Al Strobel

Al Strobel
Born
Albert Michael Strobel

January 28, 1940
Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.
Died (aged 82)
Eugene, Oregon, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active
  • 1960s–2005
  • 2015–2017
Notable workTwin Peaks

Albert Michael Strobel (January 28, 1940[1]– December 2, 2022) was an American actor best known for his recurring role on David Lynch and Mark Frost's Twin Peaks as Phillip Michael Gerard, also known as Mike.

Early life

Strobel was born in Madison, Wisconsin. Strobel lost his left arm at the shoulder as a result of a car accident when he was 17 years old. While living in Oregon in the early 1970s he did theatrical work at the University of Oregon and co-founded the Church of the Creative. At the Grateful Dead's August 27, 1972, concert in Veneta he shot video which ended up in the film Sunshine Daydream.[2][3]

Career

Strobel starred in "scores" of local productions in Eugene, Oregon from the late 1960s right up to the early 80's.[4] He was the star, producer and overall "moving force" behind a television dramatization of Anton Chekhov's Swansong, which aired on OEPBS and was called "a first for Oregon educational television."[5]

Strobel was cast in Twin Peaks, the series which made him a star, without an audition or even meeting David Lynch.[4]

Strobel appeared in the Twin Peaks series as well as Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, and had roles in the films Shadow Play, Megaville, and Ricochet River (starring Kate Hudson). He appeared in productions of Romeo and Juliet, Oklahoma! and Richard III. He also appeared in the television movie Child of Darkness, Child of Light. As early as 2005 he had retired and was living in Eugene, Oregon.[6][7]

In 2015, Strobel appeared in a video supporting David Lynch following his departure from the Twin Peaks revival slated for 2016, along with numerous other Twin Peaks cast members. David Lynch later returned to the revival and Strobel came out of retirement to reprise his role as Philip Gerard. The new series aired on Showtime in 2017.[8]

Personal life and death

Strobel died in Eugene, Oregon, on December 2, 2022, at age 82.[1][9][10][11]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1986 Shadow Play Byron [12][13]
1990 Sitting Target Man in Dreams Direct-to-video[14]
1990 Megaville Speaker [15]
1992 Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me Phillip Michael Gerard, aka Mike [12][13]
2001 Ricochet River One-Armed Man [12]
2014 Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces Phillip Michael Gerard [16][17]

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1989–1991 Twin Peaks Phillip Michael Gerard, aka Mike / One-Armed Man 10 episodes[13]
1991 Child of Darkness, Child of Light Dr. Seville Television film[12]
2017 Twin Peaks Phillip Gerard/Mike 9 episodes[18][19][20]

References

  1. ^ a b "Rest in Peace, Al Strobel (1939-2022), The One-Armed-Man and the Voice of "Fire Walk with Me"". Welcome to Twin Peaks. December 3, 2022. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  2. ^ "Grateful Dead Sunshine Daydream: Veneta, 8/27/72, part 1". Grateful Dead. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  3. ^ "Grateful Dead Sunshine Daydream: Veneta, 8/27/72, part 2". Grateful Dead. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  4. ^ a b Eugene Register-Guard – Sunday, April 3, 2005. Eugene Register-Guard.
  5. ^ Eugene Register-Guard – 22 Jun 1975. Eugene Register-Guard.
  6. ^ "Oregon's Log Lady, One-Armed Man fondly recall show". The Register-Guard. April 3, 2005. Retrieved March 9, 2021 – via Free Online Library, www.thefreelibrary.com.
  7. ^ "Al Strobel Reenacts Deleted Scene Live at Twin Peaks Festival (Video)". Welcome to Twin Peaks. December 5, 2011. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  8. ^ Kreps, Daniel (May 16, 2015). "David Lynch Returns to 'Twin Peaks' Revival". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  9. ^ Murphy, J. Kim (December 4, 2022). "Al Strobel, 'Twin Peaks' Actor, Dies at 83". Variety. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  10. ^ Haring, Bruce (December 4, 2022). "Al Strobel Dies: 'Twin Peaks' One-Armed Man Was 83". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
  11. ^ Browning, Justine (December 5, 2022). "'Twin Peaks' star Al Strobel dies at 83". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
  12. ^ a b c d "Al Strobel". TV Guide.
  13. ^ a b c "Al Strobel". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on January 12, 2018.
  14. ^ "Al Strobel". Plex.tv.
  15. ^ "Al Strobel". MUBI.
  16. ^ "Lost in the Movies: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces". lostinthemovies.com.
  17. ^ "Twin Peaks: The Original Series, Fire Walk With Me & The Missing Pieces Blu-ray Review | High Def Digest". bluray.highdefdigest.com.
  18. ^ "Everything We Know About the Return of Twin Peaks". E!. May 19, 2017.
  19. ^ "Twin Peaks season 3 episodes 17 & 18 finale review". Den of Geek. September 5, 2017.
  20. ^ Heritage, Stuart (May 15, 2017). "Peaks and troughs: ranking the careers of the returning Twin Peaks cast". The Guardian.