Gil Peterson is an American former actor and singer best known for such films and television series as ''

The Cool Ones ''The Cool Ones'' (aka ''Cool, Baby Cool'') is a 1967 film starring Roddy McDowall and directed by Gene Nelson. The 1960s novelty singer known as Mrs. Miller performs in a cameo role, and the film features performances by the bands the Leaves and ...

'', ''

The F.B.I. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

'' and '' Valley of the Dolls''.

Early life and education

Peterson was born to H. W. and Mable Peterson in Winona, Mississippi. His older brother,

Donald Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinterpretation of the ...

, would later become a NASA astronaut. Peterson played football at both Winona High School and the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment. ...

in the position of halfback and left-footed punter, graduating from the university in 1958 as a physical education major. During college vacations, Peterson sang in night clubs in the south, and had a

screen test A screen test is a method of determining the suitability of an actor or actress for performing on film or in a particular role. The performer is generally given a scene, or selected lines and actions, and instructed to perform in front of a came ...

in his senior year. He served for several months with the

United States Air Force Reserve The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of commiss ...

Career

Peterson moved to Los Angeles, and worked in the physical education department of the school system while pursuing a performing career. Peterson began as a singer with the DownBeats. In 1962, he recorded a single, "Baby, Baby All the Time" with "Nobody's Fool on the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

, released by the Karle Company, and recorded an album with

Bobby Troup Robert William Troup Jr. (October 18, 1918 – February 7, 1999) was an American actor, jazz pianist, singer, and songwriter. He wrote the song " Route 66" and acted in the role of Dr. Joe Early with his wife Julie London in the television prog ...

, about which Peterson joked, "It sold seven copies. My folks bought six and I bought one." He recorded two other albums which were also not successes. He performed in

summer stock theater In American theater, summer-stock theater is a theater that presents stage productions only in the summer. The name combines the season with the tradition of staging shows by a resident company, reusing stock scenery and costumes. Summer stock t ...

and studied acting with

James Best Jewel Franklin Guy (July 26, 1926 – April 6, 2015), known professionally as James Best, was an American television, film, stage, and voice actor, as well as a writer, director, acting coach, artist, college professor, and musician. Duri ...

. After making a number of commercials, his first television role was on ''

Combat! ''Combat!'' is an American television drama series that originally aired on ABC from 1962 until 1967. The exclamation point in ''Combat!'' was depicted on-screen as a stylized bayonet. The show covered the grim lives of a squad of American sol ...

''. Peterson appeared in ''

Never Too Young ''Never Too Young'' is an American daytime serial that aired on ABC from September 27, 1965 to June 24, 1966 and was the first soap opera geared towards a teen audience. The show premiered on ABC on the same day as '' The Nurses''. Synopsis The s ...

'', '' Paradise Bay'', '' Run for Your Life'', and ''

The Young Marrieds ''The Young Marrieds'' is an American daytime soap opera which aired on ABC from October 5, 1964 to March 25, 1966. The program was created by James Elward and written by Elward with Frances Rickett. Authors John Pascal and Francine Pascal also ...

''. In 1966, Peterson was cast as the lead in ''

''.

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

notes that ''The Cool Ones'' was not favorably reviewed on its release, but quotes a modern reviewer: "Some bad movies are more entertaining than their much better cousins, and ''The Cool Ones'' falls squarely into that category." After ''The Cool Ones'', Peterson was offered a five-year, five-film deal by

Jack L. Warner Jack Leonard Warner (born Jacob Warner; August 2, 1892 – September 9, 1978) was a Canadian-American film executive, who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California. Warner's career spanned some ...

. Peterson appeared on ''

Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American old-time radio and television anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program ...

'' in 1967. Other roles included '' 12 O'Clock High'', ''

The FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

'', and '' Valley of the Dolls''. In 1974, Peterson appeared on ''

Emergency! ''Emergency!'' is an American action-adventure medical drama television series jointly produced by Mark VII Limited and Universal Television. Debuting on NBC as a midseason replacement on January 15, 1972, replacing the two short-lived situatio ...

''. Peterson established JaXon Productions, a film corporation in Mississippi, in 1969, intending to change his career from acting and singing to producing. By 1989, Peterson had retired from acting and moved to Winchester, Oregon.

Personal life

After first moving to California, Peterson married a model from Sacramento, who died of cancer. Peterson is a licensed flight instructor and owned an aviation business in California.

Partial filmography

* ''The Brain Machine'' (1977) as Dr. Elton Morris * '' Valley of the Dolls'' (1967) as Neeley's Leading Man (uncredited) * ''

'' (1967) as Cliff Donner

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Peterson, Gil 1936 births Living people American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Mississippi People from Winona, Mississippi