Carlos Bee Masterson Jr was an American actor director producer and writer Masterson often worked with his cousin writer Horton Foote Acting from the mid1960s to the mid1980s including 1975s The Stepford Wives as Walter Eberhart since then he concentrated mostly on directing and producing Actress Mary Stuart Masterson is his daughter she appeared with her father in The Stepford Wives playing one of his daughters His other acting credits include roles in Ambush Bay 1966 In the Heat of the Night 1967 Counterpoint 1968 Von Richthofen and Brown 1971 Tomorrow 1972 The Exorcist 1973 Man on a Swing 1974 and Gardens of Stone 1987 Masterson cowrote with Larry L King the books for the hit musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas 1978 and its shortlived sequel The Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public 1994 In 1980 he produced the ABC television movie City in Fear based on an idea by screenwriter William Goldmanan idea that became the wellreviewed 1979 novel Panic on Page One by Linda Stewart and the television script by Albert Ruben The cast was led by Robert Vaughn and David Janssen in the final role before his death that year In 1985 he directed The Trip to Bountiful for which Geraldine Page won the Academy Award for Best Actress The film also featured his wife Carlin Glynn who had previously won a Tony Award for her role in Whorehouse His directing credits additionally include Full Moon in Blue Water 1988 Night Game 1989 Blood Red 1989 Convicts 1991 Arctic Blue 1993 The Only Thrill 1997 Lost Junction 2003 and Whiskey School 2005 Masterson died at the age of 84 on December 18 2018 after suffering a fall at his home He had received a diagnosis of Parkinsons disease 14 years earlier