Ted Kotcheff

Ted Kotcheff (born April 7, 1931), sometimes credited as William Kotcheff or William T. Kotcheff, is a Canadian Bulgarian film and television director, who is well known for his work on several high-profile British television productions and as a director of films such as the Australian classic Wake in Fright and such Hollywood successes as First Blood, Uncommon Valor, Weekend at Bernie's and North Dallas Forty.

Early life

Kotcheff was born as William Theodore Kotcheff in Toronto. His parents were Bulgarian immigrants. His father was born in Plovdiv, while his mother was of Macedonian Bulgarian background, from Vambel, today in Greece. After graduating in English Literature from University College, University of Toronto, Kotcheff began his television career at the age of twenty-four when he joined the staff of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, with television still very much in its infancy in the country. Kotcheff was the youngest director on the staff of the CBC, where he worked for two years on shows such as General Motors Theatre before in 1958 leaving Canada to live and work in the United Kingdom.