David Lynch and Mark Frost’s Twin Peaks was all over the news in September 1990 leading up to the second season premiere on Sept. 30, 1990. A few weeks before that episode aired, stars from the show graced the cover of TV Guide for Sept. 8-14. Inside, an article featured four novelists’ take on how they would resolve the mystery of the show. In addition, there were ads for Lynch and Frost’s then new Fox show, American Chronicles.
TWIN PEAKS IN TV GUIDE FROM SEPT. 8-14, 1990
When I think of iconic imagery from the original run of Twin Peaks, this cover with Sheryl Lee, Lara Flynn Boyle and Peggy Lipton comes to mind. Cover stories to Issue #1938 of “TV Guide” (Vol. 38 No. 36) for the Sept. 8-14, 1990 included something about competing for Miss America, Al Michaels being interviewed and Twin Peaks.
The image of the three stars was taken by Mario Casilli who was an American photographer born on Jan. 22, 1931 in Cleveland, Ohio. He attended the Cleveland Institute of Art at age 14 and would later serve in the United States Navy. He relocated to Hollywood, California where he learned the photography business at Paul Hesse Studios. Four years later, he opened his own studio and created a signature style reminiscent of the 1980s – soft focus, dreamy images with a key light illuminating behind the subject (just like his photo above).
Between 1957 and 1996, Casilli worked for Playboy magazine. His first photoshoot was of Jacquelyn Prescott, a Playmate of the Month from Sept. 1957. From 1962 until 1981 he photographed fifty-seven Playmate pictorials.
As he grew older, Casilli taught at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. While living in Altadena, he passed at the age of 71 on Apr. 25, 2002.
The image selected for the TV Guide was one of several options taken by Casilli. The Mauve Zone has even more photographs taken that day of Lipton, Boyle and Lee both in their all white outfits and their Twin Peaks costumes.
Casilli stacked the three actors in different poses before landing on the cover arrangement.
This TV Guide image and the cover of “Rolling Stone” magazine with Lara Flynn Boyle, Sherilyn Fenn and Mädchen Amick defined the excitement around Twin Peaks in late 1990.
Casilli is credited with the photo in the Table of Contents found on the first page. A story by Joanna Elm on page two feature four top authors offering their solutions to Twin Peaks.
WHODUNIT? FOUR TOP AUTHORS SOLVE THE TWIN PEAKS MYSTERY | PAGES 2-4, 6
Joanna Elm’s story runs between pages 2-4 and 6. She explains how the show had experienced a “suspenseful summer” as fans have been reexamining clues following the season one finale on May 23. From August to September, ABC Television rebroadcasted the Pilot and first seven episodes. It was also announced that Lynch and Frost’s groundbreaking series picked up 14 Emmy nominations. There was mention of a special episode planned that would have bridged the first and second season (it evolved into a 30-minute Behind the Scenes special airing on Sept. 13). Laura Palmer’s Secret Diary was also published in September (along with the soundtrack to the show being released on Sept. 11, 1990).
The images on the page are publicity photos of Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan), Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie) holding a One Eyed Jacks poker chip, and Sherilyn Fenn as Audrey Horne on the Double R Diner set. Additional photos include Laura Palmer’s rocky beach photo and an image taken of the Mountain Overlook (also known as Snoqualmie Point Park in Snoqualmie, Washington).
Elm mentions a “resolution of sorts” was promised for the Sept. 30 two-hour season opener. In anticipation of that episode, TV Guide contacted four best selling authors to ask who they “believe the kill is, what they like – or dislike – about the series so far, and how they’d write it.
ANDREW M. GREELEY’S TAKE ON TWIN PEAKS
Greeley’s 1990 bestseller, “The Cardinal Virtues,” is a sequel to his 1981 blockbuster, “The Cardinal Sins.” Of his 19 novels, 15 have been bestsellers.
