I know this has been done in the past, but since this board lacks a search function (very inconvenient!), and because I wanted to create a more comprehensive treatment of Lodge characters, I'd like to start a series of threads compiling theories on the Black Lodge characters. So let's start with the following mysterious man from Fire Walk with Me:
The Jumping Man
Appearances: (FWWM) He appears during the ramblings of Philip Jeffries at the FBI headquarters. He is one of the Lodge spirits present at the meeting between the MFAP and Bob, and is the first to appear in the vision of Philip Jeffries. He wears a white mask and a red suit, and in his hand, holds an unidentified object resembling a slingshot. He jumps around and on a crate, hence his name the “Jumping Man”. He never utters a single word. Interestingly, the original script of FWWM makes no mention of this character during the Lodge meeting scene.
Connections: His red suit is similar to that of the MFAP. His mask is similar to the one worn by Pierre Tremond / Chalfont. Whereas Pierre’s mask has only a nose however, the mask of the Jumping Man has a mouth, and eyes. Finally, the Jumping Man stops jumping at the signalling of Bob.
Role: Like the other characters who make only a single appearance during the Lodge meeting, the Jumping Man’s precise role or meaning is difficult to pinpoint.
Some interesting observations can be made, perhaps most importantly that the Jumping Man's style of dress and conduct imply a connection to Pierre Tremond / Chalfont. Most strikingly, both wear a similar white mask with a sharp “Pinocchio” nose. Pierre’s mask has no eyes or mouth however, whereas the Jumping Man’s has. Both also wear a rather formal style of dress. Pierre’s suit is black like Agent Cooper’s, the Jumping Man’s is red like the MFAP. Finally, both are seen holding a mysterious sceptre, or bauble, apparently made out of bundled twigs or wood. The object resembles a slingshot, and is held by the Jumping Man during his dance, and again by Pierre when he appears on the parking lot of the Double R Diner, and behind Leland’s back. I think it’s perhaps important to note that the bauble always appears together with the mask.
Now the question is what do we make of all this? Perhaps a clue can be found in the Jumping Man’s red suit, which looks awfully similar to the one worn by the MFAP, and which suggests an entirely supernatural origin. Note that nearly everyone else who appears during the Lodge Meeting looks “somewhat” normal, and could easily (and in fact, do on some occasions) pass for regular people outside the Lodge. Of all the Lodge spirits, MFAP, the Jumping Man and the Giant are clearly the most surreal, the former two which never appear outside the Lodge. Based upon Mike’s comments to Cooper, we have to surmise that the MFAP came into existence when Gerard cut off his own arm. Similarly then, we might wonder whether the Jumping Man was also split off from one of the Lodge spirits, as his red suit would suggest.
Returning to the Pierre connection, we could conclude that the Jumping Man is a sort of “perverted”, adult version of Pierre. He is larger, sports a more extravagant suit, and wears a mask with more pronounced facial features. He’s also seen jumping/dancing and holds the bauble.
The face of Mike
A theory suggested by user Rami Airola posits that the Jumping Man, like the MFAP, is another part of Mike. Both wear a bright red suit, and both are seen laughing and dancing. If the MFAP is the "arm" of Mike, then perhaps the Jumping Man is his "face".
Note that, although the show suggests that Mike looks more or less exactly like Philip Gerard, it is really an open question whether he has a "true" face like BOB. Apparently only the gifted and the damned can see the true face of BOB (Cooper, Laura, Sarah, etc), but who can see the true face of Mike? The fact that Gerard still looks like himself when regressing to his "Mike" state (episode 2.06, Demons) is not necessarily evidence that this is how Mike actually looks. When Leland finally reveals himself as BOB inside his prison cell, he still looks like Leland too. Depending on who's watching, people may or may not see the true face of the spirit.
One of the final scenes of FWWM argues against the theory that the Jumping Man is Mike however, by showing the MFAP and Philip Gerard speaking in unison to BOB. Clearly, if the Jumping Man is indeed the face of Mike, then BOB should see him with the MFAP, not Philip Gerard. This scene does seem to suggest that Mike looks like Gerard.
