Sly & Will I Am

Craig / / 2010, Celebs

Singer will.i.am, left, gestures to actor Sylvester Stallone during the second half the Los Angeles Lakers NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2010, in Los Angeles. The Heat won 96-80.

(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Sly @ Lakers Game

Craig / / 2010

Actor Sylvester Stallone attends the NBA basketball game between Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center in Los Angeles December 25, 2010.

REUTERS/Danny Moloshok (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL ENTERTAINMENT)

The Last Action Heroes, First Again

Craig / / 2010, Expendables

The photo above appears in the year-end double issue of Entertainment Weekly [Dec. 24/31, 2010] which takes a look at the Best & Worst of 2010.  The photo appears with a piece titled The Last Action Heroes, First Again.  Ah, but 2010 was a great year for Stallone fans. – Craig

Dustin Harbin’s Jack Carter

Craig / / 2010, Craig's Sly Art, Get Carter

This week we have Dustin Harbin‘s look at Jack Carter.  Dustin is a freelance illustrator working out of Charlotte, NC.  I’ve known Dustin for years through his outstanding work with Heroes Con.  It was only recently that I discovered Dustin’s talent for cartooning.

Well, you just know I had to see Dustin’s riff on Sly.  I hope you dig it as much as me.  Dustin will be back soon with his take on Sly as Freddy from “Cop Land.” Until then check out Dustin’s blog and give him some love.

Sly Parties with Arnold

Craig / / 2010, Celebs, Fan Art

On December 19, 2010, The Sacramento Bee reported that…

…With two weeks to go until the curtain officially closes on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s time in office, hundreds of the governor’s staff members and supporters gathered Thursday night for a star-studded ‘wrap party,,,”
… that included appearances by Sylvester Stallone, Vanessa Williams, Danny DeVito, Tom Arnold, Jay Leno and others.  You can read the full report here.

Rocky, Rocky II, Rocky Balboa: Best of the Best

Craig / / 2010, Honors, Rocky, Rocky 2, Rocky Balboa

On December 17, 2010, Newsday posted a piece titled Actors, Fighters Weigh-in on Boxing Flicks.  As you can imagine the Rocky movies were selected as top choices several times.  Here’s what was said:

  • Frank Vincent, played Salvy, opposite Robert De Niro in “Raging Bull.”  He’s appeared in numerous other films, including “Goodfellas” and “Casino.”
    1.     Although it was a fantasy,  I have to go with “Rocky 1”, for the inspirational message.
  • Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, former WBA light heavyweight champion, played Billy Fox opposite Robert De Niro in “Raging Bull.”
    3.     “Rocky.” “The entire Rocky series was great for boxing. Even if it wasn’t real, it was an opportunity for Sly to come in and make those movies. It gave boxing a boost.”
  • A.J. Benza, played L.C. opposite Sylvester Stallone in “Rocky Balboa.”
    1.     “Although “Raging Bull” is a better film, with incredible acting and all the sacrifices Robert De Niro made to literally become Jake LaMotta, and having the great Martin Scorsese at the helm, I still have to say the greatest boxing movie of all-time is “Rocky.” Here we are 34 years later and I still drop the remote and stop whatever I’m doing whenever it’s on TV. That song is in everybody’s heart. That fight is a fight we will all face one day in our lives. Sylvester Stallone did it. Game over. Who doesn’t get the chills when they hear the trumpets?”
    3. “Rocky Balboa.” Mainly because I’m in it. But I remember being on the set, on the last day, and watching Stallone run the steps for the last time. And when he was done and it was a wrap, no one wanted to leave. Stallone just sat on the steps. And I remember telling him, “You been making us cry for over 30 years. Who does that outside of our own families?”
  • Jeff Waxman, co-producer, “The Fighter”
    1    . “Rocky”
    2    . “Rocky II”
    “I loved all those movies,” said Waxman. “I loved them not just for the boxing, but for the story. With Riocky, it was about going the distance, in this movie (“The Fighter”), Micky Ward had to go the distance, he had to win and he did.”
  • Steve Farhood, boxing analyst for Showtime:
    1.     “Rocky.” “The right movie at the right time. My friend and I saw it in the dead of winter, and we were so pumped up, we ran home two miles through the streets of New York City. By the way, not one of the 347 sequels compares.”
  • Lou DiBella, boxing promoter, played himself in “Rocky Balboa” and is a producer on “The Fighter.”
    1.     “Rocky.” “I think the character of Rocky Balboa is the greatest personafication of the underdog in movie history and it gets to the essence of why people love boixng. I think Rocky Balboa is the most iconic figure every created about boxing.”
    2.     “Rocky II.”
  • Mark Breland, Olympic gold medalist and WBA welterweight champion. Has appeared in “The Lords of Discipline,” and  “Summer of Sam.”
    2. “Rocky.”
  • Jose Rivera, former two-time world champion who played Mark Wahlberg’s sparring partner in “The Fighter.”
    1. “Rocky.”
  • Junior Jones, former world bantamweight and junior featherweight champion:
    1.     “All of the “Rocky,” movies. I liked the training scenes and the music, too. It allows you to see the hard work and the intensity of a fighter.”

To read the full piece, click here.

Sly to be Honored

Craig / / 2010, Honors

On December 16, 2010, Variety reported that the Hollywood union publicists will honor Sly at their February 25 awards lunch at the Beverly Hilton.  Here’s why:

“Sly has made such an indelible mark on cultures across the globe that people in different parts of the world consider him to be their own,” said awards chair Henri Bollinger. “An indication of the impact a character he created has made on American culture is that a statue of Rocky Balboa was placed at the foot of the now-famous steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum.”

You can read the full piece here.

“Rocky” is a Best Knockout

Craig / / 2010, Honors, Rocky

On December 16, 2010, Warren Tasker of The Edmonton Journal listed his choices for Five of Hollywood’s Best Knockouts.  “Rocky” made the list and here’s what he had to say:

2. Rocky (John G. Avildsen, Avild-1976)

Sylvester Stallone learned this month that he will be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame for writing the screenplay to Rocky, , the tale of a Philly club fighter plucked from obscurity to fight the heavyweight champion. Can’t disagree at all with the decision.

Rocky, the opposite of Raging Bull, is a feel-good yarn that delivers on its message: If you try hard enough, your dream will be realized. Stallone’s Rocky Balboa is a lovable lug, a self-deprecating deprecating boxer with a killer left hook to the body. Audiences love him, the supporting cast, the music and the gritty boxing scenes. You catch yourself cheering, even after all these years. Yo Rock, we still love ya.

If you’d like to read the full piece simply click here.

Thomas Boatwright’s: First Blood

Craig / / 2010, Craig's Sly Art, First Blood

I had been a fan of Thomas Boatwright’s art for a while.  When he announced a sale on commissions for the month of December, I wrote to ask him about a Stallone piece for my collection.  Thomas quickly responded and said that he was a fan of “First Blood.” I was surprised at how quickly Thomas finished the piece and that he’d decided to put Richard Crenna’s character in as well.  I totally dug everything about it.

So… I asked Thomas if he was up for some more Stallone.  He said that he was, so you’ll be seeing his take on Sly from The Expendables and Get Carter on the SZ in the next few weeks.  They are just as cool!  If you want to see them sooner, Thomas has posted them on his blog and his DA site.  Send him some love.

I hope to get more Stallone art from Thomas in the future.  If you get commissions, you should consider him as well.  He keeps you totally in the loop on his progress, finishes his commissions on or ahead of schedule, has very reasonable prices and is a fantastic artist!  – Craig