If viewers didn’t care to watch Showtime’s redo ofTwin Peaksat home, chances are there was a viewing party for the May 21 premiere close to home. The parties, held at restaurants, bars and arts spaces, typically had cherry pie on offer, just as FBI agent Dale Cooper would’ve liked.
New York had several options, including Brooklyn Bazaar and cinephile hangout Videology. Los Angeles’ parties included one at HM157, a historic Victorian mansion used for artsy events. In Memphis, Tenn., a restaurant known as The Cove, with an assist from the Memphis Film Society, has screened episodes of the original series every Sunday, starting back in early December, with $4 cherry pie and coffee.
Seattle, close to the show’s Washington locale, had several party sites, including ones at Central Cinema, Linda’s Tavern and Timbre Room.
Related: ESPN Sends Mayne Man to Upfront to Save Cable
L.A.’s HM157 planned to show the series premiere in the mansion’s backyard, projected on a wall, with people throwing down blankets to take in the fun. Events planner Daiana Feuer told The Wire that 300 people sent in RSVPs to the party’s online listing, and another 1,000 marked themselves as “interested.”
“We expect a real big crowd,” she said a few days before the premiere. “It’s gonna get a little cozy back there.”
HM157 served up cherry pie and coffee, along with brie and butter baguettes, as the series’ Horne brothers loved.
In New York, Videology has been hostingTwin Peaksbingo for years. As an episode airs, if something happens on screen that a player has on their card, such as an appearance by a minor character, they get a chip. The winner gets a free cocktail or donut. The place was slated to screen theTwin Peaksprequel filmFire Walk With Meon Saturday (May 20), along with other David Lynch films, and then the new series premiere on Sunday. Drink specials included the Fish in the Percolator, an homage to a colorful line from character Pete Martell.
“We’re really trying to turn it into an all-dayTwin Peaksevent,” said Madeleine Tangney, film and event programmer at Videology, who was expecting the joint’s 90 chairs to be filled Sunday.
Party hosts offer up a variety of reasons as to whyTwin Peaksso resonates with viewers. There was nothing like it before it aired, and nothing truly like the surreal series since. It “perverts American iconography,” Tangney said. It’s also a signature work from Lynch and eminently suitable for lively gatherings.
“A lot of people loveTwin Peaks,” Feuer noted, “and watching at a party seems like a fun thing to do, rather than watching at home.”
