LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥� the filmmaker celebrated for his uniquely dark vision in such movies as 鈥淏lue Velvet鈥� and 鈥淢ulholland Drive鈥� and the TV series 鈥淭win Peaks,鈥� has died just days before his 79th birthday.
His family announced the death in a Facebook post on Thursday. The cause of death and location was not immediately available, but Lynch had been public about his emphysema.
鈥淲e would appreciate some privacy at this time. There鈥檚 a big hole in the world now that he鈥檚 no longer with us. But, as he would say, 鈥楰eep your eye on the donut and not on the hole,鈥欌�� the post read. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies all the way.鈥�
Lynch was a onetime artist who broke through in the 1970s with the surreal 鈥淓raserhead鈥� and rarely failed to startle and inspire audiences and peers in the following decades. His notable releases ranged from the neo-noir 鈥淢ulholland Drive鈥� to the skewed Gothic of 鈥淏lue Velvet鈥� to the eclectic and eccentric 鈥淭win Peaks.鈥�
His other credits included the crime story 鈥淲ild at Heart,鈥� winner of the Palme d鈥橭r at the Cannes Film Festival; the biographical drama 鈥淭he Elephant Man鈥� and the G-rated, straightforward 鈥淭he Straight Story.鈥�
The Associated Press
