Get him!
Come on... hit him!
Hit him!
You're waltzing.
Give this sucker some action.
You're fighting like a bum.
You want some advice?
Water.
Cold beer here.
Get your beer.
Come on!
Rocky, should I bet the fight
don't go three rounds?
- You feel strong?
- Absolutely.
You want some good advice?
- Mouthpiece.
- Move into your...
Come on, let's go!
Give him room!
Hold your hands up!
All right. All right.
Next, a six-rounder
between local lightweights
Kid Brooks
and Sugar Johnson.
Good going, champ!
- Hey.
- Hey, what?
- You got a smoke?
- Yeah, you could have this one.
You're a bum.
You're a bum... you know that?
You're a bum!
Hey.
You really got lucky tonight.
Spider, here's your share. $40.00,
less $15 locker and corner man,
$5 shower and towel, 7% tax.
Comes to $17.20
You fought a good fight, Spider.
Balboa, you get winner's share.
$65 less $15
locker and corner end,
$5 shower and towel
and 7% tax,
comes to $40.55
When do I fight again?
Maybe two weeks.
Give me a call.
The doctor should be in
in about 20 minutes.
Hey, boy.
You guys are gettin' better
every year, you know that?
Hey, your old man
did pretty good tonight.
Why weren't you there, huh?
You should've seen me.
You guys hungry? Huh?
Here you go.
Here you go.
You wanna see
your friend Moby Dick, huh?
How're you doin', Moby Dick?
You missed me today or what? Huh?
Huh?
Here you go. Say hi.
You know, if you guys
could sing or dance,
I wouldn't be doin' this,
you know.
And, uh, last turtle food
I got here.
That's, uh...
last turtle food I got here.
It had more flies in it...
more moths and flies.
More flies... more moths...
who the hell cares?
How you feelin' this morning, huh?
Full of life?
Fine.
Hey, how you doin', killer?
How's the turtle food this week?
Fine.
Me, I'm kind of aggravated,
you know?
Oh, I'm sorry.
Not your fault. I'm just kind
of aggravated. Wanna hear about it?
I'll tell you somebody who don't
wanna hear about it.
- How you doin', Gloria?
- Yeah.
The last turtle food I got had more
moths in it than flies, you know, Adrian?
And these moths get caught
in the turtle's throat, right about here,
and they cough, and I gotta
smack 'em on the back of the shell.
And what do you think they get,
huh? And they get what?
Huh?
Come on.
Shell shock.
Shell shock.
You're startin'
with bad jokes early, huh?
Well, no, it's just inventin' jokes
ain't so easy sometimes.
No joke, huh?
Hey, how's my buddy doin' today?
Yo, Butkus!
- I ain't had time to check on him.
- Yo, Butkus!
Hey, gimme a kiss.
Gimme a kiss, Butkus.
Adrian, I want you to go downstairs
and clean all the cat cages.
They're a mess.
You gotta pay
for that turtle food, rockhead.
Hey, crime don't pay...
you know that, Gloria. You know that.
- Yo, Rock, how's your boxin'?
- Real good.
- Hey, Rock, you fightin' again?
- Yeah, yeah.
Hey, we'll make some money
real soon, huh?
Yeah, a million dollars.
Hey, you.
Where you goin'?
Where you goin', huh?
Where you runnin'?
- Where you runnin'?
- Hey! Hey!
- Hey! Don't hit the face!
- Shut up!
- Not the face!
- Mr. Gazzo wants the 200 now.
I'm broke... honest to God!
Mr. Gazzo says I should get the 200
or break your thumb, you understand?
- Please! Please...
- What's your name again?
- Bob.
- Bob. Listen, Bob. Listen, Bob!
You wanna dance,
you gotta pay the band, understand?
You wanna borrow,
you gotta pay the man.
Hey, I ain't emotionally involved,
Bob, you understand?
Give me some money.
Give me some money.
Come on.
There's 130 here.
That's it. That's it.
I'm broke.
Hey, Bob. Hey, hey.
You're still $70 light.
You don't have to break nothing.
Here, take my coat.
It's worth 50, $60.
Here. Take the coat.
Take the coat!
- Just...
- No, you should've planned ahead.
You know that?
You should've planned ahead.
We'll fake it. I'll tape up the hand
like you broke the thumb.
You should've planned ahead.
Gazzo don't have to know!
He won't be wise to nothin'!
Gazzo won't be wise to nothin'.
Keep the coat!
Keep the...
He only had 130, but I think he's good
for the rest next week, Mr. Gazzo.
Sure, Rocky.
Bob's good for it.
That's it for today. Here.
Tomorrow collect from Del Rio.
He's late three weeks
and I don't like it.
