James Fielder Cook was born on March 9, 1923, in Atlanta, Georgia. He was raised in Tampa, Florida, and later joined the Navy, serving as an officer during World War II. After the war, he studied Elizabethan drama at the University of Birmingham in England.
Cook's early career in television began with "The Lux Video Theatre" in 1950. He went on to work on other live-TV omnibus series, including "Studio One" and "The Kaiser Aluminum Hour", for which he also wrote teleplays and served as a producer.
In 1955, Cook directed "Patterns", a highly acclaimed production written by Rod Serling. This led to him establishing his critical reputation as a director. After the broadcast, CBS-TV owner William Paley praised the show, saying it had put television ahead by ten years.
Cook continued to work in television, directing numerous TV movies and episodes of various series. He received nine Emmy Award nominations, winning three for directing and producing. He was committed to realizing the writer's vision, and believed that the story was paramount.
Throughout his career, Cook remained dedicated to television, preferring it to feature films. He told the "Los Angeles Times" in 1966, "I went back to TV because I could do what I wanted to do. You learn from your mistakes with nobody telling you what to do."
Cook's final directing credit was "The Member of the Wedding" in 1997. He died on June 20, 2003, in Charlotte, North Carolina.
