Playwright, actor, director Peter Masterson dies at 84
NEW YORK — Peter Masterson, the playwright, filmmaker and actor with a knack for farce and drama whether co-writing the Tony-winning musical “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas” or directing the movie adaptation of “The Trip to Bountiful,” has died.
Masterson’s son, also Peter, said his father died Tuesday from complications from Parkinson’s disease. He was 84 and died at his home in Kinderhook, New York.
Born Carlos Masterson, but known as Peter because his father preferred that name, the Houston native often worked with family members and was drawn to projects in his native Texas.
His cousin was the-texas born playwright Horton Foote, who wrote the stage version of “The Trip to Bountiful,” the story of an elderly woman in Houston who longs to return to her home community. Geraldine Page won an Oscar for her performance in the 1985 film, which also featured Rebecca De Mornay and John Heard.
Masterson earlier had success in the theater as one of the creators of “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas,” inspired by the real-life Chicken Ranch brothel. The story began as a 1974 Playboy article by Larry L. King and was expanded into a musical after a party conversation among Masterson, King and songwriter Carol Hall, who died last fall. The play ran more than three years on Broadway after opening in 1978, and Masterson received Tony nominations for direction and choreography. His wife, Carlin Glynn, won a best actress Tony.
Masterson also worked with his daughter, Mary Stuart Masterson, known for such movies as “Fried Green Tomatoes.”