Sylvester Stallone memoir: 5 revelations, from Richard Gere to Rocky

Before Rocky made him famous, Sylvester Stallone was shovelling out lion cages at a New York zoo. That is one of the stories in The Steps, the 80-year-old’s new memoir, which follows his life up to the night Rocky was named Best Picture at the 1977 Oscars, The Independent reported on Tuesday, 29 September.

The book is a warts-and-all account of the years before the fame, and it does not spare his family or one future Hollywood heavyweight, Richard Gere.

Here are the five revelations people are talking about, and what comes next for the Rocky story.

What does Sylvester Stallone reveal in The Steps?

Stallone describes years of poverty, rejection and odd jobs before Rocky, according to The Independent. After returning to New York in 1969, he took a job cleaning the lion cages at the Central Park Zoo, working from 5:30am to 3:30pm. He quit after about three and a half weeks because the smell was stopping him from visiting acting agencies.

Money stayed tight for years. When he married his first wife, Sasha Czack, in 1974, she made her dress from an old linen curtain, and he wore a borrowed 1920s gangster suit from the wardrobe department of the film Capone, in which he had a supporting role.

What happened between Stallone and Richard Gere?

Stallone says the two clashed on the 1973 set of The Lords of Flatbush, where they were cast alongside Robert De Niro. During an improvised scene, he writes, Gere grabbed his T-shirt hard enough to dig his nails into his skin, twice. Stallone asked director Stephen Verona whether he could react the way he would in real life. Asked what that meant, he said he would knock Gere’s teeth out. The director’s reply: “Please don’t.”

After a later incident involving chicken grease spilt on Stallone’s leg, the pair fought again and Gere was dropped from the film, according to The Independent. De Niro also left for another project, and their roles went to Perry King and Henry Winkler.

Why did Stallone clash with his father on the Rocky set?

Stallone’s father, Frank, nearly came to blows with him on the final day of shooting Rocky, the memoir says. Frank, cast as the ringside timekeeper, was meant to ring the bell to save Apollo Creed, played by Carl Weathers, but the bell never came. When Stallone shouted at him to ring it, his father shouted back. Stallone says the two squared up before he apologised, and moments later his father had left the set. People magazine also reported on the episode.

His parents feature throughout. When Rocky picked up 10 Oscar nominations, Stallone says, he discovered his father had secretly sent the producers a script of his own called Rocky II. His mother, Jackie, declined his invitation to the Oscars because she could not bring her hairdresser.

What happens next

The Steps is out now. Its story will also reach cinemas later this year in I Play Rocky, a biopic about the making of Rocky directed by Peter Farrelly, The Independent reported. Stallone’s reaction to the film, as quoted by The Hollywood Reporter: “I’m not dead yet.” GistMatrix could not confirm whether The Steps is on sale in Nigerian bookshops or when I Play Rocky will open in Nigerian cinemas.

For Nigerian fans of the Italian Stallion, the timing is neat: the book lands in the same week Lagos hosts celebrity boxing night Chaos in the Ring on Thursday, 1 October.

FAQ

What is Sylvester Stallone’s memoir called?
The Steps. It covers his life up to Rocky‘s Best Picture win at the 1977 Oscars.

Why did Stallone threaten Richard Gere?
Stallone writes that Gere grabbed him roughly during an improvised scene on The Lords of Flatbush in 1973, so he told the director he would knock Gere’s teeth out.

Is there a Rocky biopic?
Yes. Peter Farrelly’s I Play Rocky, about the making of the film, is due later in 2026, according to The Independent.

Which Stallone film is your all-time favourite: Rocky, Rambo or something else? Tell us in the comments.

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