Sylvester Stallone

Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone (born July 6, 1946, in New York City) is an American film actor, director, producer, and screenwriter. He is often referred to by his nickname, "Sly," His middle name is sometimes cited as "Enzio," though in A&E's biography of the actor, "The Rocky Road to the Top," his mother states his middle name as "Gardenzio." He achieved his greatest successes in a number of action films, notably the Rocky and Rambo series.

Personal life

His trademark sneer, lazy eyes, and slurred speech are the result of paralysis in the left side of his face caused by birth complications.

Stallone's family include his brother, former chart-topping singer Frank Stallone, his mother Jackie, who achieved fame in the middle 1990s as an astrologer and his son, Sage Stallone, who played Rocky's son in 1990's Rocky V and appeared in his 1996 movie, Daylight.

He has been married three times, to Sasha Czack (1974–1985), Brigitte Nielsen (1985–1987), and Jennifer Flavin (1997–present). He has five children, sons Sage Moonblood and Seargeoh, who has autism (with Czack, born 1976 and 1979 respectively), and daughters Sophia Rose, Sistine Rose, and Scarlet Rose (with Flavin, born 1996, 1998, 2002 respectively).

In addition to his marriages, he has had romantic relationships with models Susan Anton, Angie Everhart, Pamela Anderson, Naomi Campbell and Janice Dickinson, who once believed that Stallone was the father of her daughter Savannah. ^*

Career

Stallone was born to Frank Stallone Sr. (a beautician who was an immigrant from Castellammare del Golfo, Sicily) and Jacqueline "Jackie" Labofish, an American astrologer. In the 1960s, Stallone attended the University of Miami for three years. He came within a few credit hours of graduation, before he decided to drop out and pursue an acting career. Stallone's career began with an appearance in a soft-core pornographic film called Party at Kitty and Stud's. The film was originally hard core and depicted sexual acts, but the repackaging was censored to have scenes end just before any hard core action would take place. After Stallone's later success the film was re-packaged as The Italian Stallion.

Stallone's first few film roles were very small. He had brief uncredited appearances in Woody Allen's Bananas (1971) as a subway thug, in the psychological thriller Klute (1971) as an extra dancing in a club, and in the Jack Lemmon vehicle The Prisoner of Second Avenue (1974) as a youth. He had a starring role in the cult hit The Lords of Flatbush (1974). In 1975, he appeared in supporting roles in Farewell, My Lovely, Capone, and another cult hit Death Race 2000. Stallone also appeared in guest shots on the popular television series Police Story and Kojak.

Stallone did not gain wide fame until his starring role in the smash hit Rocky (1976), awarded the Academy Award for Best Picture. On March 24 1975, Stallone saw the Ali-Chuck Wepner fight which inspired the foundation idea of Rocky. That night, Stallone went home, painted his windows black (so he couldn't tell if it was night or day) and in three days he had written the script for Rocky. After that, he tried to sell the script with the intention of playing the lead role. Once he got to Robert Chartoff and Irwin Winkler, they liked the script and had planned on starring someone like Burt Reynolds or James Caan. Stallone was offered money in the hundreds of thousands but wouldn't accept, he wanted to play the role (at the time, Stallone was virtually unknown in the acting world). Doubtfully, they accepted. Rocky was nominated for ten Academy Awards in all, including two for Stallone himself, for Best Actor and for Best Original Screenplay. In addition to winning Best Picture, Rocky won for Best Director and Best Film Editing.

Rocky cost about US$1.1 million to make, and grossed about US$225 million worldwide. The movie has made the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art a Philadelphia tourist attraction.

Stallone had tried his hand at other genres of film but some were bashed by critics. Along with starring, Stallone directed Rocky II, III, and IV. With the monetary success of the Rocky films, Stallone gave professional wrestler Hulk Hogan his first mainstream exposure, as the character Thunderlips in 1982's Rocky III, two years before Hogan hit it big as the champion of the World Wrestling Federation. Stallone ended up inducting Hogan into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005.

Stallone has never recaptured the critical acclaim he won initially with Rocky, when Roger Ebert said he could become the next Marlon Brando. He has been nominated a record 30 times for a Razzie Award as Worst Actor, winning 10 times, and received a special "Worst Actor of the Century" award in 2000. Stallone did receive plaudits for his role in Cop Land in which he starred alongside Robert De Niro and Ray Liotta, but the film was only a minor success at the box office.

Stallone has also co-written several other films, such as Tango and Cash, and directed others, such as the sequel to Saturday Night Fever, Staying Alive. His other early successes were as John Rambo in First Blood (1982) and its sequels, First Blood Part II, and Rambo III. His last major success as a co-writer came with 1993's Cliffhanger.

After Demolition Man, Jesse Ventura said on television that "He's big and rugged. You can slam 'im around, he's not gonna run cryin' to the producer."

