far more sophisticated than most network programming today.
But ratings plummeted as the show’s second season lost direction after alleged interference from ABC executives, and it was canceled. An even darker 1992 film was initially panned by critics, but is now considered a classic.
– ‘Unique and Immutable’ –
After returning to film with “Lost Highway” and “The Street Story,” in 2001 Lynch made his second undisputed masterpiece, “Mulholland Drive,” which earned Lynch his third Best Director Oscar nomination.
In a bewildering world of hallucinations and secret happenings, Naomi Watts plays a naive actress who suffers from a mysterious shy amnesiac, before everything takes a surprising twist. Fans still debate its meaning to this day.
The film’s writer, David Thompson, called it “one of the greatest films ever made about the cultural destruction caused by Hollywood”.
Lynch’s last full-length feature film was 2006’s incredible “Inland Empire,” though he returned to the world of “Twin Peaks” in 2017 with an acclaimed sequel series for cable network Showtime.
But he never retired, continuing to produce short films, music and paintings from his studio and home — appropriately located on Mulholland Drive, just outside Hollywood.
He regularly posts whimsical weather updates on his YouTube channel, indicating the optimistic and playful man behind his often disturbing art.
“It’s a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies everywhere,” his family’s tribute said on Thursday.
“I join you in the depths of this grief, in love and respect and celebration of someone who is unique and irreplaceable,” wrote her “Twin Peaks” co-star, singer Christabel.
(Other than the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
