To paraphrase a line from Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, “This is where Leo and Shelly live!” I’m taking a look at the exterior scenes of The Johnson House in this Setting the Stage story. Two different exterior locations were used for the home – one in Washington state and the other in southern California.
The first time we see the Johnson House is in the Pilot Episode. Bobby Briggs slams on his brakes as he spots Leo Johnson’s truck in the driveway.
The home is located at 8304 372nd Place SE in Snoqualmie, Washington. This article has more details about the location.
The scene cuts to a close up of Leo’s 1973 Kenworth W-900 truck parked outside an unfinished home.
Realizing Leo is home, Bobby quickly backs the car away in reverse which offers a look at the area around 372nd Place SE. There is one more cut back to the close up of Leo’s truck before Bobby is seen driving away (this article traces Bobby’s actual drive in the Snoqualmie area for this scene).
The Pilot Episode contains one more look at Leo’s Kenworth W-900 truck with a nice transition from a black and white image in “Flesh World” magazine to an image of actual truck parked outside the house.
The Johnson House returns in Episode 1001 with a new look. Viewers are greeted with a look at the side of Leo’s truck (why hasn’t any “Big Pussycat” merchandise been created yet?). The telephone number – 555-6315 – is a fictitious phone number.
The now demolished home was once nestled on the shore of Lake Malibou at 29337 Lake Vista Drive in Agoura Hills, California.
Shelly speaks with Leo while he cleans the inside of his truck. The truck is different from the one used in the Pilot Episode (more on that in a moment).
He gives her a bag of dirty laundry to wash before she leaves for work at the Double R Diner.
Shelly exits the back door to where the washing machine is kept (doing laundry in wintertime must be a real treat).
While preparing the laundry, she finds Leo’s bloody shirt and proceeds to hide it in the dresser next to the washing machine.
Leo is seen exiting the back door to notify Shelly that Norma Jennings has arrived to pick her up.
Leo creepily asks Shelly to “be a good girl and save him a piece of pie” before she departs for work.
After Shelly departs, we get another look at the washing machine area. The logo on the all purpose detergent reminds me of the brand Persil, yet I can’t find an exact match for the detergent box (yet … there is always a “yet”).
Later in the episode, Leo is seen searching his truck for his missing bloody shirt. I mentioned earlier this truck is different than the Pilot Episode. For Seasons 1 and 2, a Freightliner FLD 120 was used. The first year they were made was 1988 so this one was probably brand new.
When Leo can’t find the shirt in his truck, he examines the washing machine behind his house. This scene is the final one seen in Episode 1001 of the exterior location.
Say it with me – “DUCKS!” We return to the Johnson House in Episode 1003 when Special Agent Dale Cooper and Sheriff Harry Truman pay a visit to Leo. The ducks that Cooper sees were probably shot on Lake Malibou.
With his bright red Corvette parked in the background, Leo is chopping wood outside (OUTSIDE? Yeah, you know Leo) when Truman and Cooper arrive.
The first nighttime shot of the Johnson House is also seen in Episode 1003. The brief establishing shot is seen just after Leo leaves to get Jacques Renault for a border run. The scene reveals an interesting detail I completely missed in 25 years of watching the show. The Johnson’s have a vintage pinball machine on the front porch. Which one?
It’s Gottlieb’s Jumping Jack pinball machine from 1973. To find the match, I searched the database looking for a matching side panel. At first, I thought it was a football themed machine, but multiple searches proved inconclusive. I discovered the machine after looking at every machine starting from the mid-1980s and working back to the early 1970s. The best part is the machine has a clown theme which is echoed inside the house.
Episode 1004 has another establishing shot of the house. The aforementioned Jumping Jack pinball machine can be seen on the porch.
Leo’s truck and home are in a copy of “Flesh World” from Episode 1005. The shot is reminiscent of the “Flesh World” image from the Pilot Episode.
This episode also contains another establishing shot of the house and truck taken from across Lake Vista Drive. A similar shot will be seen again in Season 2.
Episode 1005 has a lengthy night scene that takes place in front of the house. Leo arrives home in his Ford truck to get red gas cans. He’s greeted by Hank Jennings who reminds Leo of his place in the world. Below are a few images from this scene.
This final image from Episode 1005 has an interesting detail. Remember the back of Leo’s 1978 Ford F-250 truck as it will be important later.
Episode 1006 also has an extensive scene that take place outside the home.
Bobby Briggs is watched by Leo through binoculars at first then a gun scope as he parks his car and meets Shelly at the front door.
The scene cuts to a shot of the house from across Lake Vista Drive. Bobby and Shelly are seen in an embrace at the front door.
Leo grabs his gun and attempts to track Bobby through the scope.
Leo overhears Lucy Moran discussing Waldo the Myna bird on his CB. He stops tracking Bobby and drives away in his Ford F-250 truck.
We return to the Johnson house in Episode 2001 of Season 2. Agent Cooper, Sheriff Truman and Deputy Hawk are examining the inside of the home when they hear Andy yelling outside.
Special Agent Albert Rosenfield and his team arrive in an 1988 Ford LTD Crown Victoria. The scene was shot along Lake View Drive. Andy sprints toward the home and inadvertently steps on a loose wooden plank as seen below.
Cooper and Truman rush outside to see the commotion and discover Andy has uncovered Circle Brand boots and drugs.
The next time we see the exterior of the Johnson House is in Episode 2005.
This is a recycled establishing shot from Episode 1004.
A new nighttime establishing shot is seen in Episode 2006. It’s similar to the one used in Episode 1003 except Leo’s truck is missing. You can still see the pinball machine on the porch.
Episode 2007 contains a similar establishing shot to one first used in Episode 1005. Again Leo’s truck is missing. Recall when I mentioned Leo’s Ford F-250 would be important to remember.
The tail end of this establishing shot shows the truck passing by the house! This could mean the crew captured this footage during Season 1. This is the only time this establishing shot is seen in the series.
Episodes 2013 and 2014 contain similar nighttime establishing shots (the house is bathed in different colored lighting).
This episode also contains a closer shot of the side of the house when Leo tries grabbing Bobby through the window. Episode 2014 marks the final time the Johnson House is seen in Season 2.
The house makes one final appearance in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. There is a recycled establishing shot taken from the Pilot Episode of the home in Washington State. This shot has been cropped and colors are slightly different than the original image. The home doesn’t appear in Season 3 on Showtime.
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