SYLVESTER STALLONE
Is there another actor with the resilience and longevity of Sylvester Stallone? Arguably one of the biggest movie stars of all time, he has not one, but two hugely successful franchises that are making money to this day – Rocky and Rambo – has mounted more successful comebacks than anyone has a right to, and is responsible for inspiring millions around the globe with his own rags-to-riches Cinderella story. Say what you will about the big lug, every time his career has been on the ropes (or even on the mat), he always comes back swinging.
Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone was born on July 6th, 1946 in New York City – his father, Frank Stallone Sr., was a hairdresser, and his mother, Jackie, a former dancer and promoter of women's wrestling. During Sylvester’s birth, doctors used forceps which severed a facial nerve, resulting in a crooked left eye, a droopy lower lip, and slurred speech. As his parents were always struggling to make ends meet, Sylvester, a scrawny and sickly child, spent a few years among foster families. Years later, Sly would state that his interest in acting stemmed from his never-ending desire for approval from the strangers who tried to raise him. After Sylvester returned to his parents home when he was five, the Stallones (along with younger son, Frank Jr.) moved to Maryland, where his parents operated a chain of beauty salons. This was not a happy time for Sly as his parents were constantly fighting. After they divorced in 1957, Sylvester stayed with his stern father, but the troubled boy, willing to do anything for attention, was expelled from numerous schools. At age 15, he moved back with his mother.
In the early 1960s, Sylvester attended Devereaux Manor, a private school for problem children located in Berwyn, Pennsylvania. There he showed interest in fencing, football, discus, and weightlifting – the latter stemmed from his admiration of famed bodybuilder and Hercules actor, Steve Reeves. After graduating, Sylvester enrolled in beauty school, but dropped out after winning a scholarship to the American College of Switzerland. While abroad, Sylvester studied drama and acted in a school production of Death of a Salesman. After returning stateside, he studied drama a the University of Miami until 1969, when he decided to move to New York and pursue screenwriting.
SLY AND TALIA SHIRE IN ROCKY (1976)
Taking what small acting roles he could during this time (Woody Allen’s Bananas, Klute, The Prisoner of Second Avenue), Sylvester also appeared in a softcore porn film called The Party at Kitty and Stud’s – after two days work and $200, Sly didn’t know it but he had a skeleton in his closet which would later come back to haunt him. Sylvester married actress Sasha Czack in late 1974, and they moved to California in the hopes of building acting careers. Sly’s first notable break was the 1974 film, The Lords of Flatbush (for which he contributed enough dialogue to earn a co-screenwriter credit) – the film costarred Perry King and a pre-Happy Days Henry Winkler. Small appearances in Capone, Death Race 2000, and Kojak followed.
In March of 1975, during what would later prove to be a serendipitous turn of fate, Sylvester watched a boxing match between heavyweight champion Muhammed Ali and relative unknown Chuck Wepner. When Wepner went the distance and knocked the champ down in the 9th round (Wepner would eventually be knocked out in the 15th), Sylvester became instantly inspired. Writing nonstop over the next three days, the result was a script entitled Rocky.
Sylvester set his sights on selling the script, with the caveat that he be allowed to portray the lead. After auditioning for producers Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff for a different project, Sly happened to mention that he was also a writer, and had written a script about a boxer. The producers told him to bring it by. Sly did – they read it, loved it, and made many high dollar offers for the screenplay – but they wanted to cast a “star” in the titular role. Sylvester refused, Winkler and Chartoff finally gave in, and the rest is history.
STALLONE IN PARADISE ALLEY (1978)
Rocky was completed and released in 1976. Shot in 28 days, the $1.1 million production would gross over $225 million worldwide, inspire millions with its story of an “underdog who goes the distance,” spawn five sequels, make a superstar out of its writer/star, and earn ten Academy Award nominations – winning three, including Best Picture.
Though Sylvester was now hot, his next two projects, while critically acclaimed, fizzled at the box office. F.I.S.T., about a Hoffa-like union leader, and Paradise Alley (which Sly wrote and directed) about three brothers involved in the world of wrestling. Knowing what he needed to do, Sylvester quickly began writing Rocky II.
