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Dunno. I mean, I've told it to people, but I'm not sure I've told it in a public forum. It's a good one. Makes me cackle. I heard it from one of the people Lynch leaned on the hardest on that film, the guy who tracked down the warehouse space in Northridge that Lynch rented as a "soundstage." (1/10)

It wasn't a soundstage. It was just a little industrial warehouse space, and the owner really didn't have much experience with film people. He did have one rule, though, which was an important rule in the San Fernando Valley. No porn. He was adamant about this.

Lynch rented it because he was able to keep it for a long time for a relatively low cost and he could leave his sets up as long as he wanted without worrying about another film needing the space after them. It could be open-ended, which is how that film worked. Total movie jazz.

It wasn't sound-proofed. It wasn't air-conditioned. It was a rough little space to work in sometimes. And on one particular day, David just wasn't getting what he wanted. They'd been there for months by this point. That day, Lynch just wasn't feeling it and he was getting frustrated.

Inside, David's just sitting on the set in the heat, smoking cigarette after cigarette, simmering, trying to figure out the creative issue he's wrestling with. And he wants privacy while he does it.

The owner of the space happens to drive by and he sees Laura Dern and the women outside, all in relatively revealing clothes, and he stops. He freaks out. This is what he was dreading. They're shooting porn in his warehouse. And he starts pitching a fit.

My buddy tries to assure the owner that he's wrong. They're not shooting porn. It's a movie. Look. Here's Laura Dern. You know Laura Dern, right? Nope. Dude has no idea who she is. My buddy pulls up her IMDb page. Shows him. Look! She's got an Oscar nomination! It's not porn. Seriously.