Pete Smith
Actor/Actriz
104
Movies
1
TV Shows
Born Peter Schmidt in New York City, Pete Smith got a job after graduating business college with The Player magazine and later with Billboard magazine. That led to his being hired as a publicist for Famous Players-Lasky and Artcraft Pictures, and he was later appointed publicity director at Paramount Pictures. Director Marshall Neilan hired Smith to be the publicist for his own production company, and Smith left New York for Hollywood. After Neilan's company closed, Smith freelanced for a short period before being hired by MGM in 1925 as the head of its publicity department, a position he held until 1930.
The job that really brought him recognition, however, was his producing, writing and narrating a series of shorts known as "Pete Smith Specialties" for MGM. The one-reelers covered just about every subject imaginable, from the animal world to the latest technology to how to handle annoying patrons in movie theaters, all delivered with Smith's trademark wry, bemused narration. Many of the later shorts were written and directed by actor Dave O'Brien, using the name David Barclay. Sixteen entries in the series were nominated for Oscars, and two of them won. The series came to an end in 1954, though there were enough made to continue releasing into 1955.
Smith's later years were plagued by bad health, and he spent more and more time being hospitalized. In 1979, with his health deteriorating rapidly, he committed suicide by jumping out of the window of his ninth-floor hospital room. He was 86 years old.
As Actor/Actress
MGM Parade
Victory Quiz
Film Antics
Narrator
Studio Visit
Narrator (voice)
Donkey Baseball
Narrator (voice)
Manhattan Melodrama
Racetrack Announcer (Voice) (uncredited)
Bargain Madness
Narrator (voice)
Seventh Column
Narrator (voice)
Added Attractions: The Hollywood Shorts Story
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
La Fiesta de Santa Barbara
Narrator (voice)
Weather Wizards
Narrator (voice)
The Tree in a Test Tube
as Interlocutor (voice)
Camera Sleuth
Narrator (voice)
Cash Stashers
Narrator (voice)
The Grand Bounce
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Marines in the Making
Narrator (voice)
Killer Dog
Narrator (voice)
Wanted - A Master
Narrator (voice) / Dog (voice)
Menu
Narrator (voice)
Wrong Way Butch
Narrator (voice)
Trader Hound
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Fishing Feats
Narrator (voice)
Snow Birds
Narrator (voice)
Army Champions
Narrator (voice)
The Great Morgan
Narrator in 'Badminton' (voice) (archive footage) (uncredited)
Desert Regatta
Narrator (voice)
Strikes and Spares
Narrator (voice)
Fisticuffs
Narrator (voice)
Fala: The President's Dog
Narrator - Host
Fancy Answers
Narrator (voice)
Behind the Camera
Film Antics
Productor
Studio Visit
Productor
Donkey Baseball
Escritor, Productor
Bargain Madness
Productor
Seventh Column
Productor
La Fiesta de Santa Barbara
Productor
Camera Sleuth
Productor
Cash Stashers
Productor
Marines in the Making
Productor
Killer Dog
Productor
Wanted - A Master
Productor
Menu
Productor
Wrong Way Butch
Productor
Fishing Feats
Productor
Army Champions
Productor
Desert Regatta
Productor
Strikes and Spares
Productor
Fancy Answers
Productor
Cuban Rhythm
Productor
Third Dimensional Murder
Productor
Anaesthesia
Productor
Penny Wisdom
Productor
Water Trix
Productor
Let's Cogitate
Productor
Sure Cures
Productor
Movie Pests
Productor
Handlebars
Productor
Color Scales
Productor
Calling All Pa's
Productor
The Jonker Diamond
Escritor, Productor