Born in 1943; died December 30, 1996, in Pasadena, CA. Actor. Nance's debut in the surrealist 1978 David Lynch film Eraserhead helped define his offbeat career. Not only did he star in other Lynch projects such as Blue Velvet, Wildat Heart, Dune and the television show Twin Peaks, Nance also appeared in such off-the- wall comedies as Johnny Dangerously (1984) and Meatballs 4. But he is best known as Eraserhead (also known as Harry Spencer), a strange man with an outlandish hairstyle who lives in a nightmarish world. Nance grew up inDallas and worked with Paul Baker, founder of the Dallas Theater Center. Hemoved to California and worked with the Pasadena Playhouse and the Circus Theater Company in San Francisco. Nance also played a garage mechanic in Lynch's1997 film, Lost Highway, which was released two months after his death. Thecircumstances of Nance's death were investigated by police as indicating a possible homicide.
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