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Sylvester Stallone |
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Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone (born July 6, 1946 in New York City), usually known as Sylvester Stallone, is an American film actor, director, producer, and screenwriter. He achieved his greatest successes in a number of action films, notably the Rambo and Rocky series.
As a child, Stallone was nick-named "Binky." When kids began to substitute, for this, "Stinky," Sly decided to name himself "Mike." In fact, in some of his earlier work, he is credited as "Michael Stallone." Sylvester studied drama at the University of Miami, after which he returned to New York and appeared in a few small Off-Broadway plays.
Stallone's first film roles were very small. He had a brief appearance in the Jack Lemmon vehicle The Prisoner Of Second Avenue (1974). He had a starring role in the cult hit The Lords Of Flatbush (1974). In 1975 he was featured in Farewell My Lovely and Capone. Stallone also appeared in guest shots on the popular television series Police Story and Kojak. He didn't gain wide fame until his starring role in Rocky (1976), a film that he wrote in only three days and sold with the rider that he would play the lead. This was a box office success, and went on to win the Academy Award for best picture. Stallone had been a lifelong boxing fan and was inspired to write the film after he watched a third-rate fighter from New Jersey named Chuck Wepner challenge Muhammad Ali for the title in 1975. Wepner was known as the "Bayonne Bleeder" and wasn't given any chance; however, he gave Ali one of his toughest fights. He knocked the champion down and gave Ali a terrible beating. In the 15th round, he was ahead on all scorecards. Ali saved his title by knocking the challenger out with 19 seconds remaining in the fight. Wepner was 19 seconds away from pulling off what might have been regarded as the greatest upset in the history of boxing.
Stallone had two Academy Award nominations for Rocky. However, his attempts to expand his range floundered and he was forced to return to the Rocky franchise a number of times (1979, 1982, 1985, and 1990) to pay for the flops. This link with boxing extended to hosting reality TV show The Contender. He tried his hand at directing as well as writing with Rocky II, III and IV, and directed and co-wrote several other films, such as Tango and Cash and the sequel to Saturday Night Fever, Staying Alive. His other early successes were as John Rambo in First Blood, released in (1982), and its sequels. He also appeared in the 1986 movie, Cobra, and the 1987 arm wrestling movie Over the Top. Stallone was recently awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the USA Academy of Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Films.
In the 1990s, Stallone had further box-office wins with a number of action movies, including Cliffhanger (1993, for which he co-wrote the screenplay), Demolition Man (1993) and Judge Dredd (1995). He still sought to expand his appeal with the low-budget Cop Land (1997) and a voice role in Antz (1998), but his $15 million-plus paychecks are still only offered for more lively action roles. He played the villain in the 2003 movie Spy Kids 3-D.
In 1991, Stallone worked with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Demi Moore, Keith Barish and Robert Earl to cofound Planet Hollywood, a worldwide chain of Hollywood-themed restaurants filled with memorabilia and merchandise. Stallone later sued Kenneth Starr (no relation to the independent counsel to the Whitewater investigation), his one-time business manager, for advising him to hold his shares in the restaurant chain, despite its falling value and eventual bankruptcy.
His trademark sneer, lazy eyes, and slurred speech are the result of paralysis in the left side of his face caused by birth complications.
He has been married three times, to Sasha Czack, Brigitte Nielsen, and Jennifer Flavin. He has five children, Sage Moonblood and Seargeoh (with Czack), and Sophia Rose, Sistine Rose, and Scarlet Rose (with Flavin). His younger brother is singer and actor Frank Stallone.
Filmography
- The Party at Kitty and Stud's (1970)
- Lovers and Other Strangers (1970)
- Bananas (1971)
- Klute (1971)
- The Lords of Flatbush (1974) (also writer)
- No Place to Hide (1975)
- The Prisoner of Second Avenue (1975)
- Capone (1975)
- Death Race 2000 (1975)
- Farewell, My Lovely (1975)
- Cannonball (1976)
- Rocky (1976) (also writer)
- F.I.S.T. (1978) (also writer)
- Paradise Alley (1978) (also director and writer)
- Rocky II (1979) (also director and writer)
- Nighthawks (1981)
- Victory (1981)
- Rocky III (1982) (also director and writer)
- First Blood (1982) (also writer)
- Staying Alive (1983) (Cameo) (also director, producer, and writer)
- Rhinestone (1984) (also writer)
- Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985) (also writer)
- Rocky IV (1985) (also director and writer)
- Cobra (1986) (also writer)
- Over the Top (1987) (also writer)
- Rambo III (1988) (also writer)
- Lock Up (1989)
- Tango & Cash (1989)
- Rocky V (1990) (also writer)
- Oscar (1991)
- Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot! (1992)
- Cliffhanger (1993) (also writer)
- Demolition Man (1993)
- A Century of Cinema (1994) (documentary)
- The Specialist (1994)
- Your Studio and You (1995) (short subject)
- Judge Dredd (1995)
- Assassins (1995)
- Daylight (1996)
- The Good Life (1997)
- Cop Land (1997)
- An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn (1997) (Cameo)
- Antz (1998) (voice)
- Junket Whore (1998) (documentary)
- Get Carter (2000)
- Driven (2001) (also writer)
- D-Tox (2002)
- Avenging Angelo (2002)
- Taxi 3 (2003) (Cameo)
- Shade (2003)
- Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003)
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