Editing Ted Nichols (section)

==Early life==
He was born Theodore Nicholas Sflotsos in [[Missoula, Montana]], in 1928, the son of Nicholas Theodore Sflotsos (first generation Greek immigrant) and Josephine Ellen (Schomer) Sflotsos. He was raised in the [[Greek Orthodox]] church, later becoming an evangelical. His parents moved to [[Spokane, Washington]], where he graduated from [[John R. Rogers High School]]. He then joined the navy, where he was trained as an [[Aviation electrician's mate|aviation electrician]]. During specialist training in [[Jacksonville, Florida]], he played saxophone in the navy swing band, he also plays the violin and clarinet. He was later transferred to [[Corpus Christi, Texas]], where he founded, directed and played in the base swing band. In 1948, he legally changed his name to Ted Nichols.