Peter Horton
Encyclopedia
Peter Horton is an American
actor
and director
. He played the role of Prof. Gary Shepherd on the popular television series Thirtysomething until 1991.
to a father who worked in the shipping business. He attended Redwood High School
and Principia College
.
magazine named him one of the "50 Most Beautiful People". Horton acted in television shows including St. Elsewhere
, The White Shadow
, Dallas, Eight Is Enough
, "In Treatment" and The Geena Davis Show
, played the lead in the short-lived series Brimstone
, and played Crane McFadden in the one season series (1982–1983) "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers". He played Jacob in the 1982 feature film Split Image
, Father Mahoney in the 1986 feature film "Where the River Runs Black" Roy Fox in the 1996 film "Two Days In The Valley" and played Burt in the 1984 Stephen King
movie Children of the Corn
. He also appeared in the 1997 TV movie version of the Jon Krakauer
book Into Thin Air: Death on Everest
, playing Scott Fischer
, the leader of the disastrous 1996 climb on Mount Everest
. He was also in the movie Sideout (1990) as Zach Barnes,a down and out ex-volley ball champ. As a director he has worked on several television series including The Shield
, Thirtysomething, The Wonder Years
, Once and Again
, and directed the pilot for Grey's Anatomy
as well as pilots for Class of '96, Birdland, Dirty Sexy Money, The Philanthropist and Reconstruction. He directed the 1990 film for television "Extreme Close-up" as well as the 1995 feature film The Cure
. As a producer he produced Reconstruction (which he co-created), Lone Star, The Philanthropist, The Body Politic (which he also co-created), Grey's Anatomy, Six Degrees and Murder Live (which he wrote the story for).
He appeared in Who Killed the Electric Car?
and is on the board of directors of the Environmental Alliance.
As of 2010 Horton is an executive producer and director of Grey's Anatomy
on ABC
, and produces and directs NBC
's The Philanthropist
.
from 1981 to 1988, and has been married to Nicole Deputron since 1995. Horton and Deputron have two children. Their daughter Lily was born in October 1999, their daughter Ruby in 2002.
He is a brother-in-law of Egil Krogh
, a former White House Plumbers
member who was convicted in the Watergate scandal
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and director
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
. He played the role of Prof. Gary Shepherd on the popular television series Thirtysomething until 1991.
Early life
Horton was born in Bellevue, WashingtonBellevue, Washington
Bellevue is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, across Lake Washington from Seattle. Long known as a suburb or satellite city of Seattle, it is now categorized as an edge city or a boomburb. The population was 122,363 at the 2010 census.Downtown Bellevue is...
to a father who worked in the shipping business. He attended Redwood High School
Redwood High School (Larkspur, California)
Redwood High School is a public secondary school located in the city of Larkspur, Marin County, California, approximately 11 miles north of San Francisco. Redwood High is part of the Tamalpais Union High School District...
and Principia College
Principia College
Principia College is a four-year private co-educational liberal arts college in Elsah, Illinois. The campus sits on bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River between Alton and Grafton, located about thirty miles north of St. Louis. In 1934, Principia College graduated its first class as a full...
.
Career
During his run on Thirtysomething, PeoplePeople (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
magazine named him one of the "50 Most Beautiful People". Horton acted in television shows including St. Elsewhere
St. Elsewhere
St. Elsewhere is an American medical drama television series that originally ran on NBC from October 26, 1982 to May 25, 1988. The series is set at fictional St. Eligius, a decaying urban teaching hospital in Boston's South End neighborhood...
, The White Shadow
The White Shadow
The White Shadow is an American drama television series that ran on the CBS network from November 27, 1978, to March 16, 1981.-Overview:...
, Dallas, Eight Is Enough
Eight Is Enough
Eight Is Enough is an American television comedy-drama series which ran on ABC from March 15, 1977 until August 29, 1981. The show was modeled after syndicated newspaper columnist Thomas Braden, a real-life parent with eight children, who wrote a book with the same name...
, "In Treatment" and The Geena Davis Show
The Geena Davis Show
The Geena Davis Show was an American sitcom starring Geena Davis. The show lasted one season on ABC.- Background :Terri Minsky first pitched the idea of a Sex and the City-like character becoming a suburban housewife to ABC in early 2000. Basic plot details were drawn up, and the script eventually...
, played the lead in the short-lived series Brimstone
Brimstone (TV series)
Brimstone was a short-lived Fox television series, featuring a dead police detective whose mission is to return to Hell 113 spirits who have escaped to Earth. The series ran for only one partial season....
