Next up in the Encyclopedia of Lodge characters are the sinister Tremonds / Chalfonts, consisting of Mrs. Tremond and her grandson, sometimes referred to as Pierre Tremond. Note that the name Pierre is not always accepted as canon, but for the sake of convenience, I will use it on this page.

The Tremonds / Chalfonts

Tremonds helpful or evil?

Some have suggested that the Tremonds, like the Giant, are helpful spirits, guiding the people of Twin Peaks in the struggle against evil. I believe this is highly doubtful. If you notice, the Tremonds are connected to a number of mysterious deaths or disappearances in the Twin Peaks chronology. Whenever they appear: bad stuff happens. Let's take a look at the evidence from the movie and the show:

FWWM: I think we can agree that the ring implies some negative connection to the Black Lodge. Everyone who comes into contact with it either dies or disappears, including Teresa Banks, Chester Desmond and Laura Palmer. Significantly, the Tremonds are always in the vicinity when the ring appears. In the case of both Teresa Banks and Chester Desmond, the connection is obvious: the Tremonds/Chalfonts were living in the trailer park near Teresa, and later lured Agent Desmond to the mound of earth where he found the green ring. Both Desmond and the Chalfonts' trailer vanish without a trace.

The Tremonds later reappear on the parking lot of the Double R Diner, where they hand Laura the picture of the doorway. The picture leads to a dream in which the Tremonds again appear, transporting Laura to the Black Lodge where LMFAP offers her the green ring. Significantly, she is warned by Agent Cooper "not to take the ring", again implying some form of danger connected to the jewel. Without further elaborating on the importance of the ring (see my entry on the MFAP), let me just repeat that the Tremonds should be held directly responsible for leading Laura to the ring.

Finally, the Tremonds are present at the Lodge meeting between the MFAP and Bob, as seen during the ramblings of Philip Jeffries. Four people cannot be accounted for (the Jumping Man, the Electrician, and the two woodsmen), but assuming that all who are present are Lodge spirits, there is one remarkable absence: the Giant. Since the Giant is the only Lodge spirit who seems to do "good" throughout the series, his absence during the Lodge meeting implies that only "evil" Lodge spirits are present.

Twin Peaks: On the show the Tremonds appear only once but it is arguably one of the most memorable, and downright creepy scenes in the entire series. Donna temporarily takes over Laura's Meals-On-Wheels round after a hint from the Log Lady, and winds up with Mrs. Tremond and her grandson Pierre. The Tremonds "helpfully" point Donna towards their neighbour Harold Smith, who turns out owning the secret diary of Laura Palmer. Before Donna leaves, Pierre says "J'ai une ame solitaire". A few episodes later, Harold is found dead from an apparent suicide, with a note stuck to his body reading the same sentence, "J'ai une ame solitaire". His rooms are found overturned, and the diary shredded to pieces.

Bearing in mind the Tremonds' actions in FWWM, their willingness to "help" Donna seems highly suspicious. Why for that matter, is Mrs. Tremond seemingly bed-ridden, when she had no trouble walking around (and fast too) in FWWM? It all seems like a very calculated attempt to bring about Harold's downfall, with Donna as their instrument. Or perhaps Harold was only of secondary importance. If we posit that the Tremonds are indeed pawns of the MFAP, this was perhaps another attempt to thwart BOB. Harold knew the truth about BOB after all, and even kept Laura's secret diary, clues which would help Agent Cooper to discover the true identity of Laura's killer. BOB himself does not seem involved in this case, as Leland expresses his surprise at Donna's revelation about Harold Smith.

Maybe the Tremonds did intend to kill Harold. But in order to get to him, he had to be provoked by someone he trusted like Donna. After Donna and Maddy escape from his house, he is somehow exposed to the influence of the Lodge spirits. Significantly, an owl is spotted on a branch nearby shortly after the scene. Several days later he is found dead. The note on his body follows the same pattern as the note found in the train car reading "Fire Walk with Me". Could it be then, that "J'ai une ame solitaire", is the signature of the Tremonds? Now, we could object that Harold did in fact commit suicide and destroyed the diary himself, BUT why then did he mail a crucial passage to Donna right before he died? Apparently, he knew something bad would happen.

Conclusion: the Tremonds seem to act as agents of the MFAP (Mike), passing the green ring to his intended victims, or otherwise moving as his "pawns" in the world outside the Lodge.

Former victims of Mike and Bob?

