Man from another place
Encyclopedia
The Man from Another Place (played by Michael J. Anderson
) is a fictional character
from the television series Twin Peaks
, created by David Lynch
and Mark Frost
. He is an inhabitant of the Black Lodge
, a realm of pure evil
. Early on in the series, The Man gives Agent Dale Cooper
clues to apprehending The Man's nemesis, BOB. He later makes recurring appearances in relation to the Black Lodge.
in a red suit
and dress shirt
. In the dream, The Man gives Cooper a series of esoteric clues which ultimately prove helpful in determining the identity of Laura Palmer
's killer, The Man's fellow Black Lodge spirit, BOB. One of these clues is a strange 1940s-style jazz dance
, a sequence which makes repeated appearances throughout the course of the series. The series never made clear The Man's reasons for wanting to help Cooper, or his true identity, although based his claim "I am the Arm" in the series finale, coupled with "I took it right off" (Philip Gerard, referring to his missing arm), that he was formerly MIKE's arm; however, despite his linkage to MIKE and the enmity and struggle for Garmonbozia between MIKE and BOB, it is unlikely that The Man aids Agent Cooper in an effort to thwart BOB. There are a handful of scenes throughout the series that suggest that The Man and BOB are allies; this is also consistent with MIKE removing his arm, as typically this is an action taken when the appendage causes harm. Following Cooper's dream, The Man appears only a few more times: once with BOB, appearing to Cooper following the death of Josie Packard
, and again at the end of the series when Cooper ventures into the Black Lodge.
, the faceless spirit entity who possesses
Philip Gerard, The One Armed Man, in the series. The script explicitly states that the Man from Another Place is, in fact, MIKE's severed arm. In the series, the one-armed Gerard tells Cooper a story about having been BOB's partner until he cut off his own arm in an effort to relieve himself of a tattoo on the left shoulder that BOB also had. In Fire Walk With Me, The Man from Another Place tells Cooper, "I Am the Arm, and I sound like this." He then makes an indian whooping noise with his hand and mouth, which later accompanies the first appearance of Gerard. At the end of the film, when BOB enters the Black Lodge and stands beside his host, Leland Palmer
, The Man From Another Place appears, standing beside Philip Gerard. At one point The Man From Another Place puts his hand where Gerard's arm used to be, linking up the Arm with its owner and making MIKE whole.
A common misconception towards “Fire Walk With Me” is that when BOB takes the blood from off of Leland’s shirt he is returning the stolen garmonbozia. It is widely believed that the blood is Laura’s. In truth, the blood is Leland’s. BOB is really healing Leland’s wound.
Another assumption is that BOB was MIKE’s familiar and MIKE used him to collect garmonbozia. A different possibility, often overlooked, is that when MIKE referred to BOB as his familiar he meant the other usage of the word: friend. This would coincide with the fact that MIKE and BOB were once partners, implying equals rather than servant and master.
Anderson recalls that his reverse-speak was not difficult to master as, coincidentally, he had used it as a secret language with his junior high school friends. Series creator David Lynch
was unaware of this when he cast Anderson in the part, and had hired a trainer to help Anderson with enunciation. When he found out Anderson could already talk backwards, he canceled the trainer and wrote more difficult lines of dialogue for Anderson to read.
Michael J. Anderson
Michael J. Anderson is an American actor known for his roles as the Man from Another Place in David Lynch's television series Twin Peaks, the epilogue and prologue film of the series, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, and Samson Leonhart on the HBO series Carnivàle...
) is a fictional character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the television series Twin Peaks
Twin Peaks
Twin Peaks is an American television serial drama created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. The series follows the investigation headed by FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper , of the murder of a popular teenager and homecoming queen, Laura Palmer...
, created by David Lynch
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch is an American filmmaker, television director, visual artist, musician and occasional actor. Known for his surrealist films, he has developed his own unique cinematic style, which has been dubbed "Lynchian", and which is characterized by its dream imagery and meticulous sound...
and Mark Frost
Mark Frost
Mark Frost is an American novelist, television/film writer, director, who is best known as a writer for the TV show Hill Street Blues and co-creator of the show Twin Peaks.-Personal life:...
. He is an inhabitant of the Black Lodge
Black Lodge
The Black Lodge is a fictional setting featured in the television series Twin Peaks. It is an extradimensional place which seems to include, primarily, the "Red Room" first seen by Agent Cooper in a dream early in the series...
, a realm of pure evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
. Early on in the series, The Man gives Agent Dale Cooper
Dale Cooper
FBI Special agent Dale Bartholomew Cooper is a fictional character from the television series Twin Peaks, portrayed by Kyle MacLachlan. He is the lead protagonist of the series, and briefly appears in the prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me....
clues to apprehending The Man's nemesis, BOB. He later makes recurring appearances in relation to the Black Lodge.
Twin Peaks
The Man from Another Place first appears in the series' second episode, in a dream experienced by Cooper. Although a spirit, he appears to Cooper as a dwarfDwarfism
Dwarfism is short stature resulting from a medical condition. It is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than 4 feet 10 inches , although this definition is problematic because short stature in itself is not a disorder....
in a red suit
Suit (clothing)
In clothing, a suit is a set of garments made from the same cloth, consisting of at least a jacket and trousers. Lounge suits are the most common style of Western suit, originating in the United Kingdom as country wear...
and dress shirt
Dress shirt
A shirt, or dress shirt in American English, is a garment with a collar, a full-length opening at the front from the collar to the hem, and sleeves with cuffs. Shirts are predominantly used by men, since women usually wear blouses...