“I’d say the killer is the psychiatrist. Dr. Lawrence Jacoby, because he’s most like Waldo, the Clifton Webb character who was the killer in the 1944 movie. “Laura.” In Twin Peaks. Laura was driving Jacoby crazy. He was attracted both by her innocence and by her evil. One giveaway clue is the terrible look on his face when he sees Laura on the videotape.
A similar clue is the look on Madeleine’s face when James Hurley and Donna play back the audio tape they stole from Jacoby’s office (on which Laura is heard talking to the doctor). It makes me think that Madeleine. Laura’s cousin, is really Laura, and that, as in the movie, the killer murdered the wrong girl.
I also think it’s the real Laura who shot Agent Cooper because she believed he was getting too close to solving the murder. I did play with the notion that the killer could be Pete Martell (the foreman at the Packard Sawmill who actually found Laura’s body washed up on the beach]. But it would be a total reversal of his character.and I think that if he was the murderous type he surely would have killed his wife (Catherine Martell. the power-obsessed manager of the mill) by now.
I feel they really have to wrap up the murder mystery in the first episode of the new season. Of course, Agent Cooper survives— maybe it wasn’t Laura but Ben Horne who shot him, because he blames Cooper for driving his daughter, Audrey, to One-Eyed Jacks, the brothel-casino.
One thing I must say about Twin Peaks — it has an extraordinary number of high-school seniors who are gorgeous, certainly not like most high-school seniors I’ve ever known.”
JACKIE COLLINS’ TAKE ON TWIN PEAKS
Her 13th novel, Lady Boss, is due In October. An NBC miniseries, Jackie Collins’ “Lucky/ Chances,” based on two previous bestsellers, airs Oct. 7-9. One hundred million copies of her 12 bestsellers have been sold in 32 countries.
“The killer is not going to be anyone obvious, so my choice is Andy (Sheriff Truman’s deputy), because he appears to be the least likely. If they were going for the obvious it would have to be Laura’s father. Leland Palmer. He’s such a whiner and so hysterical that you can see his guilt coming out.
My second obvious suspect is Audrey Horne because she’s always been jealous of Laura.
I think they really have to tell the audience who did it at the start of the new season because it’s not going to be popular with a mass audience unless they start coming up with answers. But they should find another murder victim when the killer is identified —just to raise some doubt.
If I were writing the show in the second season. I’d have fewer characters: about eight major characters, four couples. Agent Cooper would stay in Twin Peaks. He’s the whole show. Of course he survives the shooting. It’s obvious he wears a bullet-proof vest because he eats so much he needs one to hold in his stomach. I think Audrey probably shot him because he spurned her in bed. However. in the second sea-son he could develop a relationship with her when he realizes that she cares for him a great deal—and that she can tie a knot in a cherry stem with her tongue. He’ll decide to reform her. As an FBI agent he’ll have to go out of town and that would give Audrey the opportunity to get into all kinds of trouble.
I’d also do more with the Norma Jennings character. I like her storyline with her husband out of jail. I would have Hank Jennings win the lottery or come into money so that they become the new rich couple in town.
I also like Bobby Briggs because of his looks, but he has to remain “on the edge.” Maybe he should have an affair with Norma if she gets rich. That would make for a good suspenseful romance.
I’d get rid of Nadine. She’s too nutty. and her character never really paid off. Also. I didn’t care for the sawmill plot line. In a way, the show is style over substance. If someone gave me the choice of watching Knots Landing or Twin Peaks I would opt for Knots. The casting is brilliant, but the show is somehow like nouvelle cuisine—you can’t really sink your teeth into it.”
TONY HILLERMAN’S TAKE ON TWIN PEAKS
His latest novel, “Coyote Waits,” is a current bestseller. His previous two bestsellers were “A Thief of Time” and “Talking God.” More than one million paperback copies of his novels are in print.
“I’m inclined to pick someone as unlikely as Laura’s father. Leland Palmer. as her killer. Given the kind of girl we now know Laura was. and what a neurotic guy Leland is. it’s possible that he could have bumped her off in a rage after he found out she was working at One-Eyed Jacks. Frankly.
