Peter Thomas

**Peter Thomas** (June 28, 1924 – April 30, 2016) was an American announcer and narrator of television programs, including _Nova_, _Forensic Files_ and _Medical Detectives_.

## Early life

Thomas was born in Pensacola, Florida, to Dr. John D. Thomas and Sibyl Addenbrooke. He had two younger brothers, John and David.

Thomas began his career at fourteen as an announcer on a local radio show. The station could not pay him due to his age, so they arranged for the sponsor, Piper Aircraft, to give him flying lessons in a Piper Cub.

After World War II started, Thomas left The Stony Brook School and volunteered for the United States Army in 1943. He served with the First Infantry Division in five major campaigns. This included the Battle of Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge. He was issued a Battle star for each of the five campaigns. He was also awarded the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart and the French Croix de guerre.

## Career

Thomas received many awards for his work. He said that one of his best was the Oscar won by a documentary he narrated, _One Survivor Remembers_. That documentary, produced by HBO, talks about the personal experience of Gerda Weissman Klein, who was imprisoned at the Nordhausen Concentration Camp when she was a teenager. Thomas' unit helped free the prisoners at Nordhausen. Klein and Thomas met during the making of the documentary, and again at its premiere. Thomas also participated in an HBO movie on the Battle of Hürtgen Forest, in which he fought with the 1st Infantry Division (United States). Thomas was also the narrator for a show that ran on The Discovery Channel in 1993 that was called _How the West was Lost_. Thomas was the narrator for the two-hour _Nova_ episode entitled _D-Day's Sunken Secrets_, broadcast May 28, 2014, just before the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings; he participated in the original D-Day landing on Omaha Beach.

## Personal life

Thomas was married to Stella (Barrineau) Thomas until her 2014 death, and lived in Naples, Florida. He was involved in work with veterans, having served on the board of the National D-Day Memorial Foundation and in other similar roles.

He worked out of his home for recording studios all across the country. Also he continued narrating at recording studios in New York City, where he worked for most of his career. Prior to pursuing narration full-time, he was a New York anchor for CBS News.

## Death

Thomas died on April 30, 2016 of natural causes at the age of 91.

## Other websites

- Peter Thomas Tribute - from truTV's _Forensic Files_.
- We owe our freedom to GIs who fought  by Peter Thomas, veteran of Hurtgen Forest and Battle of the bulge

## Infobox (person)

- **name**: Peter Thomas
- **image**: Peter Thomas Voiceover Artist.jpg
- **birth date**: June 28, 1924
- **birth place**: Pensacola, Florida, United States
- **death date**: April 30, 2016 (aged 91)
- **death place**: Naples, Florida, United States
- **nationality**: American
- **known for**: Documentary and advertisement voice-over work
- **occupation**: Narrator
- **spouse**: Stella (Barrineau) Thomas
(m. 1946–2014, her death)
- **children**: 3
- **parents**: Dr. John D. Thomas
Sibyl (Addenbrooke) Thomas