Peter Stone

Peter Hess Stone (February 27, 1930 – April 26, 2003) was an American screenwriter and playwright. Stone is perhaps best remembered by the general public for the screenplays he wrote or co-wrote in the mid-1960s, Charade (1963), Father Goose (1964), and Mirage (1965). Life and career Early life Peter Hess Stone was born in Los Angeles to Jewish parents. His mother, Hilda (née Hess), was a film writer, and his father, John Stone (born Saul Strumwasser), was a screenwriter and film producer. Hilda was a Bavarian Jew from Bamberg, but was born in Mexico (her father dodged the draft in the 1870s) and lived there for five years with her family until all foreign nationals were kicked out during the Mexican Revolution of 1910. Stone had an older brother David, who was a World War II veteran, serving in the U.S. Navy. When Stone was 15, his parents took him to see Mexican Hayride starring Bobby Clark at the Hazard's Pavilion. Stone saw Clark throw his hat onto a hat tree 100 feet away, and, at that moment, knew he wanted to work in theatre.