Peter Masterson

Peter Masterson, born Carlos Bee Masterson Jr. on June 1, 1934, in Houston, Texas, was an American actor, director, producer, and writer whose career spanned Broadway, film, and television. He died on December 18, 2018, at the age of 84, following a fall at his home. He had been living with a Parkinson's disease diagnosis for fourteen years prior to his death.

Masterson made his Broadway debut in November 1967, taking on the title role in The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald. Despite receiving favorable notices, the production closed after only nine performances. His subsequent Broadway appearances included The Great White Hope and a starring role in The Poison Tree, with his stage work continuing through 1976. He later returned to Broadway as a book writer and collaborator on The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and its sequel, The Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public.

Working alongside Larry L. King, Masterson co-wrote the book for The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, which opened in 1978 and became a significant commercial success. The sequel, The Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public, followed in 1994. His contributions to the original production earned him the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Musical in 1978. His wife, Carlin Glynn, won a Tony Award for her role in the same production.

Beyond Broadway, Masterson built a substantial screen acting career from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s. His film roles included Ambush Bay (1966), In the Heat of the Night (1967), Counterpoint (1968), Von Richthofen and Brown (1971), Tomorrow (1972), The Exorcist (1973), Man on a Swing (1974), and Gardens of Stone (1987). In 1975, he appeared in The Stepford Wives as Walter Eberhart; his daughter, actress Mary Stuart Masterson, appeared in the same film, playing one of his character's daughters. Masterson frequently collaborated with his cousin, writer Horton Foote.

From the mid-1980s onward, Masterson concentrated primarily on directing and producing. In 1985, he directed The Trip to Bountiful, a film for which Geraldine Page received the Academy Award for Best Actress and which also featured Carlin Glynn. His subsequent directing credits included Full Moon in Blue Water (1988), Night Game (1989), Blood Red (1989), Convicts (1991), Arctic Blue (1993), The Only Thrill (1997), Lost Junction (2003), and Whiskey School (2005). In 1980, he produced the ABC television film City in Fear, based on an idea by screenwriter William Goldman that had also inspired the 1979 novel Panic on Page One by Linda Stewart. The cast was led by Robert Vaughn and David Janssen, the latter appearing in his final role before his death.