Jan 5, 2019 3 min read

Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone was born in 1946, in the aptly named “Hell’s Kitchen” section of New York City, where as a teenager he was in constant trouble, having been kicked out of several schools. But he managed to graduate from high school in Philadelphia and attended the University of Miami, where he studied drama, dreaming of becoming an actor. That dream took him back to New York, and then to Hollywood, where he and his first wife lived in a rundown apartment. Desperate and broke, and living in the streets after being evicted from his apartment, Stallone’s first starring role was in a soft porn film, for which he was paid $200.

Although Stallone denies it, the idea for his biggest hit, “Rocky,” probably came from watching the Muhammed Ali-Chuck Wepner fight in 1975, in which Wepner, a huge underdog, went 15 rounds with Ali. (Stallone later settled a suit out of court with Wepner, paying him an undisclosed sum.) After that fight, Stallone spent three days writing a script about a similar underdog fighter, Rocky Balboa, who is plucked out of obscurity to fight the world heavyweight champion, Apollo Creed. Like Wepner, Rocky went 15 rounds with Creed, after undergoing an intense training regimen that included raw eggs for breakfast and daily runs through the streets of Philadelphia. In the movie’s most famous scene, Rocky runs up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and as the “Rocky” theme song plays, he faces the city waving his arms in triumph. (A statute of Rocky with his gloved hands raised was later placed near the museum.)

Stallone shopped the script around, until two Hollywood producers, Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff, expressed interest in the story – but not in Stallone playing the lead role. Stallone insisted and, after intense negotiations, won out.

The movie, which co-stars Burgess Meredith as his trainer, Mickey Goldmill, and Talia Shire as his love interest, Adrian, was nominated for 10 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Original Screenplay, Best Director and Best Film Editing. It won for Best Picture, Director and Film Editing.

It also resulted in five sequels, including in 2006, “Rocky Balboa,” in which the aging “Italian Stallion” again fights the world heavyweight champ, losing in a split decision but again winning the hearts of his thousands of blue-collar fans in the stadium and in every bar in the city of Philadelphia.

Production for “Rocky” began this week (Jan. 9) in 1976, and the story goes that as he was leaving his dressing room to film the first scene, a stagehand told him, “Mr. Stallone, the set is that way.”

“Call me Rocky,” Stallone replied.

Bruce G. Kauffmann’s email address is bruce@historylessons.net.