Peter Graves (born Peter Duesler Aurness; March 18, 1926 – March 14, 2010) was an American actor known for a variety of work in both film and television. He's best remembered for starring in the two Mission: Impossible TV series, in which he played gruff IMF team leader Jim Phelps for six seasons of the original series and both seasons of the revival.
He was the brother of James Arness of Gunsmoke fame.
Graves was a Minnesota native, which may or may not be coincidental to his many appearances in movies mocked by Mystery Science Theater 3000. These include:
- SST: Death Flight
- It Conquered the World
- Beginning of the End, in which Crow T. Robot's unique talent as a screenwriter brought to life Graves's time at the University of Minnesota.
- Clonus
- The Eye Creatures
Graves also appeared in a movie mocked on The Film Crew titled Killers from Space, and a spy film, Missile X: The Neutron Bomb Incident, which was mocked by RiffTrax.
Known for being a dramatic actor, Graves was cast against type as Captain Oveur in the comedy films Airplane! and Airplane II: The Sequel.
He lent his distinct voice to his role as the original host and narrator of the A&E series Biography in the late '80s and early '90s.
Other Notable Roles:
- The Raid (1954) - Capt. Frank Dwyer
- The Night of the Hunter — As Ben Harper.
- Texas Across The River — Capt. Stimpson.
- Appearance in one episode of The Golden Girls.
- Recurring Role on 7th Heaven.
- Appearance in one episode of House.
- An expose host in Men in Black II.
- Looney Tunes: Back in Action
- WordGirl
- Stalag 17 — As one of the prisoners of war.
- Scream of the Wolf — As John Weatherby
- Whiplash — As Christopher Cobb
