Peter Davis

Directing

Peter Davis

Born January 2, 1937 · Santa Monica, California, U.S. (age 89)

Peter Frank Davis (born January 2, 1937) is an American documentary filmmaker, journalist, and author best known for Hearts and Minds (1974), his Academy Award–winning film examining American involvement in the Vietnam War. Born in Santa Monica, California, to screenwriters Frank Davis and Tess Slesinger, Davis graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1957 and began his career in journ…

Known For

Hearts and MindsHearts and Minds · 1974
Hearts and Minds
7.61974
MovieDocumentaryWar
Many times during his presidency, Lyndon B. Johnson said that ultimate victory in the Vietnam War depended upon the U.S. military winning the "hearts and minds" of the Vietnamese people. Filmmaker Peter Davis uses Johnson's phrase in an ironic context in this anti-war documentary, filmed and released while the Vietnam War was still under way, juxtaposing interviews with military figures like U.S. Army Chief of Staff William C. Westmoreland with shocking scenes of violence and brutality.
HaywireHaywire · 1980
Haywire
6.71980
MovieDrama
Based on the autobiography of Brooke Hayward, daughter of famous Broadway producer Leland Hayward and actress Margaret Sullavan, who grows up in the glamorous, cruel and emotionally unstable world of her parents.
The Selling of the PentagonThe Selling of the Pentagon · 1971
The Selling of the Pentagon
8.01971
MovieDocumentary
"The Selling of the Pentagon" was an important documentary aired in primetime on CBS on 23 February 1971. The aim of this film, produced by Peter Davis, was to examine the increasing utilization and cost to the taxpayers of public relations activities by the military-industrial complex in order to shape public opinion in favor of the military.
Jack: The Last Kennedy FilmJack: The Last Kennedy Film · 1993
Jack: The Last Kennedy Film
1993
MovieDocumentary
Old footage of U.S. President John F. Kennedy
Second Time AroundSecond Time Around · 1982
Second Time Around
1982
Movie
Focusing on the wedding arrangements of David and Elaine, each of whom is divorced, SECOND TIME AROUND presents the complexities of contemporary marriage in the United States.
MiddletownMiddletown · 1982
Middletown
10.01982
SeriesDocumentary
Six-part documentary on the city of Muncie, Indiana - nicknamed "Middletown" after a study in the 1920s deemed it representative of middle America. The series finds that amid the great ...

Filmography

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