Tomorrow,
three weeks, Del Rio?
All right, I got it. Del Rio...
how do you spell Del Rio?
- How'd you do last night?
- I did real good.
- Hey!
- What?
- Did you get the license number?
- Of what?
The truck
that run over your face.
Relax, Buddy.
All right, pull it over here.
I wanna let Rocky out, then I'm
gonna talk to him for a few seconds.
How come you didn't break
this guy's thumb like I told you?
- How do you know I didn't...
- You don't think I hear things?
Did I give you a job
this morning or I didn't, huh?
So, why didn't you break
his thumb like I told you to?
When you don't do what I tell you
to do, you make me look bad, Rock.
I figured... look, I figured
if I break the guy's thumb,
he gets laid off, right?
Then he can't make...
Don't figure... let me do
the figurin', okay, Rock?
From here on in, just let me do
the figurin', you know?
These guys think that we're runnin'
some kind of charity or somethin'.
That they can get off light.
From here on in,
do what I tell you to do
because it's bad
for my reputation, you understand?
You got... You got it, Rock?
I got it.
Hey, how do you spell Del Rio?
- Open a dictionary, Rock!
- Come on!
Hey, I won't let that happen no more...
about the thumb.
You know?
So long, meatbag.
I should've broke your thumbs!
Hey, Rock, heard you did
real good last night.
Absolutely.
You should've seen me.
Don't you think
you oughta take a rest?
- No, my back is hurtin'.
- Your back?
My back is hurtin'.
You deaf?
No, I'm short.
Hey, yo, Mike,
where's my lock?
Whose stuff is this in my locker?
It's Dipper's stuff.
It ain't your locker no more.
What you talkin' 'bout,
it ain't my locker?
It's been my locker for six years.
Where's my gear?
Mickey told me to bag it
and hang it.
You put my stuff
on skid row.
I been in that locker for six years
and you put my stuff
in a bag on skid row?
Mickey tells me what to do,
I gotta do it, right, Rock?
Where is he?
He's outside
working with Dipper.
- He's in a bad mood.
- So am I.
Get your hands up there.
Keep your hands up. That's right.
- Hey, Mick.
- Shut up!
To the body. To the body.
Attaboy.
Time.
Time!
The hell.
What do you want?
How're you feelin' today?
- What?
- I said, how're you feelin'?
- What are you... a doctor?
- You got problems today?
Never mind my problem...
what's your problem?
My problem is I've been talking
to your man Michael.
I wanna know how come I've
been put out of my locker.
Because Dipper needed it.
Dipper's a contender.
He's a climber.
You know what you are?
- What?
- You're a tomato.
- A tomato?
- Yeah, let's face it.
I run a business here,
not a goddamn soup kitchen.
- Did you fight last night?
- Yeah.
- Did you win?
- Yeah, I won. Kayo in the second.
Yeah? Who'd you fight?
Spider Rico.
He's a bum.
You think
everybody I fight is a bum.
Well, ain't they?
You got heart, but you fight
like a goddamn ape.
Nothing special about you.
You never got your nose busted.
Well, leave it that way... nice and pretty,
and what's left of your mind.
You know, Mick, I think
I'm gonna go take a steam.
You know why? 'Cause I did real good
last night, and you should've seen me.
- Big deal.
- You should've seen me, too.
Hey, kid.
You ever think about retiring?
- No.
- You think about it.
- Yeah.
- All right. Time.
- Hey, man.
- What?
I dig your locker, man.
I dig your locker.
Attaboy.
Cold night.
Good night to catch pneumonia,
you know?
You need some help
with that cage?
There's a good game down
at the Spectrum tonight.
Wanna go to a basketball game?
Hi, Butkus. Hi, kid.
Tough day today, you know.
They took my locker away.
I had that locker for about
six years, but it don't bother me none.
Lockers are bad, anyway.
After a while,
people get the combination.
I must've had 20 bucks taken
out of there in the past six years.
It don't sound like much,
but it adds up, you know.
Doesn't matter. Who cares.
Wow. Cold night.
Hey, birds!
Hey, look who's here.
Look who's here.
The giant worm.
Look at these birds.
Don't these birds look like candy,
you know? Like flying candy.
Hey, bird,
you wanna fly me home?
You need somebody
to walk you home?
- No.
- No? It's a cold night.
If I was you and you got the money,
I would take a cab or something.
Too many creeps
around here, you know.
Every other block,
there's a creep.
You can always tell a creep.
All right. Listen,
I'm gonna go now, okay?
I'll see yous later, all right?
Don't any of you guys get up.
I know you had
a hard day in the cage.
So, uh... I'm gonna go home,
make up a joke.
I'm gonna tell you a new joke
tomorrow, okay? Good night, Adrian.