Provided the Tremonds are indeed servants of the MFAP, we might wonder whether they were ordinary people once, whose souls were trapped or enslaved by the Lodge spirits much like Agent Cooper's. During the Lodge meeting described by Philip Jeffries, the Tremonds are two of several "normal" people who watch on in the background, among the Electrician and the two Woodsmen, one of which I tentatively identify as the late husband of the Log Lady.

Could all these people be the former victims of Mike and BOB? The scene implies some form of hierarchy among the Lodge spirits, with the MFAP and Bob at the top. The Jumping Man's identity remains obscure (Mike?), but those in the background appear to be nothing more than "servants" to the MFAP (and BOB?). Of course, if this is true, where is Cooper? Or is this a Black Lodge exclusive meeting?

Pierre Tremond and Leland Palmer

On three different occasions in FWWM, Pierre Tremond appears wearing a white mask (and holding a wooden sceptre in his hand). Contrary to the Jumping Man, Pierre's mask has no eyes or mouth, only a nose. The mask may be interpreted as a metaphor for being possessed, where the mask represents the host and the wearer the actual spirit in control. At one point Pierre himself refers to BOB as "the man behind the mask". Pierre's own mask has no eyes or mouth however, indicating unaware possession, such as is the case with Leland Palmer. Eyes and mouth, like the Jumping Man's mask, indicate aware possession such as Philip Gerard/Mike. This connection is especially strong if we accept that the Jumping Man represents what Mike used to look like, before he was cut in half into the MFAP.

In the movie, the masked Pierre appears on three occassions:

* During the Lodge meeting described by Philip Jeffries
* On the parking lot of the Double R Diner with Mrs Tremond
* On the parking lot of the Blue Diamond motel

Chronologically speaking, the third appearance actually precedes the second. At the Blue Diamond motel, the masked Pierre appears just after Leland has discovered his own daughter is prostituting herself. He quickly leaves the motel in a distraught state, but as he is walking along the parking lot, Pierre emerges from the bushes frantically jumping up and down in a chicken like motion. The significance is twofold 1) as mentioned, the faceless mask indicates unaware possession, which is the case with Leland Palmer and BOB, and 2) the mask is worn by Pierre, who is only a child (at least in appearance), which may refer to the fact that Leland was possessed in his early youth. It has even been suggested that Pierre symbolizes Leland himself, at a young age. Significantly then, his true face is never seen by any of the Palmers, who would otherwise be able to identify him. He appears masked both at the Blue Diamond motel, and the Double R Diner (Laura does meet an unmasked Pierre in her dream however).

During the Lodge meeting, Pierre lifts the white mask and reveals the head of monkey, perhaps referring to the inhabiting spirit being driven by animalistic desires, such as BOB. This bears similarity to Freud's concept of the "id", the "unconscious", basal desires:

"It is the dark, inaccessible part of our personality. We call it a chaos, a cauldron full of seething excitations ... It is filled with energy reaching it from the instincts, but it has no organization, produces no collective will, but only a striving to bring about the satisfaction of the instinctual needs. It is amoral and egocentric, ruled by the pleasure–pain principle; it is without a sense of time, completely illogical, primarily sexual, infantile in its emotional development, and will not take no for an answer."

Again, the fact that Pierre is still a boy, may refer to this infantile, desire-driven stage in emotional development.

Pierre Tremond = the Magician?

It has been suggested that Pierre Tremond is the "magician" from the Fire Walk with Me poem, as hinted at by his actions on the show. After Pierre makes the creamed corn disappear in episode 2.02 (Coma), Mrs. Tremond states: "My grandson, is studying magic".

But using the same quote, the theory can just as easily be undermined. Clearly he's not a magician at all, but merely "studying" magic. He may possess some supernatural skills but he's not as powerful as the MFAP, who seems like a far more likely candidate for the role of the "Magician" (if indeed, the poem's line hints at a real person to begin with). As user "One suave folk" puts it: "Pierre's no magician! Like all kids, he just likes playing with his food!!"

Otherwise Pierre is not involved in much supernatural actions, apart from Laura's dream, where he transports her to the Black Lodge. Even then, that would mean his powers are largely confined to the dream world.

The Tremonds and Garmonbozia

An interesting mystery regarding the Tremonds is why they so adamantly refuse to eat creamed corn. Notice the frightened expression of Mrs. Tremond when Donna presents the creamed corn to her. Obviously the food reminds them of the Garmonbozia which is consumed by Mike and Bob.

