Albert Michael Strobel (January 28, 1940– December 2, 2022) was an American actor best known for his recurring role on

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (January 20, 1946 – January 16, 2025) was an American filmmaker, visual artist, musician, and actor. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, Lynch was often called a "visionary" and received acclaim f ...

and

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's ''

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'' as Phillip Michael Gerard, also known as Mike.

Early life

Strobel was born in

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the List of municipalities in Wisconsin by population, second-most populous city in the state, with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 Uni ...

. Strobel lost his left arm at the shoulder as a result of a car accident when he was 17 years old. While living in Oregon in the early 1970s he did theatrical work at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

and co-founded the Church of the Creative. At the

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's August 27, 1972, concert in Veneta he shot video which ended up in the film '' Sunshine Daydream''.

Career

Strobel starred in "scores" of local productions in Eugene, Oregon from the late 1960s right up to the early 80's. He was the star, producer and overall "moving force" behind a television dramatization of

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

's '' Swansong'', which aired on OEPBS and was called "a first for Oregon educational television." Strobel was cast in ''

'', the series which made him a star, without an audition or even meeting

. Strobel appeared in the ''

'' series as well as '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'', and had roles in the films ''Shadow Play'', '' Megaville'', and ''Ricochet River'' (starring

Kate Hudson Kate Garry Hudson (born April 19, 1979) is an American actress and singer. Born to singer Bill Hudson (singer), Bill Hudson and actress Goldie Hawn, Hudson made her film debut in the 1998 drama ''Desert Blue'', which was followed by supporting ...

). He appeared in productions of ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'', ''

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'' and ''

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''. He also appeared in the television movie ''

Child of Darkness, Child of Light ''Child of Darkness, Child of Light'' is a 1991 American television film, television horror film directed by Marina Sargenti, and starring Tony Denison, Brad Davis (actor), Brad Davis, and Claudette Nevins. It is based on the 1980 novel ''Virgin ...

''. As early as 2005 he had retired and was living in Eugene, Oregon. In 2015, Strobel appeared in a video supporting

following his departure from the ''Twin Peaks'' revival slated for 2016, along with numerous other ''Twin Peaks'' cast members. David Lynch later returned to the revival and Strobel came out of retirement to reprise his role as Philip Gerard. The new series aired on Showtime in 2017.

Personal life and death

Strobel died in Eugene, Oregon, on December 2, 2022, at age 82.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Strobel, Al 1940 births 2022 deaths 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American actors with disabilities American amputees American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Seattle