Sylvester Stallone:
Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone born July 6, 1946) is an American actor and filmmaker. After his beginnings as a struggling actor for a number of years upon arriving to New York City in 1969 and later Hollywood in 1974, he won his first critical acclaim as an actor for his co-starring role as Stanley Rosiello in The Lords of Flatbush. Stallone subsequently found gradual work as an extra or side character in films with a sizable budget until he achieved his greatest critical and commercial success as an actor and screenwriter, starting in 1976 with his role as boxer Rocky Balboa, in the first film of the successful Rocky series (1976–present), for which he also wrote the screenplays. In the films, Rocky is portrayed as an underdog boxer who fights numerous brutal opponents, and wins the world heavyweight championship twice.Early life:
Sylvester Stallone was born in the Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City on July 6, 1946, the elder son of Francesco “Frank” Stallone Sr., a hairdresser and beautician, and Jacqueline “Jackie” Stallone (née Labofish; 1921–2020), an astrologer, dancer, and promoter of women’s wrestling. His Italian father was born in Gioia del Colle, Apulia, Italy and moved to the U.S. in the 1930s, while his American mother is of French (Breton) and Ashkenazi Jewish descent. His younger brother is actor and musician Frank Stallone. Many biographies of Stallone indicate that his birth name is Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone. However, Stallone’s mother explained in an interview that she originally named him Tyrone because she admired the actor Tyrone Power, but Stallone’s father changed it to Sylvester. His nickname as a child was “Binky”, but after schoolmates began calling him “Stinky”, Stallone chose to go by the nickname of Mike/Michael.RELATED:
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Film And Stage Career:
Until 1969, he appeared on the stage under the name Mike Stallone; in 1970, he started using the stage name Sylvester E. Stallone. While attending the University of Miami, Stallone had a role in the drama That Nice Boy (aka The Square Root), filmed in 1968. Stallone had his first starring role in the softcore pornography feature film The Party at Kitty and Stud’s (1970). He was paid US$200 for two days’ work. Stallone later explained that he had done the film out of desperation after being evicted from his apartment and finding himself homeless for several days. He has also said that he slept three weeks in the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City prior to seeing a casting notice for the film. In the actor’s words, “it was either do that movie or rob someone, because I was at the end – the very end – of my rope”.RELATED:
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Personal life:
Marriages and children:
Stallone has been married three times. He has two sons from his first marriage and three daughters from his third marriage. At age 28, on December 28, 1974, he married Sasha Czack. They had two sons, Sage Moonblood Stallone (1976–2012), who died of heart disease at age 36, and Seargeoh (born 1979), who was diagnosed with autism at an early age. The couple divorced on February 14, 1985. Stallone married model and actress Brigitte Nielsen on December 15, 1985, in Beverly Hills, California. Their marriage (which lasted two years) and their subsequent divorce were highly publicized by the tabloid press. In 1988 Stallone met model Jennifer Flavin and they were in a relationship until 1994, when Stallone told her he was having a child with model Janice Dickinson.Family and friends:
Stallone maintains a relationship with his brother Frank who contributed the theme songs to Rambo: First Blood Part II, and Staying Alive. In 1983, Frank’s song “Far from Over”, for Staying Alive, reached the #10 U.S. hit. Frank appears in minor roles, bit parts, and provides music in many films starring Sylvester, most notably in the Rocky films, where Frank played a street corner singer and contributed songs. Stallone’s 48-year-old half-sister, Toni Ann Filiti, died of lung cancer on August 26, 2012. She died at their mother’s Santa Monica home after choosing to leave UCLA’s hospital. He was a close friend of Joe Spinell. They had a falling out during the shooting of their final collaboration Nighthawks (1982).Injuries:
Known for physically demanding roles and his willingness to do the majority of his own stunts, Stallone has suffered various injuries during his acting career. During the filming of Escape to Victory, he broke a finger trying to save a penalty kick from Pelé. For a scene in Rocky IV, he told Dolph Lundgren, “Punch me as hard as you can in the chest.” He later said, “Next thing I know, I was in intensive care at St. John’s Hospital for four days. While filming a fight scene with Steve Austin for The Expendables, he broke his neck, which required the insertion of a metal plate.RELATED:
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Filmography:
1969 The Square Root
1969 Downhill Racer
1970 M*A*S*H
1970 The Party at Kitty and Stud’s
1970 Lovers and Other Strangers
1970 The Sidelong Glances of a Pigeon Kicker
1971 Bananas
1971 Klute
1972 What’s Up, Doc?
1973 No Place to Hide
1974 The Lords of Flatbush
1975 The Prisoner of Second Avenue
1976 Rocky choreographer
1978 F.I.S.T.
1978 Paradise Alley
1979 Rocky II choreographer
1981 Nighthawks
1981 Escape to Victory
1982 Rocky III
1982 First Blood
1985 Rambo: First Blood Part II
1985 Rocky IV
1986 Cobra
1987 Over the Top
1988 Rambo III
1989 Lock Up
1989 Tango & Cash
1990 Rocky V
1991 Oscar
1993 Cliffhanger
1993 Demolition Man
1994 The Specialist
1995 Judge Dredd Judge Joseph Dredd
1995 Assassins Robert Rath / Joseph Rath
1996 Daylight Chief Kit Latura
1997 Men in Black
1997 Cop Land
2006 Rocky Balboa boxing choreographer
2008 Rambo John
2009 Kambakkht Ishq
2010 The Expendables
2011 Zookeeper
2012 The Expendables 2
2012 Bullet to the Head
2013 Escape Plan
2013 Homefront
2013 Grudge Match
2014 The Expendables 3
2014 Reach Me
2015 Creed
2016 Ratchet & Clank
2017 Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
2017 Animal Crackers
2018 Escape Plan 2: Hades
2018 Creed II
2018 Backtrace
2019 Escape Plan:
2019 Rallying Cry
2019 Rambo: Last Blood
2019 One Night: Joshua vs. Ruiz
2021 The Suicide Squad
2021 The Making of ‘Rocky vs. Drago’
2022 Samaritan
2022 MVP
2023 Creed III
2023 Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
2023 The Expendables 4.