John G. Avildsen
1935 - 2017Avildsen was born in Oak Park, Illinois, the son of Ivy (née Guilbert) and Clarence John Avildsen. He was educated at The Hotchkiss School and New York University. After starting out as an assistant director on films by Arthur Penn and Otto Preminger, John Avildsen received his first success with the low budget feature Joe (1970) which received critical acclaim for star Peter Boyle and moderate box office business.
This was followed by another critical success, Save the Tiger (1973), that was nominated for three Oscars, winning Best Actor for star Jack Lemmon. Avildsen's greatest success was Rocky (1976), garnering ten Academy Award nominations and winning three, including Best Picture and Best Director. He later directed what was expected to be the series' final installment, Rocky V (1990). His other films include Cry Uncle! (1971), Neighbors (1981), The Karate Kid (1984), The Karate Kid Part II (1986), The Karate Kid Part III (1989), Lean on Me (1989) and 8 Seconds (1994).
Avildsen was the original director for both Serpico (1973) and Saturday Night Fever (1977), but was fired over disputes with producers Martin Bregman and Robert Stigwood, respectively.
The Rocky Saga: Going the Distance
Сильвестр Сталлон, Carl Weathers
The 35th anniversary of the 1976 Oscar-winning film “Rocky” is marked with a TV retrospective in which Sylvester Stallone and others reminisce about the creation of the movie as well as the other films in the franchise.
The Rocky Saga: Going the Distance
Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films
Mark Hartley
Molly Ringwald, Дольф Лундгрен
A documentary about the rise and fall of the Cannon Film Group, the legendary independent film company helmed by Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus.
Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films
Lean On Me
John G. Avildsen
Morgan Freeman, Beverly Todd
When principal Joe Clark takes over decaying Eastside High School, he's faced with students wearing gang colors and graffiti-covered walls. Determined to do anything he must to turn the school around, he expels suspected drug dealers, padlocks doors and demands effort and results from students, staff and parents. Autocratic to a fault, this real-life educator put it all on the line.
Lean On Me
The Karate Kid
John G. Avildsen
Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita
Daniel, a fatherless teenager, arrives in Los Angeles and becomes the object of bullying by a gang of karate students when he strikes up a relationship with Ali, the gang leader’s ex-girlfriend, so Daniel asks Miyagi, a master of martial arts, to help him learn karate.
The Karate Kid
Saturday Night Fever: The Ultimate Disco Movie
Ian Denyer
Bruno Tonioli, John Travolta
John Travolta, Barry Gibb and the Saturday Night Fever cast and crew tell the story behind the mega-hit film. Bruno Tonioli goes through the disco steps that made movie history.
Saturday Night Fever: The Ultimate Disco Movie
40 Years of Rocky: The Birth of a Classic
Derek Wayne Johnson
Сильвестр Сталлон, John G. Avildsen
Sylvester Stallone and John G. Avildsen narrate behind-the-scenes footage from the making of "Rocky" to mark the film's 40th anniversary.
40 Years of Rocky: The Birth of a Classic
The Power of One
John G. Avildsen
Morgan Freeman, Stephen Dorff
PK, an English orphan terrorized for his family's political beliefs in Africa, turns to his only friend, a kindly world-wise prisoner, Geel Piet. Geel teaches him how to box with the motto “fight with your fists and lead with your heart”. As he grows to manhood, PK uses these words to take on the system and the injustices he sees around him - and finds that one person really can make a difference.
The Power of One
Frank Serpico
Antonino D'Ambrosio
Frank Serpico, Janet Panetta
In 1972, officer Frank Serpico exposes the corruption which poisons the roots of the NYPD and becomes famous in 1973 when director Sidney Lumet tells his story in the classic film “Serpico,” starring Al Pacino.
Frank Serpico
Joe
John G. Avildsen
Peter Boyle, Dennis Patrick
Ad executive Bill Compton confronts and murders his daughter's drug-dealing boyfriend. Wandering into a local bar, Bill encounters a drunken, bigoted factory worker with a bloodlust, Joe Curran. When Bill confesses the murder to Joe, the two strike up an uneasy alliance, leading to a wild adventure.
Joe
