William Friedkin
(Director)

Born August 29, 1939, in Chicago, Ill., William Friedkin started his career at age 16 in the mailroom at WGN-TV. Within a few months he worked his way up to studio floor manager and in less than a year he was directing local live broadcasts. Network dramas and musical shows soon followed.

Friedkin made his feature-film debut with the 1967 Sonny and Cher vehicle Good Times. He followed that up with The Night They Raided Minsky's, a screen adaptation of Harold Pinter's play The Birthday Party and a screen adaptation of the off-Broadway play The Boys in the Band.

Friedkin scored a huge success in 1971 directing the critically acclaimed hit The French Connection, starring Gene Hackman. The film earned five Oscars®, including Best Picture and Best Director. He received his second Best Director Oscar® nomination for The Exorcist.

In 1980, Friedkin wrote and directed the controversial Al Pacino movie Cruising. The film was protested by gay rights groups for what one critic called "[Friedkin's] slick portrait of gay sexual desire as a killer instinct." Friedkin's career hit a temporary stumbling block as a result, but he returned in 1985 with To Live and Die in L.A..

In 1986, Friedkin returned to TV, directing a Barbra Streisand special for HBO and creating an action series pilot called C.A.T. Squad. He also directed episodes of the '80's series The Twilight Zone and Tales from the Crypt. In 1997, Friedkin was nominated for a DGA award for his direction of the television remake of the courtroom classic 12 Angry Men, starring Jack Lemmon and George C. Scott.

Friedkin's next directorial project is The Hunted. Due out in 2002, the film stars Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio Del Toro.