John Tiffen Patterson (April 4, 1940 - February 7, 2005) was a television and film director. He was more recently known as the director of about a dozen episodes of The Sopranos. Patterson was born in Buffalo, New York.

John Patterson joined the United States Air Force as a teenager and flew for the Strategic Air Command. He attended college part time as a reservist, but finally graduated from the University at Buffalo. He then earned a masters degree at Stanford University in 1970, where he was a classmate of David Chase, producer of The Sopranos.

Patterson directed episodes of CHIPS, Hill Street Blues, CSI, and Magnum P.I., as well as other popular programs.

He was nominated for the Emmy award in 2002 and 2003 for his work on The Sopranos. He won The Directors Guild of America award for the show in 2002.

John Patterson also directed television movies, including: A Deadly Silence (1989) and Seduced by Madness (1996).

He was married to Casey Kelley, but later they were divorced. He had two children.

Patterson died in Los Angeles, California of cancer.