Over the years I’ve picked up quite a few cool Stallone-related items for my personal collection. When I graduated college my wife bought me the LeRoy Neiman “Rocky” print. I have a personalized autographed picture from Sly. I have the rare Franklin Mint Rocky statue. I have original art from some of my favorite artists doing their take on Sly. Over the Christmas holiday I received a new addition to my collection that I’m still in awe of. It’s my A. Thomas Schomberg “Rocky” replica statue!
As most SZoners know, Mr. Schomberg was the artist who created the original Rocky statue that was used in “Rocky III.” Sly personally chose Mr. Schomberg after seeing [and purchasing] some of his work. Over the years Mr. Schomberg had been approached about releasing a Rocky collector statue, but the deals were never quite right. Mr. Schomberg wanted to insure two things: 1] That the statues were quality pieces and 2] There would be a version affordable by all fans! This past year everything came together… the 30th anniversary of “Rocky”… Sly writing, directing and starring in the final chapter of “Rocky Balboa” and MGM teaming with Sly and Mr. Schomberg to release three versions of the Rocky statues… all of them quality pieces and one for every price range!
I couldn’t wait for mine to arrive. I was worried that it might get damaged in transit [but more importantly, I justed want to HAVE it!]. As you can see from the packaging, I shouldn’t have worried. It was securely packed, boxed, bagged and surrounded by styrofoam. It arrived in pristine condition.
And what a thing of beauty! The photos here [and on Mr. Schomberg’s website] really can’t do the statue justice. Perhaps it’s because the statue is so well done and the photo can’t truly capture the little details that the 3-dimensional sculpture has. Or maybe it’s the fact that the statue symbolizes everything that we admire in Rocky Balboa. Either way, I know that it brings a smile to my face every time I look at it and it will be the cornerstone of my collection for a long time to come.
Several SZoners said that they were planing to get a statue. If you did, please feel free to send me a photo and I’ll post it on the site. It’ll be interesting to see just how many places and how far Rocky has traveled around the world! And if you haven’t got yours yet, you still can. Just click HERE and tell ’em the SZ sent ya! – Craig