Twin Peaks Prop – Teresa Banks’ Evidence Box

I’m continuing my quest to document even some of the most obscure things in Twin Peaks such as Teresa Banks’ evidence box from Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. While watching my favorite part of the film again – those first 30 minutes when Special Agents Chet Desmond and Sam Stanley visit Deer Meadow – I noticed something interesting about the evidence box.

CHET DESMOND DEMANDS EVIDENCE

During a visit to the Deer Meadow Sheriff’s Department, Special Agent Chet Desmond forces his way into Sheriff Cable’s office to demand all evidence related to the murder of Teresa Banks. The contains this dialogue which we mostly hear during the filmed scene:

DESMOND
Well, little fella, let me put it this way. The operative word here would be “Federal.”  With or without the semantics of all this, I am now ordering you to release all pertinent information concerning Teresa Banks, both while living and deceased.

Sheriff Cable reaches down to his right side and pulls up a box.

As Cable forcefully shoves the evidence box toward Agent Desmond, he says the following, “A basic kill.  Banks was a drifter and nobody knew her.”

The 1991 script had some additional dialogue:

CABLE
A basic kill.  Banks was a drifter and nobody knew her.  My boys have been all over this   It’s a dead end.

DESMOND
That’s why we’re here, Sheriff Cable. Where’s the body?

CABLE
Out back in our morgue.

The camera cuts to a closer shot of Sheriff Cable sitting behind his desk with Agent Desmond holding the evidence box. Written in red, we can see the following words:

• EVIDENCE
• 1 Waitress Uniform
• 1 Apron
• 1 Ring (?) Bra
• 1 Undergarments
• 1 Watch

It was from this shot that I could identify the box.

WOOD GRAIN BANKERS BOX PROP

The wood grain “Bankers Box” was created by Perma Products Co. from Dallas, Texas. This is the Supreme Letter-Legal size box (Cat. No. 05010).

Thankfully James McLaren posted a photo of a similar box in an article from March 2004, as it was extremely difficult finding a match.

Getty Images had one additional example of the box found on this page. The box in the image is dated from 1989 to 1991. I’ve been unable to locate any more recent examples as it appears this style of box was discontinued. Interestingly, a patent for this box was filed by James T Pryor from the Perma Products Co. in 1970.

But here’s the strange part…

When the camera cuts back to a two-shot, the red text has disappeared from the box!! It’s now the only thing I can see when I watch this scene.

In fact, we never see the red text again. I’m assuming there were multiple takes done for this scene which account for the change (how I wish I could see those outtakes).

Agent Desmond pauses to look at the newspaper clipping with Sheriff Cable before leaving his office. The red text is still missing.

EVIDENCE BOX IN DEER MEADOW MORGUE

Agent Desmond is holding the box as he approaches the morgue out back. He sets the evidence box down to unlock the door.

Inside the morgue, Chet Desmond rummages through the evidence box while Agent Sam Stanley prepares the autopsy. Notice the writing does not appear on the side of the box.

Chet reads a list of personal effects including “a watch, undergarment, pink waitress uniform.” But the ring is missing.

Chet looks in the evidence box but doesn’t find the ring.

The contains slightly different dialogue:

DESMOND
Yeah.
(looking into the personal effects)
Personal effects include a watch, undergarments, and a blue waitress uniform…  the ring is missing.  It says  the rest of her things haven’t been removed yet from the trailer.  Let’s hope it’s there.

This is the last we see of the evidence box. When the FBI Agents leave the morgue at 3:30 in the morning, they leave the evidence box behind.