Another role for the Jumping Man, which has been suggested on this board in the past, is as a sort of court Jester to the MFAP and Bob, as indicated by his clownish appearance: the extravagant suit, the mask and the mock sceptre, and the fact that he seems to be under the direct control of Bob. He dances like a regular jester would do, and stops immediately at Bob’s command. Here’s an interesting quote from Wikipedia:
Nowadays, jesters are mainly thought of in association with the European Middle Ages. The jester was a symbolic twin of the king. All jesters and fools in those days were thought of as special cases whom God had touched with a childlike madness—a gift, or perhaps a curse.
More broadly, the Jumping Man may fulfill a ceremonial function throughout the Lodge meeting. Of course this begs the question: what is taking place during the Lodge meeting? Is it the formal establishment of the Red Room? Is it a trial, with Bob as the accused? Or perhaps a wedding, as implied by the MFAP's statement, "with this ring, I thee wed"? Unfortunately, it is not clear whether the latter line is directed at Bob, or someone or something else (see the entry on the MFAP for a consistent theory).
But the fact that the Lodge meeting is formal occassion, is reinforced by the presence of the Jumping Man, who literally moves on the dividing line between the master spirits MFAP (Mike) and Bob, and their slaves such as the Tremonds. Imagine the scene without the Jumping Man, and the occassion immediately seems less ritualistic.
An explanation put forward by user Gordon is that the Jumping Man represents a possessed Cooper. Once again, masks seem to symbolize states of possession. The mask is the person being possessed, and its wearer the spirit possessing. At one point Pierre Tremond explicitly refers to BOB as "the man behind the mask"; in other words, the spirit behind Leland. Pierre's mask has no mouth or eyes, indicating unaware possession, such as Leland/BOB. The mask of the Jumping Man symbolizes aware (perhaps voluntary) possession, such as Philip Gerard, but also Agent Cooper. Cooper is trapped and knows the doppelganger/Bob controls his body. Interestingly, the Jumping Man stops his jumps when Bob claps his hands, suggesting that he controls his movements. a
Perhaps most significant of all, when Jeffries stumbles into the FBI office, his expression noticably changes when he is faced with Agent Cooper. After stating that "we're not gonna talk about Judy", he points at Cooper and shouts "Who do you think this is there?". At the same time, we see blurred images of the Jumping Man.
Fire personified
In episode 1.05 (Cooper's Dreams), the Log Lady reveals some information on her late husband, stating: "My husband was a logging man. He met the devil. Fire is the devil, hiding like a coward in the smoke". As user Booth points out, that last sentence is particularly applicable to the Jumping Man: he moves erratically, stands on a smokebox, and holds a piece of wood. Furthermore, he wears a bright red suit. The Jumping Man may refer to the type of fire the Log Lady talks about, Bob's fire. During the Lodge meeting, the Jumping Man freezes at the clapping of Bob. The original FWWM script however, adds the line "Fire walk with me", spoken by both the MFAP and Bob, right before Bob's signal, and the familiar, curtained Black Lodge appears.
The Jumping Man = Jimmy Scott?
Taken from my own discussion on the White Horse, though I will say the connection is superficial at best. The idea is that we might draw a parallel between the seemingly ceremonial function of both the Jumping Man and Jimmy Scott. One might even suggest that they are simply one and the same person. As mentioned, both serve ceremonial purposes inside the Lodge, dancing or singing. And both are played by a black actor. The Jumping Man also holds a wooden sceptre in his hand, while Jimmy Scott has a microphone.
On the other hand: the Jumping Man has a red suit with a tie, while Jimmy Scott has a black suit with a bowtie. Finally, if they are indeed meant to be the same character, I see no reason why Jimmy Scott couldn't have played the Jumping Man in FWWM, unless for some reason, he was unavailable, which would be a very good reason why the Jumping Man is masked in the first place...
But there's probably no need to reach for far-fetched theories regarding Jimmy Scott. The song Sycamore Trees is just a way to render an otherwise straightforward scene (Cooper enters the Lodge) more poetic and surreal. Lynch uses the same approach in Mulholland Drive, when Diane visits Club Silencio. The song Llorando really has no point, other than to evoke Diane's regrets (and crying) in a less direct, more poetic way.
Remember also that "where we're from, there's always music in the air." Music can be heard throughout the entire Black Lodge scene in episode 29.
Alright, let's hear it from you! Post your alternative theories/suggestions here, and I will add them to the original post.
;)