While growing up in Minnesota, Peter Graves excelled at sports and music (as a saxophonist), and by age 16 he was a radio announcer at WMIN in Minneapolis. After two years in the U.S. Air Force, he studied drama at the University of Minnesota and then headed to Hollywood, where he first appeared on television and later made his film debut in Rogue River. Numerous film appearances followed, especially in Westerns. Graves is primarily recognized for his television work, however, particularly as Jim Phelps in Mission: Impossible.
Mission: Impossible (1966): $7,500 per episode (1969 season)
Left handed Brother of James Arness. Daughters, with Endress, Kelly, Claudia, and Amanda He said it was almost over for Captain Oveur before the movie Airplane! took flight. Graves said he was astounded when his agent sent him the script for the 1980 spoof, and after reading it, he felt that it was "the worst piece of junk" he ever saw. However, he changed his mind after meeting with the movie's writers, Jerry and David Zucker. He directed the Gunsmoke episode "Which Dr." (His brother, James Arness, was the star of that series.)