RIP Gunnar Hansen (aka Leatherface)

[BackInTex]

Gunnar Hansen, killer of 'Texas Chain Saw Massacre,' dies

The man that played Leatherface in the original 1974 version of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

In 1975 a group of friends and I went out to the house where much of the scary stuff was filmed. It was out in the country about 10-15 miles north of Austin. It was in the middle of no-where, and around midnight. No lights, just a couple of flashlights, and of course we were trespassing. It was abandoned and sat alone in the middle of a large farm area with no other or occupied homes near enough to see. There were two rooms upstairs that had a doorway between them, but the door was missing. I went into one and thought the doorway I saw was a wall mirror. Then one of the others walked in through it. I about pee'd myself. We did a lot of crazy things before HS graduation.

The home has been moved to another town and restored. Its now a restaurant apparently. The vegetarian menu is suggested.
These pictures are of the restored version:

[TheConfessor]

This shocks and saddens me. Gunnar was a good friend over the past 30 years. Though he moved to Maine many years ago, he mom continued to live in Austin and he maintained his local ties over the years. I would usually see him every year or two, and we kept in touch through occasional emails. I last saw him when he was in town to promote his book about the making of Texas Chain Saw Massacre. After dealing with 40 years of false rumors and fan mythology that circulated about the film, he wanted to set the record straight, from the perspective of someone who was actually there for the whole ordeal and the years that followed.

He was nothing like his most famous screen character. He was intelligent, articulate, humorous, kind, humble, and peaceful. He was born in Iceland, but grew up mostly in Texas. He gave me some tips on what to see in Reykjavik when I visited there two years ago. The world needs more people like him.

I'm sorry I did not know that he had pancreatic cancer, but that usually progresses very fast, so telling friends about it probably wasn't his priority. It seems weird that I would learn about it from the WWTBAM board. I'll miss him.

[mrkelley23]

I'm sorry, Ed. I can't imagine what it must be like.

[BackInTex]

Sorry for your loss Ed.