Skip to content
Pete Smith profile photo

Acting

Pete Smith

Born
Sep 4, 1892 · Aged 86
Died
Jan 12, 1979
Place of birth
New York City, New York, USA
Gender
Male
Movie credits
171
TV credits
2
Directing credits
8
Also known as (3)
  • Peter Schmidt
  • 'a Smith named Pete'
  • A Smith Named Pete

Biography

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…