[1] He is possibly best remembered as Detective Tom Gordon/Yellow Man in David Lynch’s controversial film Blue Velvet, which Pickler almost walked out of during its premiere.
In the author biography for The Reluctant Hermit of Fort Fisher, Pickler mentions having had numerous occupations, including driving trucks for the local zoo and an oil truck for a station at Carolina Beach, running a bar, employment with the New Hanover County Sheriff's Department from 1971 through 1979, initially working undercover in narcotics and civil intelligence collection during some tumultuous times of racial nature.
He also taught riot control procedures and was a law enforcement firearms instructor in the Southeastern parts of North Carolina through Cape Fear Technical College, Samson Tech, Wake Tech, Fayetteville, Greensboro, High Point, and as an instructor at the Smith & Wesson Academy in chemical munitions, later years specializing in a police chemical munitions instructor course, then as district sales manager with Smith & Wesson Law Enforcement Division from 1979–1986, then joining Aircraft Armaments Corporation for four years, again traveling to numerous locations in the US (including Hawaii) and Australia again instructing in law enforcement chemical instructor courses, employed with Applied Laser Systems selling weapons mounted lasers in US and Europe, selling so much product they could not meet the demand, departed after 1 year becoming the US agent for NICO Pyrotechnik selling anti-terrorist munitions, and conducting training sessions and chemical munitions seminars at locations in the US recently[when?]
His sales activity took a company selling products in the US at less than $20,000 annually to multi-million dollar contracts with police, federal agencies and the Special Operations Community.
He is still active in gun shows in Fayetteville, Raleigh and Charlotte and preparing-assembling individual survival kits for two elite military agencies.