Catherine E. Coulson, "Twin Peaks" Log Lady, dead at 71

Catherine E. Coulson, an actress best known as the quirky Log Lady in the TV series "Twin Peaks," has died.

Amy Richard with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, where Coulson appeared in plays over the course of 22 seasons, said Coulson died Monday at her home in Ashland, Oregon. Coulson was 71 and had been battling cancer.

Richard said Coulson met "Twin Peaks" director David Lynch in the early 1970s at an acting workshop at the American Film Institute in Los Angeles, and he cast her as a nurse in his movie "Eraserhead." She also served as assistant director, still photographer and special effects technician on the film.

In 1990 Lynch cast her as Margaret in "Twin Peaks," a mysterious woman who carries around a log. A new version of "Twin Peaks," meanwhile, is currently in the works.