One of the most unique, and brilliant minds in film history, David Lynch, has passed away. He was 78 years old. The acclaimed director announced his emphysema diagnosis last year, and that fear of contracting Covid-19 rendered him unable to leave his home in Los Angeles.
Then on January 8th, the Sunset fire reached this same home, and Lynch was forced to evacuate. Though no official cause, or time of death has been announced, his family went to social media to deliver the heartbreaking news.
David Keith Lynch entered this plane of existence on January 20th, 1946. His father worked as a research scientist for the USDA. This entailed moving to wherever the department assigned him and resulting in a nomadic lifestyle on par with military families.
Despite not living in places very long, David joined the Boy Scouts, and that allowed him to attend the Presidential Inauguration of John F. Kennedy when he was 15. If that isn’t a completely Lynchian scenario, then I’m a fire-walking owl.
He went on to study art, and work on short films before releasing his first feature in 1977. The surreal classic, Eraserhead, would launch his career as an eccentric outsider director. One that would bring cinephiles an entirely new palette of strange, idiosyncratic tales full of untold meanings that force the viewer to interpret for themselves.
Lynch received his first Oscar nomination for his second feature, The Elephant Man (1980), and then two more for Blue Velvet (1986) and Mulholland Drive (2001). He also received acclaim for what most fans consider to be his magnum opus, and that is the Twin Peaks series (1990-1991, relaunched in 2017).
Not only was his work adored by moviegoers, but it also inspired countless artists throughout the decades and earned him the respect of his filmmaking peers. Smashing Pumpkins frontman, Billy Corgan (who contributed the song “Eye” to the soundtrack for 1997’s Lost Highway), made a statement on Instagram.
“Truly saddened to hear of the passing of David Lynch. Working with him was like a dream out of one of his movies, and I treasure the times I got to speak with him and hear firs-hand his vision for a film. I truly encourage anyone who loves movies and television to watch all that David produced. He was a true artist through and through,” Corgan wrote.
Fellow acclaimed director, Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather trilogy, Apocalypse Now, The Outsiders), also went to Instagram to express his loss of a friend, and colleague. “I am astounded and heartbroken,” Coppola posted, “I can’t express with any words the profound loss of the great David Lynch, my friend.”
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John Carpenter (Halloween, The Fog, The Thing, They Live) posted his thoughts over on X, and on his own birthday as well. “I got to be friends with David Lynch when we were both at Universal years ago. A very kind man, he was a fan of Bob’s Big Boy. So was I. I’m going to miss him. R.I.P. David,” said The Horror Master.
Tributes have flooded the internet since the news broke, and it is impossible to count how many are from successful people within the world of entertainment, but they pale in comparison to the fans. Not only have the ‘Party People’ lost their leader, but also any hope of seeing his unfinished film, Ronnie Rocket, come to fruition, and the possibility Twin Peaks returning for a fourth season.
Death has always been a part of life, and the way of this world that has now sadly become a little less weird. Farewell, great dreamer of time and space. May you pass your doppelganger with perfect courage on your way to the White Lodge. Send our love to Bowie in Heaven where we can only hope everything is still fine.
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