Biography
An instant cult celebrity as the star of David Lynch's nightmarish directorial debut "Eraserhead" (1977), Jack Nance lived a life every bit as bizarre as any scenario Lynch ever lensed. An alcoholic for much of his life, he recognized in Dennis Hopper on the set of Lynch's "Blue Velvet" (1986) a man who had battled and defeated similar demons and asked for his help. Hopper personally took him to the rehab center Studio 12, out in the valley, …
Career Milestones
2001 | Was subject of the film documentary "I Don't Know Jack" | |
| At time of death, working on autobiographical screenplay "A Derelict on All Fours" | ||
1996 | Filmed final role, Phil the mechanic, in Lynch's "Lost Highway", released after his death | |
1996 | Completed "Joyride", unreleased at time of death | |
| Suffered a heart attack; friends reported a history of heart problems | ||
1992 | Rare feature lead in "Meatballs 4" | |
1990 | Appeared in Lynch's "Wild at Heart" | |
1989 | Was a regular on David Lynch's TV series "Twin Peaks" | |
1988 | TV-movie debut, "Tricks of the Trade" (CBS) | |
1986 | Appeared in Lynch's "Blue Velvet" | |
1985 | Played, in own words, a "doormat" in Lynch's "Dune" | |
1983 | Returned to films with a supporting role in Wim Wenders' "Hammett", produced by Coppola | |
| Moved back to Los Angeles | ||
1972 | Met writer-director David Lynch; began work on Lynch's student film, "Eraserhead" (released 1977), their first collaboration | |
1971 | Feature acting debut, "Jump", a racing pic | |
| Began associating with Francis Ford Coppola in San Francisco | ||
| Starred in radical West Coast stage hit, "Tom Paine" in the late 1960s; director David Lindemann would actually introduce Nance to David Lynch when he was casting "Eraserhead" | ||
| Moved to Los Angeles; relocated to San Francisco and performed with the American Conservatory Theater; met first wife Catherine Coulson while performing in a stage adaptation of Kafka's Amerika at SFSU; she was a student, he a guest artist | ||
| Began acting career at the Dallas Theater Center; toured doing childrens' theater | ||
| Raised in Texas | ||