Peter Gessner was part of the collective that made Finally Got the News (1970) in Detroit. He also directed and produced Time of the Locust (1966), Last Summer Won’t Happen (1977), and Over-Under-Sidways-Down (1977). After several years of working in independent film, he shifted into various jobs, including work as a university lecturer and taxi driver in San Francisco.  Following those experiences, he became a licensed Private Investigator. His cases have included capital homicide investigations, clergy sexual abuse, employment discrimination, and police misconduct inquiries. He published his first novel, The Big Hello and the Long Goodbye in 2016.