Two questions arise: a) do they refuse the Garmonbozia because they don't consume it, or because it is forbidden to them? b) do they both refuse to eat Garmonbozia, or is it just Mrs. Tremond? An obscure detail in the Lodge meeting of FWWM may answer both questions. Study the wide shot of this scene for a minute, and you will notice several bowls of Garmonbozia on the formica table of Mike and BOB. This is immediately apparent. Look more closely, however, and you will also notice a small bowl (of Garmonbozia?) resting at the feet of Pierre Tremond. As previously mentioned, the Lodge meeting outlines the hierarchy among the Lodge inhabitants. The small bowl at Pierre's feet adds the interesting detail that the "menial spirits" do in fact consume Garmonbozia, but in much smaller quantities. The bulk of the food is reserved to Mike.

The lower order spirits are not the only ones to whom Garmonbozia is more or less forbidden. Even BOB cannot consume more than he is allowed. Taken together then, the expression on Mrs. Tremond's face as she is presented with the creamed corn, seems to be one of fear, not disgust.

But does she consume Garmonbozia? Remember, the small bowl is resting at Pierre's feet, not anyone else's. The amount may be too small to share among five people anyway (The Electrician, the Tremonds, and the two Woodsmen). Perhaps only Pierre consumes Garmonbozia. It is he also, who vanishes the creamed corn during Donna's visit, indicating that he does not share his grandmother's fears.

A somewhat contrarian view is offered by user MisterGrey:

"I think that the Tremonds were a unique case of beings meant by virtue of their existence to be pure evil not wanting to be evil. I believe that this is the significance behind Mrs. Tremond's refusal to consume Garmonbozia: Guilt, over the fact that she must survive by consuming the suffering of other, living beings. It has been a theory of mine for a while that the physical state of the Lodge beings represents their vitality: MFAP, starved of his Garmonbozia, has regressed to a miniature state; Mrs. Tremond, intentionally depriving herself, is deteriorating; Pierre, perhaps a "lesser" spirit, has not been consuming much to begin with, and so hasn't grown; and Bob, with his rampant consumption, is the most physically adept and agile of the Black Lodge spirits, rampaging through TP in his bestial state.

If the White Lodge spirits survive on love, as the Black Lodge spirits survive on fear, I would presume then that, despite being usurped by the Black Lodge, they are in far better shape-- there is a much greater abundance of love than fear in the town of Twin Peaks. Thus, the towering, colossal presence of the Giant, grown massive and dominating through his consumption of love and happiness."

Similarities to Little Red Riding Hood

Credit to user Fred for pointing out this reference. The scene in episode 2.02 of the series, where Donna delivers the meal to the Tremonds, is strikingly similar to the tale of Little Red Riding Hood. Little Red Riding Hood travels through "dark woods", in order to bring food to her "grandmother", who turns out to be a wolf in disguise. This would fit rather nicely with my own suggestion that the Tremonds aren't helpful at all.

The black dog runs at night

Another unexplained mystery associated with the Tremonds is the "black dog". A black dog briefly appears in a flash during the traffic stop scene in FWWM. But more important, the song "The Black Dog Runs at Night" functions as a sort of theme song to the Tremonds. It is heard during their appearance at the Double R Diner parking lot, and again when Pierre emerges from the bushes at the Blue Diamond motel. This last scene in particular has long intrigued me. I talked about the significance of the mask earlier, but what does Pierre's behaviour allude to? He does not appear to be dancing or jumping at random. It seems almost bird-like behaviour. Another interesting fact is the absence of Mrs Tremond, who otherwise always accompanies Pierre. Why isn't she here?

The show features more recurrent imagery related to dogs. There is for instance, the Dead Dog Farm owned by Jacques Renault. It is a deserted bungalow out of town which has become a focus for nefarious activities. Agent Cooper learns from a realtor that it derives its name from an old saying, which states that a dead dog attracts the attention of both the worst and the best types of people.

In her intro to episode 2.12, the Log Lady relates a story of a dog she used to own:

"Is a dog man's best friend? I had a dog. The dog was large. It ate my garden, all the plants, and much earth. The dog ate so much earth it died. Its body went back to the earth. I have a memory of this dog. The memory is all that I have left of my dog. He was black--and white."

"Harry, I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Every day, once a day, give yourself a present. Don't plan it, don't wait for it, just let it happen. Could be a new shirt at the men's store, a catnap in your office chair, or two cups of good, hot, black coffee. Like this."  -Dale Cooper

When are they called the Tremonds, and when the Chalfonts?

I just wanted to know if there was any significance to their names.

 In the series they are called the Tremonds because they are using the house of the Tremonds or perhaps inhabiting the real Tremond lady and in the movie they are called the Chalfonts because they are using the Chalfonts' trailer or inhabiting the real Chalfonts. So it seems that they are always known by the name of the person they are inhabiting.

