Category: 2020

LeRoy Neiman’s Rarely Seen “Rocky” Movie Art!

Craig / / 2020, Celebs, Rocky II, Rocky III, Rocky IV, Sly Fan

Mike Kunda is a super Rocky fan, the #1 Rocky impersonator in the world and the owner of the Yo Philly! Rocky Film Tour.  Recently Mike posted several seldom seen LeRoy Neiman sketches from behind the scenes filming of Rocky movies.  They were too good not to share.

LeRoy Neiman is considered the most famous sports artist in the world.  His painting of Rocky used in Rocky III is without a doubt his most famous Rocky art, but it isn’t the only Rocky art Neiman created.  In addition, to finished paintings, Neiman created preliminary sketches like the ones above of Drago slugging Rocky and Rocky in a defensive stance.

I love this sketch that Neiman labeled, Face Hit Two, Rocky II, c. 1980.  It was created using felt pen, acrylic, ink and pencil.

Neiman titled this Round XV, Rocky IV created in Vancouver, BC. May 1, 1985.

As you can see above, even the movie call sheet was material for a quick sketch of Carl Weathers as Apollo Creed!

LeRoy Neiman was always a dashing figure (and seldom seen without a cigar).  Here he is seen creating more prelim sketches for Rocky IV art.

The photo above was turned into a Neiman Rocky IV painting that is rarely seen!

I love the amount of details that appear in this loose LeRoy Neiman prelim that he labeled: Sylvester Stallone in Rocky IV, May 1, 1985.  felt, pen and acrylic on paper. 20 1/4 x 26 in.  51.4 x 66 cm.

Above is a Neiman sketch he titled, Sly, Rocky II, March 13, 1990.

Thanks again to Mike Kunda for sharing these finds. If you’d like to see more of LeRoy Neiman’s amazing artwork, please check out his official site.

“Stallone: Frank, That Is” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

Craig / / 2020, Family, Frank Stallone

The poster and trailer for Stallone: Frank, That Is, is here.  I’m looking forward to seeing this one.  My guess, is you are as well.

The official trailer for Stallone: Frank, That Is.

An inside look into the fascinating life, career and survival of the most unknown famous entertainer in Hollywood

Frank Stallone has seen it all. Frank Stallone has done it all. But, who is Frank Stallone?

You know the name, now discover the Grammy and Golden Globe nominated singer, songwriter, musician and actor who has been entertaining audiences for over fifty years, all the while living in a giant shadow.

Often regarded as “Rocky’s brother” and long living in Sylvester Stallone’s giant shadow, Frank Stallone has spent more than 50 years carving out a career as a multi-faceted entertainer.

Jack Carter / John Wick by John Beatty!

Craig / / 2020, Craig's Sly Art, Get Carter

How cool is this Jack Carter / John Wick piece that my buddy, John Beatty drew for me?

John has created several Stallone pieces for me over the years, but this one is perhaps the most creative.  Using the Jack of Spades… with each J standing for Jack (Carter) and John (Wick)… the spades suit symbolizing death… the Carter and Wick figures mirror images of the other.  The drawing can work from any position – Carter or Wick on top or viewed from the horizontal angle that I’ve used (and prefer).  I also have to give John Beatty props for the research he did to make sure both Carter and Wick have their preferred guns.

You can see a bigger version of the art by clicking on the image above.  You can also find John at his Twitter, his website or even his Facebook page.

Stallone & Schwarzenegger in “Modern Times” DeepFake Classic!

Craig / / 2020, Celebs

This is one of the best (and most inspired) DeepFake videos yet.  Hats off to Brian Monarch.

Thanks to StalloneZoner, Steve Reeves for the heads-up!

For more deepfake videos, please follow on insta at BrianMonarch 🙂

They did make a movie before The Expendables and Escape Plan! Haha… Check out Arnold and Sly in this classic scene from Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times!

This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published in the United States between 1925 and 1977, inclusive, without a copyright notice.

Fig Leaf Rag – distressed by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/…

Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-…

Artist: http://incompetech.com/

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week

Craig / / 2020, Celebs, Creed, Creed II, D-Tox, Eye See You, Family, Fan Art, Jennifer Flavin-Stallone, Judge Dredd, Paradise Alley, Rambo, Rocky, Rocky Balboa, Rocky II, Rocky III, Rocky IV, Rocky V, Samaritan, Sly Fan

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week:

Ranking & Thoughts on All 8 “Rocky” Movies!

Craig / / 2020, Creed, Creed II, Rocky, Rocky Balboa, Rocky II, Rocky III, Rocky IV, Rocky V

Evan Saathoff at /Film ranked all of the Rocky/Creed movies in his post Butkus to Punchy: Ranking All 8 ‘Rocky’ Movies from Worst to Best.  Here is a comparison of his order with my rankings and thoughts about each.

Saathoff

Zablo

8. Rocky IV: “…is silly fun, a skeleton of a film held together through a series of montages. Candy is cool, but you shouldn’t make a meal of it.”

8. Rocky V: I totally agree that binging Rocky back to the street level was a good idea.  Fans hated Rocky has to lose everything to get him there, so it was a tough needle to thread.  I also think that Sly’s Rocky mannerisms go to over the top in spots. 

7. Rocky V: “…Bringing Rocky back to the street level is a good decision, though much of the film feels like a superfluous dry run for both Rocky Balboa and Creed (if you love those films, Rocky V is kind of a necessary beast).”

7. Rocky IV:  is very much a product of the 80s with the music and montages.  I’ve grown to appreciate Rocky IV even more because it sets up the return of Drago in Creed II and we get to see the results of Rocky’s win in IV from Drago’s perspective. 

6. Creed II: “ …the film runs through a mild remake of Rocky II and leads to a good training montage.”

 6. Rocky II:  Rocky II is a worthy follow-up to Rocky.  Sly in the director’s chair!

5. Rocky II: “…Rocky II is special for other reasons. It’s the last bit of “human” Rocky Balboa we’ll see for a while.  “

5. Creed II:  Some fans were upset that an altercation between Rocky and Drago that was filmed didn’t make the final cut of the movie.  I may be in the minority, but I don’t think the scene was needed.

4. Rocky III: “…He’s transformed from a street-level thug to full-on Stallone megastardom. He’s still Rocky, but you have to use your imagination.
That would be fatal if not for Mr. T’s incredible Clubber Lang, the most underrated character in the series.”

4. Creed:  Saathoff’s summary of Creed is perfectly stated.  I couldn’t agree more.

3. Rocky Balboa: “…In 2006, the idea of making an old man Rocky movie was a joke. Yet here comes Stallone, visibly aged and hurting from a long string of flops, delivering the second best film to wear the Rocky title.”

3. Rocky Balboa  Never under-estimate or doubt Sly Sallone.  Despite all odds, Sly brought back Rocky and showed that there was more to his story!

2. Creed: “…the greatest thing happened: a creative handoff to a young and hungry talent capable of seeing the character through new eyes. Ryan Coogler managed the impossible with 2015’s Creed, which simultaneously started a new franchise while offering a deeply respectful seventh entry to Stallone’s. Creed is very much a sequel to Rocky Balboa and yet yields Balboa to a main character who seems his opposite: cocky, smart and brash.”

 2. Rocky III   Rocky is transformed from a street-level, journeyman fighter into a world champion celebrity and I loved it!

1. Rocky: “…No number of decades or sequels can dull the feeling of triumph Rocky delivers in its final moments. It’s one of those rare films that make you cry because you’re happy rather than upset.“

1. Rocky  I’m simply going to go with Saathoff’s quote:  “No number of decades or sequels can dull the feeling of triumph Rocky delivers.”