Pete Smith

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.

Cast

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice

Those Good Old Days

Narrator(voice)

Throttle Pushers

Narrator(voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Romance of Radium

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number Seven

Narrator (voice)

Strikes and Spares

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Pigskin Champions

Narrator (voice)

The New Audioscopiks

Narrator (voice)

Three on a Rope

Narrator (voice)

The Tree in a Test Tube

as Interlocutor (voice)

Narrator (voice)

The Grand Bounce

Narrator (voice) (uncredited)

Let's Talk Turkey

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice) (uncredited)

Fala: The President's Dog

Narrator - Host

Hollywood Daredevils

The Jonker Diamond

Narrator (voice)

Added Attractions: The Hollywood Shorts Story

Self (archive footage) (uncredited)

We Can Dream, Can't We?

Ain't It Aggravatin'

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number One

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number Two

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number Three

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number Four

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number Five

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number Six

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number Eight

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number Nine

Narrator (voice)

Goofy Movies Number Ten

Narrator (voice)

Things We Can Do Without

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Third Dimensional Murder

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Candid Cameramaniacs

Bar-Rac's Night Out

Narrator (voice)

I Love My Husband, But!

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Wanted - A Master

Narrator (voice) / Dog (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Weather Wizards

Narrator (voice)

'What's Your 'I.Q.'?': Number Two

Narrator (voice)

Equestrian Quiz: What's Your I.Q.? No. 11

Narrator (voice)

Roping Wild Bears

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice) (uncredited)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

I Love My Wife BUT!

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

I Love My Mother-In-Law But...

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Just What I Needed

Narrator (voice)

Sports Oddities

The Man Around the House

Narrator (voice)

Wrong Way Butch

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Do Someone a Favor!

Narrator (voice)

Donkey Baseball

Narrator (voice)

Hollywood Scout

Narrator / Chimp (voice)

The Great Morgan

Narrator in 'Badminton' (voice) (archive footage) (uncredited)

Narrator (voice)

Gettin' Glamour

Narrator (voice)

How to Hold Your Husband - BACK

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

The Camera Caught It

Narrator (voice)

Animals in Action

Narrator (voice)

Athletiquiz: What's Your I.Q.? No. 12

Have You Ever Wondered?

Narrator (voice)

Bargain Madness

Narrator (voice)

Calling All Pa's

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Harnessed Rhythm

Narrator (voice)

Lions on the Loose

Narrator (voice)

Crashing the Movies

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Microscopic Mysteries

Narrator (voice)

Heroes at Leisure

Narrator (voice)

Flicker Memories

Narrator (voice)

Commentator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Quicker'n a Wink

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

La Fiesta de Santa Barbara

Narrator (voice)

Marines in the Making

Narrator (voice)

Pete Smith - Narrator

The Domineering Male

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Treasures from Trash

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Football Thrills of 1940

Football Thrills of 1944

Manhattan Melodrama

Racetrack Announcer (Voice) (uncredited)

Narrator (voice)

Equestrian Acrobats

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Wild and Woolly

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

This Is a Living?

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Sportsman's Memories

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Narrator (voice)

Curious Contests

Narrator (voice) (as a Smith named Pete)

Football Thrills of 1937

Man's Greatest Friend

Poetry of Nature

Narrator (voice) (uncredited)

Narrator(voice)

Culinary Carving

The Mosconi Story

What About Daddy?

Spots Before Your Eyes

Maintain the Right

Football Thrills of 1938

Social Sea Lions

Please Answer (I.Q. #3)

Football Thrills of 1939

Penny To the Rescue

Football Thrills of 1941

Football Thrills of 1942

Football Thrills of 1943

Fala at Hyde Park

Football Thrills No. 9

Football Thrills No. 10

Surfboard Rhythm

Crew

The Jonker Diamond

Writer, Producer

Goofy Movies Number Two

Goofy Movies Number One

Ain't It Aggravatin'

Goofy Movies Number Three

Goofy Movies Number Four

Goofy Movies Number Five

Goofy Movies Number Six

Goofy Movies Number Seven

Goofy Movies Number Eight

Goofy Movies Number Nine

Goofy Movies Number Ten

Things We Can Do Without

Third Dimensional Murder

Strikes and Spares

'What's Your 'I.Q.'?': Number Two

Equestrian Quiz: What's Your I.Q.? No. 11

I Love My Husband, But!

Wanted - A Master

I Love My Wife BUT!

I Love My Mother-In-Law But...

The Man Around the House

Just What I Needed

Wrong Way Butch

Do Someone a Favor!

Writer, Producer

Hollywood Scout

Donkey Baseball

Writer, Producer

Gettin' Glamour

How to Hold Your Husband - BACK

Bargain Madness

Have You Ever Wondered?

Lions on the Loose

Harnessed Rhythm

Crashing the Movies

Animals in Action

Producer, Writer

Microscopic Mysteries

Romance of Radium

La Fiesta de Santa Barbara

Marines in the Making

Quicker'n a Wink

Wild and Woolly

Calling All Pa's

Treasures from Trash

This Is a Living?

Writer, Producer

Bar-Rac's Night Out

Football Thrills of 1944

Heroes at Leisure

Curious Contests

Football Thrills of 1937

Director, Producer

Man's Greatest Friend

What About Daddy?

Spots Before Your Eyes

Football Thrills of 1938

Football Thrills of 1939

Football Thrills of 1941

Football Thrills of 1942

Football Thrills of 1943

Football Thrills No. 9

Football Thrills No. 10