Ted V. Mikels
| Ted V. Mikels | |
|---|---|
Ted V. Mikels with a fan in 2008
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| Born |
Theodore Vincent Mikacevich April 29, 1929 St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Died | October 16, 2016 (aged 87) Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. |
| Occupation | Film producer, film director, screenwriter, actor |
| Years active | 1950s–2016 |
Ted V. Mikels (born Theodore Vincent Mikacevich; April 29, 1929 – October 16, 2016) was an American independent filmmaker primarily of the horror cult film genre. Movies that he both produced and directed include Girl in Gold Boots (1968), The Astro-Zombies (1968), and The Doll Squad (1973).
During the 1960s and 1970s, Mikels also operated his own recording label, Geneni Records, which primarily issued radio spot advertisement records used to promote his various movie projects but also released a number of stand-alone singles by such artists as Vic Lance and Little Leon Payne.
Mikels was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, on April 29, 1929; his father was a Croatian immigrant who worked as a meat cutter, and his mother was an herbalist who emigrated from Romania.
During his grade school years, he was an amateur photographer who developed his own film in his bathtub. While in 8th grade, he was awarded his first acting role in a film that was to star William Powell, but World War II forced the cancellation of the production. By the age of 15, he was a regular stage performer and developed an interest in film-making when he attempted to shoot his performances. In 2008, he said, "I figured out that you have to move the camera around to get different angles, and then you have to edit the film when you're done."
In the 1950s, Mikels moved to Bend, Oregon, joined the Bend Community Players little theater group, and founded his own film production company. Soon, he began producing both educational documentaries, and short dramatic features.
Additionally, as horseman, archery expert, Indian and stuntman, he contributed to the production of several Hollywood films made in Central Oregon. Notably, during on location filming of The Indian Fighter, he taught studio special effects crews a technique for making flaming arrows appear authentic. Before leaving Oregon in the early 1960s, Mikels wrote and directed his first feature-length film in 1963, entitled Strike Me Deadly.
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