A director of numerous comedy vehicles who, nevertheless, also helped spawn the Rambo character through "First Blood" (1982), Ted Kotcheff is best known for such efforts as "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz" (1974) as well as the football comedy "North Dallas Forty" (1979), which he also co-wrote.

After receiving an English degree from the University of Toronto, Kotcheff began directing dramatic programs for the Canadian Broadcasting System. In 1957, he relocated to London, England, where he worked in both theater (notably the Lionel Bart musical "Maggie May") and television, earning several