Al Strobel, the actor who played Phillip Gerard (aka The One-Armed Man) on Twin Peaks has died. He was 83.
Strobel died on Friday, December 2, according to Peaks producer and longtime collaborator with David Lynch, Sabrina Sutherland. “Through the darkness of the future past and much sadness, we say goodbye to Al Strobel,” she said in a statement on behalf of his family. “He is an irreplaceable person and will always be an important part of our Twin Peaks family.”
A cause of death was not announced.
Series co-creator Mark Frost gave further credit to Strobel Twitter Writing: “Oh no…Dear Al…as those of you who have been lucky enough to have met him over the years what a warm and wonderful gentleman he was. RIP friend.”
Dana Ashbrook, who played bad boy Bobby Briggs, added: “Sad, sad news… dear Al. He was the sweetest of all men. A wonderful storyteller… and watching him roll a one-handed cigarette – pure magic.”
Strobel lost his left arm in a car accident when he was just 17 years old. He has appeared in all eras of Twin Peaks, including the original run of the series, the 1992 film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, and its Showtime revival in 2017. On the show, his character cut off his own arm in order to stopping an evil being from possessing him.
Peaks premiered on ABC in 1990 and ran for two seasons with 30 episodes. His revival run added another 18 episodes. Strobel appeared in a total of 19 episodes.
The actor’s other work includes the 1991 TV movie Child of Darkness, Child of Light. On the movie side, he has appeared in Shadow Play, Sitting Target, Megaville, and Ricochet River.