Released in 1979, the first Rocky sequel was more of a rehash, but Sly had his formula down, and made it work – he also directed the film. The film was another critical and commercial smash, earning $200 million worldwide. After two more box office disappointments (Victory and Nighthawks), Sly wrote, directed, and starred in Rocky III. While this installment was a bit more cartoonish, audiences made it one of the biggest hits of 1982.
That same year, Sylvester starred as Vietnam War veteran John Rambo in First Blood. The once-struggling actor now had two signature roles, and during this decade he would make the most of both. Multiple sequels would follow – two in the 80s, Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985) and Rambo III (1988).
During the next decade, most anything that Sly touched that didn’t have Rocky or Rambo in the title, failed dismally. Some of these bombs included: Staying Alive (directing only), Rhinestone, Cobra, Over The Top, Lock Up, Tango & Cash, Oscar, and Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot. Rocky IV (1985) and Rocky V (1990), while certainly more successful than these others, did not do much to help things.
In the early 1990s, a couple of decent action films seemed to bring Sly back into the fray: Cliffhanger and Demolition Man (co-starring Sandra Bullock). Of course, The Specialist and Judge Dredd were waiting to knock him back down again. After making passable fare like Assassins and Daylight, James Mangold’s 1997 effort Cop Land was supposed to reignite Sylvester’s acting career – after all, Sly let himself go and gained 40 pounds for the role. Critics raved, audiences yawned.
ROCKY II (1979)
More lackluster fare followed like Get Carter, Driven, and Avenging Angelo – something needed to be done.
Then, at age 60, Sylvester made one of his slyest moves yet. Inspired by seeing George Foreman come out of retirement and move through the boxing ring like an unstoppable train, Sly wrote, directed, and starred in Rocky Balboa. The sixth film in the franchise, the first since 1990’s dismal Rocky V, the movie was seen as a bad joke before it even opened. And yet ... it worked. Brilliantly. Many critics (including myself) thought it was the series’ best entry since the original. It ended the saga on a much higher and more resonant note than its predecessor, and brought the gross total for the series to over $1.25 billion worldwide.
What else could Sylvester do next, but revisit John Rambo. In 2008’s (simply titled) Rambo, Sly did just that, and the very violent film ultimately grossed over $112 million around the world. Another installment was in preproduction for awhile … till Sly decided he didn't want Rambo to become a mercenary, and pulled the plug.
Sylvester was married to Sasha Czack until 1985 – they have two sons, Sage (an actor) and Seargeoh (diagnosed with autism in 1982). They divorced in 1985. Following this, Stallone was labeled quite the lothario by the tabloids, especially when he married statuesque model Brigitte Nielsen (his costar in Rocky IV and Cobra) and then divorced her in a well-publicized battle 18 months later. In the late '80s, Stallone met 19-year-old model Jennifer Flavin. After dating on and off for years, they married in May of 1997, and have lived in wedded bliss ever since. The Stallone’s have three daughters, Sophia born in 1996, Sistine in 1998, and Scarlet in 2002. All three have the middle name Rose.
SLY AS JOHN RAMBO IN FIRST BLOOD (1982)
Sylvester Stallone Quotes:
“That's what Rocky is all about: pride, reputation, and not being another bum in the neighborhood.”
“I'm not handsome in the classical sense. The eyes droop, the mouth is crooked, the teeth aren't straight, the voice sounds like a Mafioso pallbearer, but somehow it all works.”
“Once in one's life, for one mortal moment, one must make a grab for immortality; if not, one has not lived.”
After completing production on Rocky II (1979): “But there'll never be a Rocky IV. You gotta call a halt.”
“People accept Rocky Balboa as authentic. I can't tell you how many people have come up to me and asked about my boxing career. It's like they really want to believe that Rocky exists. You know, I'm amazed by all of this. At one time I thought people would get over their fascination with the character and move on. Didn't happen. After 30 years, Rocky has taken hold to a degree I never could have imagined.”
“I'm not a genetically superior person. I built my body.”
“I'm a very physical person. People don't credit me with much of a brain, so why should I disillusion them?”
“After I made Cop Land, in which I played a timid, overweight cop, all of Hollywood turned their back. I'm surprised they even gave me this table. I'm like driftwood in here.”
“I really am a manifestation of my own fantasy.”
“I'd say between 3 pm and 8 pm I look great. After that it's all downhill. Don't photograph me in the morning or you're gonna get Walter Brennan.”
