John Tiffin Patterson (April 4, 1940 – February 7, 2005) was a

television director A television director is in charge of the activities involved in making a television program or section of a program. They are generally responsible for decisions about the editorial content and creative style of a program, and ensuring the prod ...

known for his work on

drama series In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular su ...

, who also made

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

s. He directed thirteen episodes of ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...

'', including the first five season finales. Patterson was born in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...

Biography

Aged 19, Patterson joined the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

where he navigated

B-52 bombers The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic aircraft, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the ...

for the

Strategic Air Command Strategic Air Command (SAC) was a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile compon ...

. He resumed his college studies while a reservist and graduated from the

University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo (commonly referred to as UB, University at Buffalo, and sometimes SUNY Buffalo) is a public university, public research university in Buffalo, New York, Buffalo and Amherst, New York, United States. ...

. He earned a master's degree at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

in 1970, where he was a classmate of ''The Sopranos'' creator

David Chase David Henry Chase (born August 22, 1945) is an American writer, producer, and director. He is best known for being the creator, head writer, and executive producer of the HBO drama ''The Sopranos'', which aired for six seasons between 1999 and 2 ...

. He was nominated for the

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...

award in 2002 and 2003 for his work on ''The Sopranos'' but he lost, and won The

Directors Guild of America The Directors Guild of America (DGA) is an entertainment guild that represents the interests of Film director, film and Television director, television directors in the United States motion picture industry and abroad. Founded as the Screen Dir ...

award for the show in 2002. As a director, Patterson worked for several television

studio A studio is a space set aside for creative work of any kind, including art, dance, music and theater. The word ''studio'' is derived from the , from , from ''studere'', meaning to study or zeal. Types Art The studio of any artist, esp ...

s, including

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

and

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

. He directed episodes of ''The Sopranos'', ''

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in some religions * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

'', ''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy i ...

'', ''

Carnivàle ''Carnivàle'' () is an American television series set in the United States Dust Bowl during the Great Depression of the 1930s. The series, created by Daniel Knauf, ran for two seasons between 2003 and 2005. In tracing the lives of disparate gr ...

'', ''

Family Law Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations. Overview Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include: * Marriag ...

'', '' Six Feet Under'', ''

CSI CSI may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media CSI franchise * ''CSI'' (franchise) ** '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', the original ''CSI'' television series, set in Las Vegas ** '' CSI: Miami'', the first spin-off series starring David ...

'', ''

CHiPs ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. After the final first-run telecast on NBC in May 1983, the series went into reruns on Sundays fr ...

'', ''

Magnum P.I. ''Magnum, P.I.'' is an American crime drama television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator (P.I.) living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from December 11, 1980, to May 1, 1988, during its first-run broadcast on ...

'', ''

Hill Street Blues ''Hill Street Blues'' is an American serial police procedural television series that aired on NBC in prime-time from January 15, 1981, to May 12, 1987, for 146 episodes. The show chronicles the lives of the Metropolitan Police Department staff ...

'', ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', and the pilot episode of ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...

''. He also directed more than 12 television movies, usually thrillers and crime stories, including ''

A Deadly Silence A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient G ...

'' (1989) and ''

Seduced By Madness ''Seduced by Madness: The Diane Borchardt Story'' is a 1996 American television film directed by John Patterson and starring Ann-Margret, Peter Coyote, Leslie Hope, Christian Campbell, Hedy Burress, Tobey Maguire, and Freddy Rodríguez. Based ...

'' (1996). He was married to Casey Kelley, but they later divorced; they had two children named Mary and Charlie Patterson. Patterson died in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is the neoplasm, uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system below the bladder. Abnormal growth of the prostate tissue is usually detected through Screening (medicine), screening tests, ...

at the age of 64. Season 6 episode 12 of ''The Sopranos'', titled "

Kaisha Kaisha or gaisha may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Kaisha (The Sopranos), an episode of ''The Sopranos'' Japanese corporate law * or ''gaisha'', the Japanese word for "corporation" * ''Kabushiki gaisha'', a type of joint-stock company * ...

", was dedicated to him.

Selected filmography

*''

'', 13 episodes directed by John Tiffin Patterson **Episode 1.04 " Meadowlands" **Episode 1.13 " I Dream of Jeannie Cusamano" **Episode 2.06 "

The Happy Wanderer "The Happy Wanderer" ("" or "") is a popular song. The original text was written by (1791–1877).

