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Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone (born July 6, 1946 in New York City), usually known as Sylvester Stallone, is an United States|American film actor, film director|director, film producer|producer, and screenwriter. He is often referred to by his nickname, "Sly". He achieved his greatest successes in a number of action films, notably the Rambo and Rocky series. == Early days == As a child, Stallone was nicknamed "Binky." When kids began to substitute, for this, "Stinky," Sly decided to name himself "Mike." In fact, in some of his earlier work, he is credited as "Michael Stallone." Sylvester studied drama at the University of Miami, though he dropped out and returned to New York to appear in a few small Off-Broadway plays. One might say that the Hollywood bug caught him in Brooklyn. Stallone, as one of his few odd jobs, ushered at the Loews Kings Theater in Flatbush, Brooklyn. == Career == Stallone's career actually began with an appearance in a pornographic film. Called Party at Kitty and Stud's, it was considered hard-core at the time, but would be considered soft-core by today's standards (as though graphic depictions of genitals are featured, including Stallone's, actual close-up shots of penetration are not shown.) After Stallone's later success the film was re-packaged as The Italian Stallion. Stallone's first film roles were very small. He had a brief appearance in the Jack Lemmon vehicle The Prisoner Of Second Avenue (1974). He had a starring role in the cult hit The Lords Of Flatbush (1974). In 1975 he was featured in Farewell, My Lovely and Capone. Stallone also appeared in guest shots on the popular television series' Police Story and Kojak. Stallone didn't gain wide fame until his starring role in Rocky (1976), a film that he wrote in only three days and sold with the rider that he would play the lead. This was a box office success, and went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. Stallone had been a lifelong boxing fan and used "Bayonne Bleeder" Chuck Wepner's surprising performance in his 1975 title bout with Muhammed Ali as partial inspiration for the plot. Stallone had two Academy Award nominations for Rocky. However, his attempts to expand his range floundered and he was forced to return to the Rocky franchise a number of times (1976, 1982, 1985, and 1990) to pay for the flops. This link with boxing extended to hosting reality TV show The Contender (television series)|The Contender. He tried his hand at directing as well as writing with