Palmer Family Promotional Photos from Twin Peaks – Fire Walk With Me

Palmer family gathered in the dining room

Recently, long-time David Lynch collaborator Sabrina Sutherland shared a behind-the-scenes photo of the Palmer family from Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. The Instagram post featured Grace Zabriskie, Sheryl Lee and Ray Wise gathered in the Palmer family dining room on location in Everett, Washington. The image is similar to other promotional stills captured by the late Lorey Sebastian for the film’s promotional materials.

PALMER FAMILY PHOTO FROM SABRINA SUTHERLAND

Palmer family photo gathered in dining room
Instagram: Sabrina Sutherland, July 23, 2024

On July 23, 2024, Sabrina Sutherland, Executive Producer for Twin Peaks: The Return, David Lynch: The Art Life and Inland Empire, shared a behind-the-scenes image of the Palmer family from David Lynch’s 1992 masterpiece, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. She captioned the Instagram post, “Such a beautiful all-American family [heart emojis].”

Sutherland, who also played Jackie, a Silver Mustang Casino floor attendant in Twin Peaks: The Return, Parts 3-4, took the photo of what appears to be a print of Grace, Sheryl and Ray (there is some glare and details are not 100% crisp). There were no mobile phones with cameras in the early 1990s, so this image was originally shot on film and then printed.

The image is a delight to see as it has not been previously shared.

PALMER FAMILY PHOTOS BY LOREY SEBASTIAN

Palmer family gathered in the dining room

Sabrina’s image is similar to this photography by on-set photographer Lorey Sebastian. This photograph has Sarah Palmer smiling.

It was most likely captured around September 25, 1991 when the crew had taken over the Palmer House in Everett, Washington.

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me Lobby Card from Germany featuring the Palmer family in their dining room.

It was used in promotional material like this German lobby card from the film’s release in August 1992.

Blue-hued image of family photo with Sarah, Laura and Leland Palmer standing next to each other in their dining room.

A similar blue-hued shot was found in a Japanese souvenir program from the film’s debut in Japan on May 16, 1992. Fans could even order prints of this image from an advertisement in the back of the program.

Booklet page with Palmer Family photo
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, MK2 French DVD | Booklet, Page 25

It’s even found in a 40-page booklet that was included with the MK2 French DVD release from 2004.

Palmer family gathered in the dining room

There is an alternate version of the family photo where Sarah Palmer is not smiling. It seems that the smiling version was preferred for marketing purposes, which is slightly unsettling knowing what happens in the Palmer family.

Leland Palmer questioning Laura Palmer about clean hands
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me

Their outfits are from the “wash your hands” scene, except Laura is wearing her dark jacket in the promotional image.

WHO IS LOREY SEBASTIAN?

Film credits with a ghosted image of Laura Palmer
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me

Credited as “Still Photographer” for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, Lorey Sebastian started her career in 1977 as the still photographer on the set of Joan Micklin Silver’s film Between The Lines. Sebastian was born in 1944 in New York City and eventually moved to Los Angeles. She had more than 100 film credits to her name including The Player, Crash, St. Elmo’s Fire, True Grit, Twilight, Hell or High Water and Hostiles.

Photo of Lorey Sebastian
Lorey Sebastian | Family Archive, Deadline

Lorey was briefly married to John Sebastian of the Loving Spoonful. She retired around 2018 and moved to Truchas, New Mexico where she lived with her two dogs. Sadly, she passed on May 9, 2022 at the age of 78 following a brief illness.

During my research, I discovered Ms. Sebastian wrote several “Letters to the Editor” of The Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper between 2018-2022. Below is the final letter I found from her dated March 10, 2022.

Letter to the Editor
The Santa Fe New Mexican, March 10, 2022

Author

  • Steven Miller at Twede's Cafe enjoying cherry pie and coffee

    A "Twin Peaks" fan since October 1993, Steven Miller launched Twin Peaks Blog in February 2018 to document his decades-long fascination with David Lynch and Mark Frost's wonderful and strange show. With his Canon camera in hand, he's visited numerous film locations, attended Twin Peaks events and conducted extensive historical research about this groundbreaking series. Along with fellow Bookhouse Boys, he dreams of creating a complete Twin Peaks Archive of the series and feature film. Steven currently resides in Central Florida.

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One thought on “Palmer Family Promotional Photos from Twin Peaks – Fire Walk With Me

  1. I really like that shot Ms Sutherland posted. Looks so much like my grandma’s family “snaps” she would take at family visits!

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