" **Episode 2.10 "

Bust Out "Bust Out" is the 23rd episode of the HBO original series ''The Sopranos'' and the 10th of the show's second season. It was written by Frank Renzulli, Robin Green, and Mitchell Burgess and directed by John Patterson, and originally aired on ...

" **Episode 2.13 "

Funhouse A funhouse or fun house is an attraction found in amusement parks and funfair midways, equipped with various devices designed to surprise, challenge, or amuse visitors. Unlike thrill rides or dark rides, fun houses are participatory attractio ...

" **Episode 3.04 " Employee of the Month" **Episode 3.13 " Army of One" **Episode 4.02 " No Show" **Episode 4.07 " Watching Too Much Television" **Episode 4.13 " Whitecaps" **Episode 5.03 " Where's Johnny?" **Episode 5.08 "

Marco Polo Marco Polo (; ; ; 8 January 1324) was a Republic of Venice, Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in ''The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known a ...

" **Episode 5.13 " All Due Respect" *'' Six Feet Under'': **Episode 1.03 "The Foot" *''

'' episodes: **"The Birthday Party" **"The Honeymoon's Over" **"Runaway Sydney" **"Saint Syd" * '' Love, Honor & Obey: The Last Mafia Marriage'' (1993) * '' Grave Secrets: The Legacy of Hilltop Drive'' (1992) * '' Sins of the Mother'' (1991 TV movie) starring

Elizabeth Montgomery Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery (April 15, 1933 – May 18, 1995) was an American actress whose career spanned five decades in film, stage, and television. She portrayed the good witch List of Bewitched characters#Samantha Stephens, Samantha Step ...

Dale Midkiff Dale Alan Midkiff (born July 1, 1959) is an American actor, best known for playing Louis Creed in the horror film ''Pet Sematary (1989 film), Pet Sematary'' (1989) and Captain Darien Lambert in the TV series ''Time Trax''. Career Midkiff acted ...

and Heather Fairfield * ''She Said No'' (1990 TV Movie) concerning

acquaintance rape Acquaintance rape is rape that is perpetrated by a person who knows the victim. Examples of acquaintances include someone the victim is dating, a classmate, co-worker, employer, family member, spouse, counselor, therapist, religious official, or m ...

and starring

Veronica Hamel Veronica Hamel (born November 20, 1943) is an American actress and model. She was nominated five times for an Emmy Award for her role as attorney Joyce Davenport in the TV police drama ''Hill Street Blues''. Biography The daughter of a Philade ...

Lee Grant Lee Grant (born Lyova Haskell Rosenthal; October 31, during the mid-1920s) is an American actress, documentarian, and director. In a career spanning over seven decades, she won an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Directors Guil ...

, Ray Baker, and

Judd Hirsch Judd Seymore Hirsch (born March 15, 1935) is an American actor. He is known for playing Alex Rieger on the television comedy series ''Taxi'' (1978–1983), John Lacey on the NBC series '' Dear John'' (1988–1992), and Alan Eppes on the CBS ser ...

*''

'' "

Everybody's Favorite Bagman "Everybody's Favorite Bagman" is the sixth episode of the first season of the American police procedural and legal drama ''Law & Order''. The episode was written by Dick Wolf and directed by John Patterson, and originally aired on NBC on Oct ...

" ( series pilot) Episode 01.06 - written by

Dick Wolf Richard Anthony Wolf (born December 20, 1946) is an American billionaire and television producer, best known for his ''Law & Order'' franchise. Since 1990, the franchise has included six police/courtroom dramas and four international spinoffs. ...

(produced 1988, aired 1990) *''

'' "A Wasted Weekend" Episode 7.12 - written by

David Mamet David Alan Mamet (; born November 30, 1947) is an American playwright, author, and filmmaker. He won a Pulitzer Prize and received Tony Award, Tony nominations for his plays ''Glengarry Glen Ross'' (1984) and ''Speed-the-Plow'' (1988). He first ...

(1987)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, John 1940 births 2005 deaths American television directors Deaths from prostate cancer in California University at Buffalo alumni Directors Guild of America Award winners Stanford University alumni United States Air Force officers