Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 7, 1995 TAG: 9507070011
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO SYLVESTER STALLONE
SOURCE: MAL VINCENT/THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Shall we say that it is difficult to identify?
Yet, here we are. The droopy-eyed guy with the biceps is taking off a day from filming his next movie, ``Assassins,'' in Seattle to talk about his current flick, ``Judge Dredd,'' the $75-million adaptation of the futuristic cop who mercilessly enforces the law in the year 2139.
``Some mornings I get up and I don't even want to go to the gym,'' Stallone admitted.
But work out he will. ``Judge Dredd'' is the kind of slam-bang, muscle-flexing flick his fans expect to see Stallone pumped up for.
``They're paying me for the action,'' he said. ``They want a certain vehicle.''
Yeah, but is he worth $25 million a picture?
``These guys are not throwing the dice and singing `Luck Be a Lady Tonight,''' Stallone said. ``Before they pay me, they know that 90 percent of their debts will be taken care of. They use me to raise the money to get the movie made. I mean, ya know, they aren't paying me these amounts just because they like me.''
His two most popular characters, Rocky and Rambo, served up multi-sequels, and millions, for two decades. Will ``Judge Dredd,'' based on a comic book that is wildly popular in England but still somewhat of a cult item in America, yield another 10 years of sequels?
``Let's see how this one goes. Nothing is sure in this business,'' Stallone said. ``I was just a hired hand on this movie. I didn't write it or direct it.''
Stallone, 49, grew up in the rough Hell's Kitchen section of New York City, in Silver Spring, Md., and in what he describes as a sleazy section of Philadelphia. The product of a broken home, he was reportedly kicked out of 14 schools in 11 years. But he earned an athletic scholarship to the American College in Switzerland.
He studied drama at the University of Miami and appeared nude in the off-Broadway play ``Score'' as well as in some low-budget films (re-released after he was a star).
``It was the era of `Oh! Calcutta!' and `Hair,''' he said. ``I never worried about the nudity. I wasn't bashful about it. It was work - and work in show business.''
Legend has it that his bank account was less than $100 when he turned down a studio offer for his ``Rocky'' script because they wouldn't let him play the title role. The studio wanted Ryan O'Neal to star. Despite the fact that his wife was pregnant and he was broke, Stallone held out.
The studio relented. ``Rocky,'' of course, won the Oscar, was a huge hit, and made him both a millionaire and a star. Almost 20 years later, Stallone's career and bank account are still healthy, but he describes himself as ``the Hiroshima of romance.''
``There isn't much left standing,'' he chuckled. ``It's like my love life is bombed out.'' He is divorced from his first wife and his much-publicized second marriage to amazon actress Brigitte Nielsen ended in battles over money. As we talked, his engagement to knock-out model Angie Everhart had been called off the day before.
``Angie is a great girl. She'll go far,'' he said, ``but dating me is not an easy thing to do. When I go out with a girl, I tell them up front, `If you have any skeletons in your life, they're going to find them - any old boyfriends, anything.' They, the press, found all mine. There are no skeletons left. I'm like bleached bones in the desert. It's not fair to ask a girl to go through what she has to go through to date me.''
Nonetheless, he feels he will marry again. ``I intend to live life to the fullest. I'm not conservative about it. I'm still a hopeless romantic. Hey, it beats the alternative - being a hopeless misanthrope or a hopeless malcontent.''
Professionally, Stallone has unsuccessfully tried to break from the action genre. ``F.I.S.T.,'' a drama about labor unions, failed at the box office. His more recent forays into comedy resulted in dismal flops like ``Oscar'' and ``Stop! or My Mom Will Shoot.'' His side trip into musical comedy was the embarrassing ``Rhinestone'' with Dolly Parton. The action hit ``Cliffhanger'' proved once again that his audience was still there - if he would give them what they wanted.
Nonetheless, he is currently writing a comedy script. ``At least it's my idea of a comedy,'' he mused.
``Judge Dredd'' has had a fight over its rating. Stallone wanted a PG-13; it got an R.
``I feel that my name on the film influenced the rating system,'' he said. ``I can't believe that a picture like `Congo' could get a PG-13. Gorillas tear people apart in it. And `Judge Dredd' gets an R? Something is wrong.''
Concerning Sen. Robert Dole's recent attack on violence in films, he said, ``I don't think these films really affect people. If they have a screw loose, they might affect them. Otherwise, they know the difference between a movie and real life. I think violence in the movies has changed anyway. It started about 10 years ago when Arnold [Schwarzenegger] did action with tongue in cheek. Violence in movies, now, has more fun about it. It's more of a cartoon. There's nothing in it to be imitated.''
But ``Judge Dredd'' is more than action. ``It's the kind of heroic stance that I'm best at playing. As an actor, I'm always going to be playing, I guess, the man struggling for redemption. Judge Dredd has devoted his life to enforcing the law, but he has nothing else - no personal life.
``I approve of his philosophy to take the law into his own hands, but there is a warning here. This is what could happen. It seems people, in general, are tired of the way they are governed. There is overpopulation and crime. It's a very dangerous time, and this movie reflects what could happen in the future. It's not a no-brainer. That's why I wanted to do it.''
His next picture, currently before the cameras, is what he proudly calls ``a dark piece.'' ``Assassins'' will be produced by action veteran Joel Silver and directed by Richard Donner.
Stallone is getting his record $25 million salary.
Now, if only he could get a date.
by CNB