, and played Crane McFadden in the one season series (1982–1983) "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers". He played Jacob in the 1982 feature film Split Image
Split Image (film)
Split Image is a 1982 film that tells the story of an all-American college athlete who becomes involved in a youth-oriented "cult", and his family's struggle to bring him home...
, Father Mahoney in the 1986 feature film "Where the River Runs Black" Roy Fox in the 1996 film "Two Days In The Valley" and played Burt in the 1984 Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
movie Children of the Corn
Children of the Corn (1984 film)
Children of the Corn is a 1984 horror film based upon the 1977 short story of the same name by Stephen King. Directed by Fritz Kiersch, the film stars Peter Horton and Linda Hamilton...
. He also appeared in the 1997 TV movie version of the Jon Krakauer
Jon Krakauer
Jon Krakauer is an American writer and mountaineer, primarily known for his writing about the outdoors and mountain-climbing...
book Into Thin Air: Death on Everest
Into Thin Air: Death on Everest
Into Thin Air: Death on Everest is a made-for-TV movie based on the book Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer. The film is to be directed by Robert Markowitz and written by Robert J. Avrech. The film tells the story of the 1996 Mt. Everest disaster. It was released on November 9, 1997.-Plot:The film is...
, playing Scott Fischer
Scott Fischer
Scott E. Fischer was an American climber and guide, and the first American to summit 27,940-foot Lhotse, fourth highest mountain in the world.-Career:...
, the leader of the disastrous 1996 climb on Mount Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
. He was also in the movie Sideout (1990) as Zach Barnes,a down and out ex-volley ball champ. As a director he has worked on several television series including The Shield
The Shield
The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons...
, Thirtysomething, The Wonder Years
The Wonder Years
The Wonder Years is an American television comedy-drama created by Carol Black and Neal Marlens. It ran for six seasons on ABC from 1988 through 1993. The pilot aired on January 31, 1988 after ABC's coverage of Super Bowl XXII....
, Once and Again
Once and Again
Once and Again is an American television series that aired on ABC from September 21, 1999 to April 15, 2002. It depicts the family of a single mother and her romance with a single father...
, and directed the pilot for Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...
as well as pilots for Class of '96, Birdland, Dirty Sexy Money, The Philanthropist and Reconstruction. He directed the 1990 film for television "Extreme Close-up" as well as the 1995 feature film The Cure
The Cure (1995 film)
The Cure is a 1995 comedy-drama film starring Brad Renfro and Joseph Mazzello about two boys searching for the cure of AIDS, from which one of them is suffering...
. As a producer he produced Reconstruction (which he co-created), Lone Star, The Philanthropist, The Body Politic (which he also co-created), Grey's Anatomy, Six Degrees and Murder Live (which he wrote the story for).
He appeared in Who Killed the Electric Car?
Who Killed the Electric Car?
Who Killed the Electric Car? is a 2006 documentary film that explores the creation, limited commercialization, and subsequent destruction of the battery electric vehicle in the United States, specifically the General Motors EV1 of the mid 1990s...
and is on the board of directors of the Environmental Alliance.
As of 2010 Horton is an executive producer and director of Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...
on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, and produces and directs NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's The Philanthropist
The Philanthropist (TV series)
The Philanthropist is an American action drama series that premiered on NBC on Wednesday, June 24, 2009. The program is a limited summer series, principally filmed in South Africa. It opened to strong ratings, but saw a drop in viewers in subsequent weeks. The Philanthropist is a Carnival Films...
.
Personal life
Horton was married to Michelle PfeifferMichelle Pfeiffer
Michelle Marie Pfeiffer is an American actress. She made her film debut in 1980 in The Hollywood Knights, but first garnered mainstream attention with her performance in Brian De Palma's Scarface . Pfeiffer has won numerous awards for her work...
from 1981 to 1988, and has been married to Nicole Deputron since 1995. Horton and Deputron have two children. Their daughter Lily was born in October 1999, their daughter Ruby in 2002.
He is a brother-in-law of Egil Krogh
Egil Krogh
Egil “Bud” Krogh, Jr. is an American lawyer who became famous as an official of the Richard Nixon administration, and who was imprisoned for his part in the Watergate scandal.-Education:...
, a former White House Plumbers
White House Plumbers
The White House Plumbers, sometimes simply called the Plumbers, were a covert White House Special Investigations Unit established July 24, 1971 during the presidency of Richard Nixon. Its task was to stop the leaking of classified information to the news media...
member who was convicted in the Watergate scandal
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
.