'Twin Peaks' home of Laura Palmer is for sale

'Twin Peaks' home of Laura Palmer is for sale

By Emily Heffter, Zillow Blog

Marilyn Pettersen awoke one morning in 1989 to the knocking of a Hollywood location scout at her house in Everett, Washington.

The living room now ...
The living room now ...
... and during the show.
... and during the show.

“When I answered the door, she said: ‘Well, I’m from the movie company and working on a movie for ABC-TV. They would like to use your home in the movie,’” Pettersen recalled. “She was a little tiny young gal, and I thought, ‘Yeah, and I’m the queen of England.’”

Before she knew it, she was signing a contract for her home to play the role of “Twin Peaks” character Laura Palmer's house. For years after, fans stopped by the house asking to see it. And now that Pettersen has listed it for sale, asking $549,950, the home is back in the spotlight, with stories from the A.V. Club and from Rolling Stone -- not to mention from a fan blog that matched up scenes from the TV series and the listing. (Yahoo Homes editor's note: We thank WelcomeToTwinPeaks.com for that!)

Fans of the show will recognize the white 1930s home near Rucker Hill Park as the house where Palmer and her parents lived in the fictional town of Twin Peaks.

Palmer’s death in the TV show’s pilot kicked off the series’ events.

The film company told Pettersen they were looking for a home that looked prosperous, like it could belong to Palmer’s attorney father, and one that could be fixed up to look like his “neurotic wife” lived there, too.

Recognize the rocker?
Recognize the rocker?
Click a photo for a slideshow.
Click a photo for a slideshow.

Pettersen stuck around during the filming, saving the film crew from a smoke-out when they lit a fire in the fireplace without opening the damper, and crying foul when the film crew gouged the home’s beautiful old woodwork while trying to open a stubborn window.

“To look in your living room and see this huge camera on a runner coming toward you, it was just kind of mind-boggling,” she said.

Even stranger, later, to watch the show on her TV. She liked it, but found it dark.

Listing agent Casey Price of Windermere Real Estate in Everett said he doesn’t think the television connection — especially such a grisly one — will sell the home.

Instead, he is playing up the home’s classic floor plan, hardwood floors, crown molding and updates. It sits in the Rucker Hill neighborhood, one of the nicer areas in the blue-collar city just north of Seattle, and has a water view.

Listing photos show the 4-bedroom home has had some updates since the filming. One that might disappoint dedicated “Twin Peaks” viewers: The fan that played a prominent role in the show was removed by crews who needed it to replicate the home on a set in California. They replaced it with a similar one.

The home is listed by Price and Tyler Gardner of Windermere Real Estate in Everett.

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