William Berke(1903-1958)

American director of 1940s and '50s second features, mainly westerns (often starring Charles Starrett) and crime and jungle dramas for Republic, Columbia and Pine-Thomas Productions. A graduate of Los Angeles Polytechnic High School, Berke worked his way up the ladder from office boy to assistant camera operator to cameraman and, finally, to director/producer. He spent his final years working in episodic television.