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Jodie Copelan

1914 – 1977

American editor and director of film and television

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About Jodie Copelan

Lived 1914 – 1977 (aged 63). Jodie Copelan was an American film director and film editor.

Jodie Copelan (born Joseph Caplan and sometimes credited as Jodie Caplan) was an American film editor who worked on dozens of B movies and TV shows from the late 1940s through the 1970s.

Biography

Beginnings Jodie was born in Los Angeles, California, to Julius Caplan and Rosie Siegel. He started going by Jodie Copelan professionally early on in his career.

Career He began working as an assistant editor sometime around the early 1930s, and got his first credit as an editor on 1947's The Guilty. He spent the next 30 years editing and directing films and TV episodes; his sole directorial credit on a feature film came in 1958 with the release of Ambush at Cimarron Pass, a Western produced by Robert L. Lippert, who Copelan edited many films for. The film was released by 20th Century Fox featuring a young Clint Eastwood in a supporting role.

Personal life He married Lillian Schleifer in 1949. Jodie was a lifelong Dodgers fan who spent his later years tracking prospects from the farm league. "If I had my life to live over again, it would be in baseball," he told a reporter for The Los Angeles Times in 1973. Stage to Thunder Rock (1964) The Young Swingers (1963) Harbor Lights (1963) The Day Mars Invaded Earth (1964) The Yellow Canary (1963) The Firebrand (1962) Womanhunt (1962) The Purple Hills (1961) Night Tide (1961) Ring of Terror (1961) Counterplot (1959) Machete (1958) Night of the Blood Beast (1958) Under Fire (1957) The Deerslayer (1957) Apache Warrior (1957) Kronos (1957) Battle Taxi (1955) The Snow Creature (1954) Murder Without Tears (1953) Ghost Town Raiders (1951) Kilroy Was Here (1947) The Guilty (1947)

As director:

Ambush at Cimarron Pass (1958)

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Important facts

People in Jodie Copelan's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Jodie Copelan's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Jodie Copelan?

American editor and director of film and television (1914 - 1977)

When was Jodie Copelan born?

Jodie Copelan was born on 6 January 1914 in Los Angeles.

When did Jodie Copelan die?

Jodie Copelan died on 10 November 1977 in Beverly Hills.

What was Jodie Copelan's occupation?

Jodie Copelan was a film director and film editor.

What nationality was Jodie Copelan?

Jodie Copelan was American.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Jodie Copelan

· Wikidata: Q3179937

· DBpedia: Jodie Copelan

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Jodie Copelan. https://biography.guide/jodie-copelan/

MLA: "Jodie Copelan." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/jodie-copelan/.

Chicago: "Jodie Copelan." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/jodie-copelan/.

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