Friedkin, William, 1935-

William Friedkin (b. August 29, 1935, Chicago, Illinois) is an American film and television director, producer and screenwriter closely identified with the "New Hollywood" movement of the 1970s. Beginning his career in documentaries in the early 1960s, he is perhaps best known for directing The French Connection (1971) and The Exorcist (1973), the former of which won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Director. Some of his other films include the pioneering queer drama The Boys in the Band (1970), the international suspense thriller Sorcerer (1977), the highly controversial 1980 crime film Cruising (1980),[5][6] the action thriller To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), the psychological horror film Bug (2006), and the dark comedy Killer Joe (2011).