. In the dream, The Man gives Cooper a series of esoteric clues which ultimately prove helpful in determining the identity of Laura Palmer
Laura Palmer
Laura Palmer is a fictional character from the television series Twin Peaks, created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. Her death was the catalyst for the events of the series...
's killer, The Man's fellow Black Lodge spirit, BOB. One of these clues is a strange 1940s-style jazz dance
Jazz dance
Jazz dance is a classification shared by a broad range of dance styles. Before the 1950s, jazz dance referred to dance styles that originated from African American vernacular dance. In the 1950s, a new genre of jazz dance—modern jazz dance—emerged, with roots in Caribbean traditional dance...
, a sequence which makes repeated appearances throughout the course of the series. The series never made clear The Man's reasons for wanting to help Cooper, or his true identity, although based his claim "I am the Arm" in the series finale, coupled with "I took it right off" (Philip Gerard, referring to his missing arm), that he was formerly MIKE's arm; however, despite his linkage to MIKE and the enmity and struggle for Garmonbozia between MIKE and BOB, it is unlikely that The Man aids Agent Cooper in an effort to thwart BOB. There are a handful of scenes throughout the series that suggest that The Man and BOB are allies; this is also consistent with MIKE removing his arm, as typically this is an action taken when the appendage causes harm. Following Cooper's dream, The Man appears only a few more times: once with BOB, appearing to Cooper following the death of Josie Packard
Josie Packard
Jocelyn "Josie" Packard is a character from the television series Twin Peaks, created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. Played by Joan Chen, she is a classic "femme fatale" character.-Background:She is from Hong Kong, and is ethnic Chinese...
, and again at the end of the series when Cooper ventures into the Black Lodge.
Fire Walk with Me
The film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me expands upon The Man from Another Place's identity and his reasons for wanting to help Cooper.Identity
Fire Walk with Me explains that The Man from Another Place is connected to MIKEMike (Twin Peaks)
MIKE is a fictional character in the TV series Twin Peaks, portrayed by Al Strobel.-Character overview:MIKE is an inhabiting spirit similar to the series' primary villain, BOB, who was his partner in serial murder...
, the faceless spirit entity who possesses
Demonic possession
Demonic possession is held by many belief systems to be the control of an individual by a malevolent supernatural being. Descriptions of demonic possessions often include erased memories or personalities, convulsions, “fits” and fainting as if one were dying...
Philip Gerard, The One Armed Man, in the series. The script explicitly states that the Man from Another Place is, in fact, MIKE's severed arm. In the series, the one-armed Gerard tells Cooper a story about having been BOB's partner until he cut off his own arm in an effort to relieve himself of a tattoo on the left shoulder that BOB also had. In Fire Walk With Me, The Man from Another Place tells Cooper, "I Am the Arm, and I sound like this." He then makes an indian whooping noise with his hand and mouth, which later accompanies the first appearance of Gerard. At the end of the film, when BOB enters the Black Lodge and stands beside his host, Leland Palmer
Leland Palmer
Leland Palmer is a fictional character from the television series Twin Peaks, created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. He also appears in the prequel, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me....
, The Man From Another Place appears, standing beside Philip Gerard. At one point The Man From Another Place puts his hand where Gerard's arm used to be, linking up the Arm with its owner and making MIKE whole.
Motivation
While the motivations of the Man from Another Place have been analyzed what remains is theory. Many theorize that there was a dispute between BOB and MIKE/MFAP over garmonbozia, a symbol for pain and sorrow, that takes the form of creamed corn. This depends mainly on the belief that garmonbozia is food for the Black Lodge inhabitants. However, we never see BOB consume the corn or ask for it. In the series it only states that he feeds on fear and pleasure. In the film, it simply states that BOB stole the corn, not that he consumed it. Mrs. Tremond, another Black Lodge spirit, rejects the corn when it is offered to her, implying that garmonbozia is not desired by all Lodge spirits. MIKE/MFAP seemed the primary ones interested in it. This raises the possibility that the pain and sorrow referenced in the film could be MIKE’s own feelings for BOB's victims. MIKE has been the only one shown to feel repentant for his actions.A common misconception towards “Fire Walk With Me” is that when BOB takes the blood from off of Leland’s shirt he is returning the stolen garmonbozia. It is widely believed that the blood is Laura’s. In truth, the blood is Leland’s. BOB is really healing Leland’s wound.
Another assumption is that BOB was MIKE’s familiar and MIKE used him to collect garmonbozia. A different possibility, often overlooked, is that when MIKE referred to BOB as his familiar he meant the other usage of the word: friend. This would coincide with the fact that MIKE and BOB were once partners, implying equals rather than servant and master.
Reverse speak
The strange cadence of the Man’s dialogue was achieved by having Anderson speak into a recorder. This was then played in reverse, and Anderson was directed to repeat the reversed original. This “reverse-speak” was then reversed again in editing to bring it back to the normal direction. This created the strange rhythm and accentuation that set Cooper’s dream world apart from the real world.Anderson recalls that his reverse-speak was not difficult to master as, coincidentally, he had used it as a secret language with his junior high school friends. Series creator David Lynch
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch is an American filmmaker, television director, visual artist, musician and occasional actor. Known for his surrealist films, he has developed his own unique cinematic style, which has been dubbed "Lynchian", and which is characterized by its dream imagery and meticulous sound...
was unaware of this when he cast Anderson in the part, and had hired a trainer to help Anderson with enunciation. When he found out Anderson could already talk backwards, he canceled the trainer and wrote more difficult lines of dialogue for Anderson to read.