Born in Wharton, Texas, Horton Foote left his hometown to study acting at the Pasadena Playhouse in California. He eventually moved to New York, and began writing plays at the suggestion of choreographer Agnes de Mille. His early play, Texas Town, was produced Off- Broadway in 1941. Since then his plays have been produced on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway and at many theaters around the country. In 1995 Foote won a Pulitzer Prize for his play The Young Man From Atlanta. In 2008, Foote's Dividing the Estate appeared on Broadway and earned a Tony nomination for Best Play. That production moved to Hartford Stage in May 2009. Hartford audiences have also seen The Death of Papa (1998), The Carpetbagger's Children (2001) and The Trip to Bountiful (2003). Other plays include Getting Frankie Married...and Afterwards, The Day Emily Married, The Last of the Thorntons, The Chase, The Traveling Lady, Night Seasons, Tomorrow, The Habitation of Dragons, Laura Dennis, Vernon Early, and The Roads to Home.

In the 1940s, Foote was a leading writer of television dramas, working for Kraft Playhouse, the Philco-Goodyear Hour, Playhouse 90 and other prestigious series. His recent work for television included Alone (1997) and The Old Man (1997) for which he won an Emmy Award. His work in film includes Storm Fear (1956), Baby the Rain Must Fall (1964), The Trip to Bountiful (1985) and Of Mice and Men (1992). He received Academy Awards for his screenplay adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird (1961) and his original screenplay Tender Mercies (1983).

Foote's many awards include Obie and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Dividing the Estate, Lortel Award for Outstanding Achievement Off-Broadway and the Outer Critics Circle Special Achievement Award for the Signature Theatre series of his plays, Drama Desk Lifetime Achievement Award, American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal of Drama for the body of his work, PEN/Laura Pels Foundation Award for Drama, New York State Governor's Award and the 2000 National Medal of Arts Award from President Bill Clinton. He was inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame in 1996 and elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1998. His memoirs, Farewell and Beginnings, were published by Scribners.