Joseph Kaufman (1882 – February 1, 1918) was an American silent film actor and director prominent during the World War I years. He was born in Washington, D.C. and died in New York City. Kaufman graduated from Georgetown University. His wife was silent film star Ethel Clayton. Kaufman started out as an actor appearing on Broadway in Mistakes Will Happen (1906) and The Pretty Sister of Jose (1903) with Maude Adams. His other Broadway credits included Three Twins (1908), Caught in the Rain (1906), Twiddle-Twaddle (1906), and La Belle Marseillaise (1905). He acted in a troupe of Henry B. Harris.