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Peter Berkos

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Peter Berkos
Peter Berkos
Berkos in 2015
Birth: 15 August 1922
Cicero, Illinois, USA
Death: 2 January 2024
Rancho Bernardo, California, USA
Age: 101 years, 140 days
Country: United StatesUSA
Centenarian

Peter Berkos (15 August 1922 - 2 January 2024) was an American centenarian and former sound editor. Active from the late 1940s until his retirement in 1987.

Biography[]

Peter Berkos was born in Cicero, Illinois, USA on 15 August 1922, He had a twin brother, Paul Berkos (who died in January 2020 aged 97). During World war 2 he was drafted into the US army air corps . serving as a manufacturer for items needed by the military and then as a radio operator .After his service ended in 1946. Berkos enrolled at Columbia university where he met his wife Sally. Eager for a career in filmmaking, Berkos and his wife moved to Los Angeles shortly after graduating. He started his career as a storeroom clerk at Universal Studios spending nearly 3 years working his way up to the production offices, Then editorial, working one on one with actors and directors re recording dialogue using automatic dialogue replacement. later working up to supervising editor. He worked on many Hollywood films including "The creature walks among us" "Tammy and the bachelor" and Orson Welles "Touch of evil" in 1963 Berkos became president of the Motion Picture Sound Editors where he fought for sound editors membership in film and television academies. Also during this period he spent 2 months mentoring a young filmmaker who wanted to understand sound editing. Steven Speilberg. later calling him "The most enthusiastic film man I've ever met"

In 1975, Berkos won the Special Achievement Academy Award for his sound editing work on "The Hindenburg" He also did the sound effects for the original Battlestar Galactica as well as the TV movies of Buck Rogers in the 25th century.

Before he retired from sound editing in 1987, Berkos had worked on over 300 films and 1000 television episodes. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Motion Picture Sound Editors in 1996. His wife Sally died in 2000. During retirement he reinvented himself as a novelist. publishing 2 books in 2007 and 2013

In August 2022, Berkos celebrated his 100th birthday and became a centenarian.

Peter Berkos died in Rancho Bernardo, California, USA on 2 January 2024 at the age of 101 years 140 days.

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