Regarding his marriage to Jennifer Flavin: “It's been a fantastic revival of my life. As you know, my first marriage didn't go so well, though I have a relationship with my sons, but this marriage has been a second beginning. I used to think my career was number one, so I was gone nine months out of a year, but I learned the hard way that the most important thing is that you start at home and then comes the career.”
ROCKY III (1982)
“I think the people who have been so supportive and loyal will be happy with the final chapter in Rocky Balboa's life because I think we bring the character to a final and noble conclusion.”
"You wake up one morning and you go, 'What happened? Where did it all go so fast? There are many more things I want to do.' And I figure a lot of people feel the same. A lot of people have so much they want to do, but society says, 'Step back, youth must be served.' I say, 'You're right, youth must be served - after us. Get in line. We're coming back for seconds and thirds, and when we're finished helping ourselves, it's your turn.' Just because people get older doesn't mean they abandon their dream or their ability to want to do something, so Rocky is symbolic of still wanting to participate. Rocky says the last thing to age is the heart, so I wanted to do a film that shows our generation is not on the outside looking in; it's still vital and wants to be part of the parade, not watching the parade. I want to show that life is not over at 50. People say, 'Come on, grow old gracefully.' No, why? I'm not ready. I know people will think Rocky is my story, but it's also my generation's story."
Regarding Rocky Balboa (2006): “I knew I would go through the embarrassment of hearing all the jokes about me. My wife begged me not to do it, and that's why I wrote a line … that I'd rather do something I love badly than to feel bad about not doing something I love.”
“Living in a house where you are the only man is a little like being the only guy left at The Alamo. They just rule. Even our dogs are female. So there is no chance.”
“I'm often asked whether Rocky is an extension of myself. But the truth is I wish I could be as noble as Rocky. He never says a bad word about anyone, and he never complains. He's lost 24 times, his record is 54 and 24, he's lost a lot but he's philosophical and knows there will be another day. I'm not that. I wish I were.”
"Rocky gives out such a good vibe, while Rambo's the Prince of Darkness. The new Rambo is not a feelgood movie. Every actor would like to say that they're Daniel Day-Lewis and that they have this incredible palette, but quite often you're known for certain things. I accepted that. So I said to myself, "Boy, if I could end my career on something, I'd like to finish up the loose ends on Rambo, because the last one in Afghanistan didn't work."
THE EXPENDABLES (2010)
Regarding The Expendables (2010): “I guess it's kinda like The Dirty Dozen, or one of those films that comes along every once in a while, like The Magnificent Seven, to try to take that old formula and move it into a modern era. We accomplished it. I'm very, very happy with the film.”
On Arnold Schwarzenegger: “He's my best friend now. It's strange, given what big rivals we used to be. He's still ridiculously competitive, though. See this watch? This is the only one of its kind in the world, so I wore it to our last lunch. Arnold was desperate for me to get him one but I had to explain that wasn't possible. He was so mad!”
On filming his scene in The Expendables with pals Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger: “Bruce's character, who hires me to do the job the film's based on, turns to me and says, 'Look, there's one person I need to talk with before I give you the job.' At which point Arnold, who plays my oldest rival, walks out. And it's clear we have a lot of history there. So I tell him I should have shot him a long time ago when I had the chance. And the scene goes from there. But man, those guys were up for it. They got out of bed at 5.30am just to shoot a small five-minute scene.”
On working with Richard Gere on The Lord's of Flatbush (1974): “Gere would strut around in his oversized motorcycle jacket like he was the baddest knight at the round table. (Having lunch in a Toyota) I was eating a hot dog and he climbs in with a half a chicken covered in mustard with grease nearly dripping out of the aluminum wrapper. I said, 'That thing is going to drip all over the place.' He said, 'Don't worry about it.' I said, 'If it gets on my pants you're gonna know about it.' He proceeds to bite into the chicken and a small, greasy river of mustard lands on my thigh. I elbowed him in the side of the head and basically pushed him out of the car. The director had to make a choice: one of us had to go, one of us had to stay. Richard was given his walking papers, and to this day, seriously dislikes me. He even thinks I'm the individual responsible for the gerbil rumor. Not true, but that's the rumor.”
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