Frank Silva
Silva (October 31, 1950 – September 13, 1995) was an American set dresser and occasional actor best known for his performance as the evil spirit Bob in the TV series Twin Peaks.
Frank Silva
- Name
- Frank Silva
- Birth Name
- Frank A.
- Born
- 31 October 1950
- Birthplace
- Sacramento, California, U.S.
- Died
- 13 September 1995
- Place of death
- Seattle, Washington, U.S.
- Occupation
- Actor, set dresser
- Nationality
- United States
- Education
- San Francisco State University
- Languages
- English
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Documentary connections
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Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q939138 · wikipedia · Frank Silva
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
The documentary record
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Institutions cited
Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Not stated by the sources cited: nationality
Complete reading chain (JSON)In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Frank Silva • Birth Name — Frank A. Silva • Born — 31 October 1950 • Birthplace — Sacramento, California, U.S. • Died — 13 September 1995 • Place of death — Seattle, Washington, U.S. • Occupation — Actor, set dresser
Documentary record
Frank Silva is described as a “Requisiteur” in the authority records of the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek.
Life and career
Life and career
Born in Sacramento, California, Silva graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in lighting design, and worked as a prop master and set decorator on several of David Lynch's films, including Dune and Wild at Heart. While Silva was working as a set dresser on Twin Peaks, Lynch decided to film a scene where Silva was crouched at the foot of Laura Palmer's bed, staring at the camera. Lynch reportedly liked the shot so much that he kept it in the show. While shooting a later scene where Laura Palmer's mother was remembering a traumatic event, camera operator Sean Doyle told Lynch that they had to reshoot the scene because a mirror in the shot had captured Silva's reflection. Lynch instead decided to use the scene, and created the character Bob. Silva appeared occasionally as Bob for the remainder of the Twin Peaks series and in the 1992 movie Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me. His first major appearance was in the International Version of the Twin Peaks pilot, which contained a standalone ending that resolved the mystery of the series and incorporated the accidental footage. He also appeared in the Anthrax video "Only".
Death
Death
After Twin Peaks, Silva went through a period of depression because he couldn't find any acting roles, and eventually became homeless for a period of time before moving in with his mother. He was ultimately placed in a furnished apartment, which was subsidized by the state of Washington. On September 13, 1995, Silva died from AIDS-related complications at the age of 44. The second episode of the revived Twin Peaks was dedicated to Silva, and he appeared throughout the revival as Bob through use of archival footage.
As an actor:
As an actor:
• 1990–1991: Twin Peaks • 1992: Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me • 1993: Only by Anthrax (music video) • 2017: Twin Peaks: The Return (archival footage)
As prop master and decorator (selection)
As prop master and decorator (selection)
• 1989: Rosalie Goes Shopping • 1990: Wild at Heart • 1992: One False Move
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1949
Frank Silva born at Sacramento.
1995
Frank Silva died at Seattle.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Sacramento.
Birth place
Seattle.
Death place
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Frank Silva, revision 1374587908 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Frank Silva. IMDb bsn. March 2025.
- 2.David Lynch on the origins of BOB. YouTube. May 2015 cbignore.
- 3.Marshall, Clay. The Deep Connection Between 'Twin Peaks' and Heavy Metal. Vice. May 23, 2017.
- 4.Lewis, Henry. My Friend, Killer BOB. Welcome to Twin Peaks. 2021-03-08.
- 5.The cast of "Twin Peaks": Then and now. CBS News. May 19, 2017.
- 6.Saunders, Tristram Fane. Twin Peaks, season 3, parts 1 & 2 big questions: has Cooper flown the coop?. The Telegraph. May 29, 2017.
- 7.Stephens, Emily L. In its nightmarish two-part return, Twin Peaks is pure Lynchian horror. A.V. Club. May 22, 2017.
References
Citations
References
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reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
Further particulars
Held on the record
Further particulars
Open the remaining particulars
Frank Silva is recorded as designer, actor, dancer and property master.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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