Rocky Balboa (Rocky VI) is currently in production, and is scheduled to be released on December 22 2006.

Rambo IV is currently in pre-production, due to be released in 2007.

Trivia

Not all of the films in which he's appeared are in the English language. He made a cameo appearance in the French film Taxi 3 where he spoke what appeared to be fluent French.
He was born on the same day as President George W. Bush.
Stallone was paid a mere $60,000 to do Cop Land (1997). It is said that he did the film to play a serious role and escape his action hero typecast.
Oil paints in his spare time and considers Leonardo Da Vinci his personal hero.
Part owns Planet Hollywood restaurants with Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
He learned boxing before filming Rocky.
Stallone was pied at the opening of one of his Planet Hollywood restaurants in Montreal.
At 15, his classmates voted him the one "most likely to end up in the electric chair."
Was the initial choice for the role of Axel Foley in 1984's Beverly Hills Cop. After changes were made to the script, the part went to Eddie Murphy.
Listed as one of the top heroes of all time by American Film Institute (AFI) on 2003, he listed seventh as Rocky Balboa behind Gregory Peck (Atticus Finch), Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones), Sean Connery (James Bond), Humphrey Bogart (Rick Blaine), Gary Cooper (Will Kane) and Jodie Foster (Clarice Starling).
On the opening of his first film as director, Paradise Alley: "You could hunt deer in that theatre."
Supports the United States Republican Party.
Stallone's height is 5'9" (1.75m).
Is one of the first few actors to be involved in a video game based on one of his movies. (A similar direction was taken for Enter the Matrix.)
Is a massive fan of the works of Edgar Allan Poe.
In the South Park episode "Wing", Stallone's speech was portrayed as so slurred that he required a translator to communicate, but he was otherwise portrayed in a positive light in this episode.
He is the CEO and "Guinea Pig" of his nutritional supplement company called Instone Nutrition.

Filmography

Rambo IV (2007)
Rocky Balboa (2006)
Game Over (2003)
Shade (2003)
Taxi 3 (2003) (cameo)
Avenging Angelo (2002)
D-Tox (2002) (released on DVD as Eye See You )
Driven (2001) (also writer)
Get Carter (2000)
Antz (1998) (voice)
Junket Whore (1998) (documentary)
The Good Life (1997)
Cop Land (1997)
Burn Hollywood Burn (1997) (cameo)
Daylight (1996)
Your Studio and You (1995) (short subject)
Judge Dredd (1995)
Assassins (1995)
A Century of Cinema (1994) (documentary)
The Specialist (1994)
Cliffhanger (1993) (also writer)
Demolition Man (1993)
Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot! (1992)
Oscar (1991)
Rocky V (1990) (also writer)
Lock Up (1989)
Tango & Cash (1989)
Rambo III (1988) (also writer)
Over the Top (1987) (also writer)
Cobra (1986) (also writer)
First Blood Part II (1985) (also writer)
Rocky IV (1985) (also director and writer)
Rhinestone (1984) (also writer)
Staying Alive (1983) (cameo; also director, producer, and writer)
Rocky III (1982) (also director and writer)
First Blood (1982) (also writer)
Nighthawks (1981)
Escape to Victory (1981)
Rocky II (1979) (also director and writer)
F.I.S.T. (1978) (also writer)
Paradise Alley (1978) (also director and writer)
Cannonball (1976)
Rocky (1976) (also writer)
No Place to Hide (1975)
The Prisoner of Second Avenue (1975)
Capone (1975)
Death Race 2000 (1975)
Farewell, My Lovely (1975)
The Lords of Flatbush (1974) (also writer)
Bananas (1971)
Klute (1971)
Lovers and Other Strangers (1970)
Party at Kitty and Stud's (1970) (re-released as The Italian Stallion)

Salary

Avenging Angelo (2002) - $20,000,000
D-Tox (2002) - $20,000,000
Driven (2001) - $20,000,000
Get Carter (2000) - $20,000,000
Cop Land (1997) - $60,000
Daylight (1996) - $20,000,000
Assassins (1995) - $20,000,000
Judge Dredd (1995) - $20,000,000
The Specialist (1994) - $15,000,000
Demolition Man (1993) - $15,000,000
Cliffhanger (1993) - $15,000,000
Oscar (1991) - $15,000,000
Rocky V (1990) - $15,000,000
Tango & Cash (1989) - $15,000,000
Lock Up (1989) - $15,000,000
Rambo III (1988) - $15,000,000
Over the Top (1987) - $12,000,000
Rocky IV (1985) - $15,000,000
Staying Alive (1983) - $10,000,000
First Blood (1982) - $3,500,000
Rocky III (1982) - $10,000,000
Rocky (1976) - $23,000
Death Race 2000 (1975) - $1,000/week
Party at Kitty and Stud's (1970) - $200