Description:
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.
Birthday
October 3, 1903
Born In
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
Alternative names
Lester Wm. Berke
, William A. Berke
, Wm. Berke
, William Hall
, Wm. Hall
, Billy Lester
, Bill Lester
, William B. Lester
, William Lester
, Lester Williams
Height
177 cm
Trivia
Was desperate to direct only B movies, which he shot in 12 days. So he asked a friend of his, an RKO executive, to give him a big-budget movie. However, after he obtained what he asked for, he continued to shoot the movies in only 12 days.
Nickname
Bill
