Pete Smith

Peter Schmidt (September 4, 1892 – January 12, 1979 ), Americanized to Pete Smith, was a film producer based in Hollywood, California. He is best known for the Pete Smith Specialties, a long-running series of general-interest short films, ranging from human-interest stories to sports subjects. Best remembered are the comedies, exaggerating common pet peeves and household problems, with Smith offering pointed commentary in his distinctive, nasal tenor.

Early life and career Peter Schmidt was born in 1892, in New York City. In 1915, as the new field of motion pictures was transforming show business, Smith became a publicity man for Bosworth, Inc., Oliver Morosco Photoplay Co., Artcraft Pictures Corporation, and Famous Players–Lasky. By 1925 Smith was the manager of publicity for Louis B. Mayer of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Smith took the suggestion and made Movie Pests (1944), with Dave O'Brien exemplifying the inconsiderate patron who causes problems for everyone around him. The short was so successful that it inspired three sequels: Guest Pests (1945), Bus Pests (1945), and Neighbor Pests (1947).

Dave O'Brien became the primary actor in the Pete Smith Specialties during the 1940s. The hapless O'Brien would personify everyday nuisances: demonstrating pet peeves, tackling hazardous home-improvement projects, and having other problems with which the audience could identify. O'Brien's scenes were silent, compelling O'Brien to express his satisfaction or frustration entirely in visual terms as narrator Smith offered commentary. O'Brien knew the format so well that he also directed many of the short movies, using the name "David Barclay". He staged many of the sight gags himself, taking stupendous falls for the camera.

The Pete Smith Specialties earned 14 Academy Award nominations and two Best Live Action Short Film Academy Awards. At the 26th Academy Awards, Smith was awarded an Academy Honorary Award "for his witty and pungent observations on the American scene in his series of Pete Smith Specialties."

Smith announced his retirement in 1954. The MGM unit that produced the Pete Smith Specialties was terminated the next year, a casualty of short movies' decreasing popularity at the time. The final film in the series was a tribute to Dave O'Brien, featuring a collection of his spectacular stunts and pratfalls. The reel was appropriately titled The Fall Guy (1955).

Personal life Smith, under his birth name Peter J. Schmidt, married Marjorie Ganss on February 6, 1919, in Manhattan. They had one son, Douglas Mosely Schmidt (1919–1984), who later became a technician for RKO. Smith and Ganss remained married until her death in 1957. Smith's second marriage was to his secretary, Anne Dunster, whom he married in Las Vegas in October 1962.

Later years and death

Smith spent his later years in poor health at a convalescent home in Santa Monica, California. He was survived by his second wife, Anne, and his son Douglas.

For his contribution to the movie industry, Smith received a star symbol on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 1621 Vine Street.