Not a Figment of Nadine Hurley’s Imagination in Twin Peaks Episode 2015

I’ve lost count the number of times I’ve watched Twin Peaks. Even being a fan for more than 26 years, I continue to find things I’ve never noticed before. This prop identification article is the latest example. I started with looking for the paintings seen behind Nadine Hurley in Episode 2015. I ended up finding a connection to my favorite Disney theme park in the world, EPCOT Center.

Nadine Hurley returned home after being disqualified at the district finals in Knife River for using an airplane slam. Upon tearing the bedroom door off its hinges, she finds her husband Ed in bed with Norma Jennings.

A pile of plush animals is stacked on the floor of the bedroom, including a tiny purple dragon with a red and yellow sweater. I immediate recognized him as Figment from the Journey into Imagination pavilion at EPCOT Center in Walt Disney World Resort. I had the same plush which I carried with me everywhere after my first visit to Florida in July 1983.

Here’s a better look at the plush from a 2012 article from Disney Parks Blog. I can’t believe I finally found a connection to Disney in Twin Peaks! It’s exciting to know that the Hurley’s must have visited EPCOT Center at some point in the 1980s.

Of course, this isn’t the first time that elements from the “real world” have made their way to Twin Peaks. The excellent Twin Peaks Props site identified a McDonald’s mug seen very early in the Pilot Episode at the Blue Pine Lodge.

Before getting side tracked with the Figment discovery, I was looking for the paintings seen behind Nadine as she stands in the doorway. They were pretty easy to locate thanks to the online Paint By Numbers Museum (there really is a fan site for everyone on the World Wide Web).

I originally searched “paint by numbers girl with bird” and uncovered a match on Pinterest which link to a match on Etsy which sold in 2013.

Confirming that the artwork was indeed paint-by-numbers, I search for “paint by numbers girl holding cat” and found a recent eBay auction which sold for $51.97.

A search for “vintage paint by numbers girl holding animals 1960s” lead me to the Paint By Numbers museum where I easily found more information about these paintings.

The paintings were part of a kit – New Artist Series 18 – from 1966 kit by Craft Master Corporation from Toledo, Ohio. According to the Toledo Blade, Craft Master was purchased by General Mills in 1967 and became a part of the company’s Fun Group. General Mills’ company website confirmed this fact:

General Mills went on a buying spree from 1961 to 1969, purchasing 37 companies – mostly nonfood companies. Its formidable toy business began 1965 with the acquisition of Rainbow Crafts, makers of Play-Doh modeling compound. It bought Kenner Products in 1967, and Parker Brothers, makers of the board game Monopoly, in 1968. The toy division was divested in the mid-1980s.

I didn’t realize that General Mills owned the company that made all of the Star Wars action figures I played with as a kid (there’s a second Disney connection – kind of).

The two pictures of the girl holding the bird and kitten were part of the “Family Pets” series in this kit. According to the packaging, the kit contained a “variety of picture subjects for all painters.”

Each kit contained 2 pre-sketched 10″ x 14″ mounted painting panels, 18 containers of pre-mixed artist oil colors, artist brushes, and complete instructions.

Here’s a close up look at the painting from Etsy. The final result of each painting would be different depending on the skill of the artist. It’s difficult to say who painted the images in the episode. One assumes Nadine did but most likely the crew found the paintings at a thrift shop and added them to the set.

Here’s a look at another examples from the Paint by Numbers Museum website. Notice how the girl holding the kitty picture looks quite different (what is up with her eye?!).