Iowa History Daily: March 24 - Lara Flynn Boyle

Iowa History Daily: On March 24, 1970, actress Lara Flynn Boyle was born in Davenport. Perhaps best known for her role as Donna Hayward on the television series, “Twin Peaks,” Flynn Boyle continues to endear herself to audiences through a variety of television and film roles.

Named after a character in Boris Pasternak's novel “Doctor Zhivago,” Flynn Boyle moved several times throughout childhood before ultimately graduating from the Chicago Academy for the Arts. Landing a small part in the class John Hughes film “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” in 1986, a variety of television and film roles started to follow.

Gaining notoriety in the break-out David Lynch series “Twin Peaks,” Flynn Boyle’s character spent the series attempting to solve the mystery of her best friend’s murder. Appearing in all 30 episodes, Flynn Boyle’s career profile rapidly rose as a result. 

Dozens of film and television roles followed including appearances in “Wayne's World” (1992), John Dahl's neo-noir film “Red Rock West” (1993), “Threesome” (1994), “Cafe Society” (1995), and “Happiness” (1998). From 1997 to 2003, she starred in the ABC series “The Practice”, for which she received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. #IowaOTD #IowaHistoryDaily #IowaHistoryCalendar