It could be so that Carl just thinks there were two Chalfonts when in reality he just sees the Chalfonts as different persons as the Old Lady and her Grandson went on inhabiting the original Chalfont. Which makes me think about the name Pierre. It could be so that the Grandson was Pierre only to Laura and Donna (and whoever might've encountered them while they've used the residence (and/or the bodies) of the Tremonds.

 Blaah, I'm confused :D

how can the garmonbozia belong to the black lodge? it is only a place, the inhabitants are the ones who seem to need the corn. and, tho LMFAP is seen eating laura's garmonbozia, it is also mike's, as she put on the ring which stopped bob from being able to take her over, instead leading to her death, and the only part in the whole TP saga where BOB seems subserviant to another(mike and LMFAP in this case). which aways makes me question the whole mike helping cooper in the series. he was present at the murder in FWWM, but apparently leaves no evidence, as only 'the third man' is mentioned as the mystery. chalk that up to incongruency or altering of the backstory of TP that FWWM does now and again, the fact is he was there. and got his garmonbozia in place teresa's, which BOB stole. i would say mike definitely needs an encyclopedia entry just as much as the other characters we've mentioned. i like the grandson/leland idea, tho im not sure they need to actually BE one another, only that they reference each other, mostly the grandson seems a comment on lelands situation. and as to if he and his grandmother are evil, i think theres evidence that points both ways. she does refuse the creamed corn in episode 8. but they also give laura a warning that leads to the confrontation with bob in her room which afterwards she sees for the first time that leland may be in fact be BOB, which is then proven the next time BOB has a sexual encounter with her. so i guess that begs the question, tho they are in fact agents of the lodge(different than BOB and MIKE and the giant in that they physically stay the same in all their scenes(discounting the fact its a completely different actor for the grandson in FWWM), does that make them evil? and still my number one question of all TP related things, what are your takes on the fact that the grandson is shown related to a monkey, then the same monkey, in the final line of the film, queitly utters 'judy', which is exactly who jefferies wants to leave out of all this. im curious what thoughts any of you have on that.

To be honest, I have absolutely no clue about the whole "Judy" character. I'm afraid it's far too obscure to be explained in any coherent way. If the monkey only appeared during the Lodge meeting, we might have a fairly straightforward interpretation...

Unfortunately, that's the whole problem with FWWM, which is often so maddeningly elliptic that it not only leaves many questions unanswered, but even complicates matters which weren't problems to begin with. I always imagine Lynch writing much more elaborate, and "explanatory" dialogue, then cutting it without realising that, what may be redundant and self-explanatory to him, is in fact maddeningly vague to us.

For instance, imagine if the MFAP's line "I am the arm" was cut from FWWM...

but the monkey does appear in the lodge meeting! in place of the grandson, covered by the mask too. surely this denotes a relationship. but as too what kind, im right there with you, there are only enough facts in the film so that something is implied, by what exactly is up to the audient. but damnit! since judy is jeffries first concern when reappearing in philadelphia to cole and cooper and albert, and also being the last line of the film, i dont think im being presumptuous in saying that there is a conection.
maybe the monkey is judy. ;)

No no, that's what I mean: if the monkey only appeared during the Lodge meeting, and not in the final scene, things would be less complicated. Otherwise we could just say: ok, the monkey represents the animalistic, or basal desires of the inhabiting spirit (like Bob), end of story. But since the monkey says "Judy" in the final scene, we have to come up with some sort of unifying theory which ties the monkey to Philip Jeffries and this unknown Judy character.

"Harry, I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Every day, once a day, give yourself a present. Don't plan it, don't wait for it, just let it happen. Could be a new shirt at the men's store, a catnap in your office chair, or two cups of good, hot, black coffee. Like this."  -Dale Cooper

 The Black Lodge ('lodge' as in masonic or theosophic lodge) refers to both the place where the lodge meeting is held and to the ones who are present and belong to said lodge.

LMFAP & Mike = The same. 

thank you booth! i thought i was the only one who has always thought jefferies and the monkey were connected.

"Harry, I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Every day, once a day, give yourself a present. Don't plan it, don't wait for it, just let it happen. Could be a new shirt at the men's store, a catnap in your office chair, or two cups of good, hot, black coffee. Like this."  -Dale Cooper

"Harry, I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Every day, once a day, give yourself a present. Don't plan it, don't wait for it, just let it happen. Could be a new shirt at the men's store, a catnap in your office chair, or two cups of good, hot, black coffee. Like this."  -Dale Cooper