Peltier, Melissa Jo

PERSONAL: Female.

ADDRESSES: Home— Los Angeles, CA, and Nyack, NY. Office— MPH Entertainment, Inc., 1033 N. Hollywood Way, Ste. F, Burbank, CA 91505.

CAREER: Writer, movie producer, television director, and television producer. Producer of films, including (as executive producer), Men Seeking Women (also known as The Bet), IFM Film Associates, 1997; and (as coexecutive producer), My Big Fat Greek Wedding, IFC Films, 2002. Also director, producer, coproducer, executive producer, or coexecutive producer of numerous television shows, including Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan, and films for the History Channel.

WRITINGS

(With Cesar Millan) Cesar’s Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems, Harmony Books (New York, NY), 2006.

TELEVISION SHOWS

Abortion Denied: Shattering Young Women’s Lives, TBS, 1990.

Scared Silent: Exposing and Ending Child Abuse, ABC, CBS, NBC, and PBS, 1992.

Break the Silence: Kids against Child Abuse, CBS, 1994.

Titanic (contains the segments “Death of a Dream” and “The Legend Lives On”), Arts and Entertainment, 1994.

Arnold Schwarzenegger: Flex Appeal, Arts and Entertainment, 1996.

(With Susan Berman, Paul Kaufman, and Jim Milio) Las Vegas (contains the segments “Gamble in the Desert” and “House of Cards”), Arts and Entertainment, 1996.

(And coexecutive producer) Pirates of the Barbary Coast, History Channel, 1998.

Discovery Channel Eco-Challenge (also known as Discovery Eco-Challenge Australia), Discovery Channel, 1998.

Martian Mania: The True Story of “War of the Worlds,” Sci-Fi Channel, 1998.

The First Detective, History Channel, 1999.

The History of Sex, History Channel, 1999.

(With Steve Muscarella) The Inquisition, History Channel, 1999.

(With Max M. Fletcher) Founding Fathers, History Channel, 2000.

Palm Beach: Money, Power, and Privilege, Arts and Entertainment, 2000.

Ghost Ship of the Confederacy, History Channel, 2001.

Gossip: Tabloid Tales, Arts and Entertainment, 2002.

The Roswell Crash: Startling New Evidence, Sci-Fi Channel, 2002.

Also author of the television shows Sea Tales: The Doomed Voyage of the St. Louis, (with Christopher Meindl), c. 1999;Sea Tales: Lusitania, Murder on the Atlantic, (with Kelly McPherson), c. 1999;The New Roswell: Kecksburg Exposed, 2003;Nightwaves, 2003; and The True Story of Hannibal, 2005. Contributing writer of segments for Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan.2006.

SIDELIGHTS: Melissa Jo Peltier has written for and produced numerous television shows, including the popular Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan. Peltier also teamed with Millan to write Cesar’s Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems. The book sets forth Millan’s unique approach to dog training, with an emphasis on problem dogs and on the foibles of the humans who can’t control them. The book also recounts Millan’s humble beginnings in Mexico, where he worked on a farm and learned about pack behavior among dogs. The authors write about Mill-an’s successes in rehabilitating dogs and some of his failures. The book includes numerous photographs depicting dogs in their various states, such as dogs in submissive or aggressive states. Writing in the New York Times Book Review, Liesl Schillinger noted that the book includes tales about “the pets of [Millan’s] famous clientele to illustrate his precepts.” Rachel Quagliariello, writing on HollywoodJesus.com, commented: “Every word in this book is evidence of Cesar’s love for nature and animals.” Quagliariello added: “If you have a dog, or you’re considering adoption, Cesar’s Way will challenge you to count the cost.” In a review on the Fun with Dead Trees Web site, a contributor called the book “compelling” and noted: “If you have a dog or are thinking about getting one, Cesar’s Way . . . is definitely worth checking out.”

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES

BOOKS

Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television, Volume 49, Thomson Gale (Detroit, MI), 2003.

PERIODICALS

Bookseller, August 4, 2006, “Hodder Wins Dog Whisperer,” p. 11.

New York Times Book Review, February 26, 2006, Liesl Schillinger, review of Cesar’s Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems.

ONLINE

Fun with Dead Trees, http://kapgar.typepad.com/fwdt/(January 24, 2007), review of Cesar’s Way.

HollywoodJesus.com, http://www.hollywoodjesus.com/(January 24, 2007), Rachel Quagliariello, review of Cesar’s Way.

Internet Movie Database, http://www.imdb.com/(January 24, 2007), information on author’s film and television work.*