He was born in Nelson, England, in the United Kingdom to his devoted parents Edwin Koppel and Alice Koppel. The family originally lived in Germany before, the Home Secretary of Britain suggested to Edwin to move his tire manufacturing company to England and that he and his wife would receive protection.
Edwin agreed with the Home secretary and in 1936 he moved to England, however, three years later war broke out and Ted’s father was arrested claiming that he was an enemy alien. He was locked at the Isle of Man for a year and six months.
A year and a half later Edwin was released, however, he was not permitted to work in London. Edwin and his wife took their baby boy Ted and migrated to the United States of America in 1953 when he was 13 years old. Soon after settling in America, his father opened up a tire factory, while his mother worked as a singer and pianist.
