John G. Avildsen

John G. Avildsen (December 21, 1935 to June 16, 2017) was an American film director born in Oak Park, Illinois. He is best remembered for directing Rocky in 1976, which earned him the Academy Award for Best Director; the film became the highest grossing release of its year and won three of its ten Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. He also directed the first three installments of The Karate Kid franchise, released from 1984 to 1989. Under his direction, actors including Jack Lemmon, who won Best Actor for Save the Tiger in 1973, received Academy Award recognition. His other films included Joe in 1970, The Formula in 1980, Neighbors in 1981, Lean on Me in 1989, Rocky V in 1990, 8 Seconds in 1994, and Inferno in 1999, across a directing career spanning from 1969 to 1999.