I’m not sure the show’s writers know who the killer is. By normal standards the series is sloppy and in-consistent. Twin Peaks sets things up and then does nothing with them. like the reference to the letters ‘R’ and ‘J,’ which Cooper digs out from under the fingernails of Laura and the previous murder victim whose death he had investigated before his arrival in Twin Peaks. And they seem to have forgotten the coma victim, Ronette. Cooper is inconsistent. too. One minute he’s Sherlock Holmes, the next he’s into dreams and throwing rocks at bottles.
Peaks is also full of in-jokes that don’t mean anything to most viewers. That’s adolescent and shows an arrogant disregard for the audience. If you take out the dog-food commercials. you take out most of the intellectual content of this show.
You’d almost have to start over with it. If I was writing for Peaks. I would have them do a proper autopsy on Laura. There was no reference to finger-prints or dental work. for example. Through those I would have them find out that the dead girl isn’t really Laura but her cousin Madeleine. who was killed by the real Laura after Madeleine found out about Laura’s sordid life.
I’d also do more with Agent Cooper and his conflict with Albert. the genius forensic expert. And I’d make Nadine Hurley another murder victim. I’d also have devoted an episode to the relation-ship between Leo Johnson and his wife. Shelly. and have her really brutalize him to show what should happen to men who beat up on women.
I really lost interest after the episode that finished with Cooper waking up from his dream and saying he knew who the killer was. The next week there was no real follow-up. It reminded me of those Saturday matinees where Flash Gordon and heroes like him were left on the brink of death. and the next week they were back in a new adventure. Well, I’m not 1 1 years old anymore.”
IRIS RAINER DART’S TAKE ON TWIN PEAKS
Her bestseller “Beaches” was made into a feature film starring Bette Midler. Her latest novel, “Mommy & Me,” due out at the end of the year, has been picked up by NBC for a mini-series.
“I’m a lousy person to ask because I always used to lose at Clue, but I like the idea that Madeleine is the one who’s dead and Laura was the one who killed her. Laura wanted to come back as Madeleine so she could start afresh and escape her tainted past. There’s a loop-hole, however. How could Laura go home and stand to see her parents so tormented over her murder?
Donna Hayward could also be the killer because she’s a character you’d least suspect. After all, she is in love with James. and there was that little speech she made to her mother when she was talking about Laura’s murder: ‘It’s so horrible, but I feel so happy.’ Her entire family is so straight and wholesome that there’s just got to be more to them.
Laura’s father, Leland, is also suspicious because he’s so crazed now. It’s possible he did it because he couldn’t bear the thought of her sordid life.
In the second season I’d like to see more of the romance between Sheriff Truman and Josie Packard and more of Lucy. She’s so adorable. Every time she’s got a scene, the show lightens up. She balances things a little because everybody else is so loony. I would also work on Agent Cooper’s storyline. I’d like to know more about his past, and about the women in his past. and to see him have a grown-up relationship on the show. Not with Audrey, but perhaps with Norma Jennings, since so far everybody seems to be breaking her heart [Hank, her husband. has been in jail. and Ed Hurley, her lover, is married to Nadine]. She’s so attractive, she’s a smart businesswoman and she also makes great cherry pie.
I’d drop Nadine. I think she’s over the top. So is Ben Horne, although his hotel is probably a juicy neighborhood for future storylines. As we learned from Dynasty, the business world is a very fruitful source of plot twists.
What I’ve liked most about the show is the humor in characters like the Log Lady and Andy, the deputy who cries. I also like the eerie touches: Waldo the myna bird’s blood spilling onto the doughnuts after he was shot and the traffic lights swinging in the wind.”
THIS WEEK | PAGES 40-41
Paul Droesch makes a brief mention of David Lynch and Mark Frost’s new show, American Chronicles, on Page 41 of his “This Week” column.
