Dale Maxfield

Mike Yanagita is a minor character in the Coen Brothers' award winning film Fargo.  The role is played by Steve Park.  Very little is known about Yanagita's back-story, other than he went to high school with Marge.  He met with Marge Gunderson in Minneapolis for a lunch.  He developed a large back-story about his past relationship, which it turns out was entirely fabricated.  His entire story was made up merely to seduce Marge. The audience and Marge both learn this when Marge is speaking to her friend on the phone later, who informs her that Yanagita was lying. The reason that this character is in the movie is quite interesting. Although it seems random, Yanagita's lie to Marge about his story makes Marge think twice about Jerry Lundegaard's honesty. She then returns to the auto dealership to confront him. Yanagita's one scene actually marks the turning point for Marge's way of thinking about her case.