“Fox has two new shows this week, American Chronicles, the David Lynch-Mark Frost documentary anthology, will debut Saturday. Incidentally, most Fox stations will carry it in the half-hour slot immediately preceding ABC’s Twin Peaks.”
SATURDAY GUIDELINES | PAGES 60-61
On Page 61, there is another mention of American Chronicles. Descriptions about the show leaned into the fact Lynch and Frost created the popular Twin Peaks.
“American Chronicles, co-created by the Twin Peaks team of Mark Frost and David Lynch, is a new documentary series with an offbeat approach and Lynchian visual style. – 9:30 PM”
The Internet Archive has most of the shows available to watch including the first episode, “Farewell to the Flesh.”
SATURDAY EVENING PROGRAM GRID | PAGES 62-63
Pages 62-63 contain the Saturday evening program grid which included a two-hour rerun of Twin Peaks from 9:00 to 11:00 p.m on ABC, and American Chronicles airing from 9:30 to 10:00 p.m. on Fox.
AMERICAN CHRONICLES – TWIN PEAKS | PAGES 68-70
Pages 68-69 contain a real treat – a double page ad for American Chronicles, which again bills the show as being “from the creators of ‘Twin Peaks.'”
Additionally, there is a synopsis for the two-hour rerun of Twin Peaks, which combined episodes 1.005 and 1.006. Fellow Twin Peaks researcher and long-time fan 1400 River Road discovered when this broadcast happened, the credits contained a Part 1 and Part 2 reference as Agent Cooper enters the Great Northern Hotel dining room and during the end credits with Laura Palmer’s homecoming Queen photo. Check out her blog for other discoveries she’s made. Additionally, episode 1.006 didn’t have the opening credits or “Twin Peaks” theme; ABC aired the episodes together like one long show.
The synopsis read: “In an expanded episode, the officers go into the woods, meet a mysterious myna bird and hear what the Log Lady’s log has to say. Later, Cooper and Ed (Kyle MacLachlan, Everett McGill) pose as high rollers at One-Eyed Jacks; Audrey (Sherilyn Fenn) seeks a job at the perfume counter; James and Donna meed Madeleine (Sheryl Lee); Hank rumbles into town, out on parole; Josie’s got thorns that Truman (Michael Ontkean) doesn’t know about. James: James Marshall. Donna: Lara Flynn Boyle. Hank: Chris Mulkey. (Repeat)
The synopsis for American Chronicles is found on page 70: “Debut: A free-form documentary series from David Lynch and Mark Frost (“Twin Peaks”) examining American people, places and culture. The opening offering, “Farewell to the Flesh,” visits the New Orleans Mardi Gras.
FRIDAY EVENING PROGRAM GRID | PAGES 216-217
The Friday evening program grid on pages 216-217 contain one program related to Twin Peaks, which is found on page 217 in the 9:30 p.m. slot. This 30-minute special was hosted by Alan Thicke and featured a recap about Twin Peaks’ first season followed by a brief look at the short lived, Steven Bochco police-themed musical show, Cop Rock. The special was produced by LMNO (Leave My Name Off) Productions, a Los Angeles-based company founded in 1989 by Eric Schotz.
You can read an extensive recap of this special on Twin Peaks Blog.
A synopsis of this program is found on page 223:
TWIN PEAKS & COP ROCK BEHIND THE SCENES (CC)
“On location with the stars and creators of ABC’s Emmy-nominated ‘Twin Peaks’ and the new crime drama ‘Cop Rock,’ which blends music and action, included talks with ‘Twin Peaks’ actors Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean and Peggy Lipton, and co-producers David Lynch and Mark Frost. Also slated: interviews with ‘Cop Rock’ producer Steven Bochco and costar Ronny Cox.”
It’s too bad we never got the Cop Rock and Twin Peaks cross-over episode we all deserved.
Author
Discover more from TWIN PEAKS BLOG
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