Good night, Rocky.
I don't know
what happens to me.
Hey there, Lefty.
- I got a friend for you.
- Hello, Rock.
How you doin'?
You seen Paulie?
- Yeah, he's in the steam room.
- Yeah?
Hey, Rocky,
what's with the eye?
- Been fightin'.
- Hope you won it, at least.
Yeah, I did real good.
You should've seen me.
Heavyweight champion
of the world Apollo Creed
is at Kennedy Airport, New York.
Hey, Rocky,
who'd you fight?
Spider Rico.
Is he still around?
Yeah, he's doing real good. He's doing
better than you... that's for sure.
Hey, Paulie, what,
did you lock the door?
Yo, Paulie!
I'd like to kill the freakin' moron
who broke the mirror.
Hey, yo, Paulie,
every day,
every night I pass by
your sister's giving me the shoulder,
you know what I mean?
- Forget her.
- What do you mean, forget her?
- You can do better than her.
- Forget nothin'.
Every night I pass by the place,
I tell a joke.
Every morning I pass by the place,
I tell a joke. Nothing.
She just looks at me,
you know what I mean?
- Looks, huh?
- Yeah, like I'm a plate of leftovers.
What... I need a Cadillac
to connect with your sister?
Something wrong with my face?
You know what I mean?
- She's a freakin' loser.
- Hey.
Sometimes she gets me so crazy,
I could split her head with a razor.
Don't get mental, man, you know.
- Well, you caught me in a bad mood.
- You're always in a bad mood.
Adrian ain't sharp.
Adrian is a loser.
- Hey.
- She's pushin' 30 freakin' years old.
And if she don't watch out,
she's gonna end up dying alone.
- I'm 30 myself.
- Then you're gonna end up dying alone.
Hey, I don't need see
no crowd around you, neither.
I'd like to kill the freakin' moron
who broke the mirror.
Come on, let's get out
of this stink, would you? Come on.
- I wanna talk to you anyway.
- About what?
- You still work for Gazzo?
- Yeah, sure.
Why don't you talk
to him about me?
Well, I just don't think Gazzo's hirin'
right now, you know? You know?
Come on.
- The girl's dryin' up.
- Who?
My sister. If she don't start livin',
her body's gonna dry up.
You know, tomorrow's Thanksgiving,
you know that?
Why don't you come over
and talk to her?
Sure. Beer.
Tomorrow you come
for some bird, right?
Absolutely. You got it.
I gotta go. If I'm ten minutes late,
she calls the hospital.
- Paulie!
- I got it. I got it.
Bicentennial fight with
Mac Lee Green here in Philadelphia
at the fabulous Spectrum.
Harry?
We're speaking now of your
much publicized bicentennial fight.
That's right, this is gonna be
the greatest sporting event
in the country's history.
A gala occurrence with me
beating Green like he committed a crime.
Would you take a look
at that guy?
I mean, where are
the real fighters gonna come from?
The pros. All we got today
are jig clowns.
On January 1st,
the first major event in the country...
- Clowns?
- That's right. Clowns.
And in keeping with great events
throughout the country's history.
Apollo Creed will duplicate
the cracking of the liberty bell
by cracking Mac Lee Green.
You callin' Apollo Creed a clown?
Well, what else?
Look at him.
Stay in school
and use your brain.
Be a doctor, be a lawyer,
carry a leather briefcase.
Forget about sports
as a profession.
Sports make you grunt and smell.
- See, be a thinker, not a stinker.
- Okay, thanks a lot, Champ.
Hey, are you crazy?
This man is champion of the world.
He took his best shot
and became champ. Huh?
What shot did you ever take?
Hey, Rocky, you're not happy
with your life, it's nice.
But me, I got a business going.
I don't have to take no shots.
No one having gone more than...
That's right.
Stick that up your business.
What are you so insulted about?
Want me to take a shot?
All right... I'll take a shot.
Rocky, how's it been going?
Hey, Rocky,
how 'bout a bottle?
- No wine.
- Come on. Just a little.
Rory, does your brother
know you're hanging out so late?
- Screw you, Go-go.
- Her brother knows.
Hey, these guys teach you
to talk like that?
- Stuff it, man!
- Never say that! Come here!
You stink up the neighborhood!
- You know, you can...
- Hey!
When I was your age,
there was only one girl in the
whole neighborhood talked like that.
That was it. Just one.
What are you doing?
It'll make your teeth yellow.
Don't do that.
- I like yellow teeth.
- It'll make your breath like garbage.
- Maybe I like garbage.
- Come on, nobody likes garbage.
Anyway, this girl with the dirty mouth...
she wasn't bad-lookin',
but, you see, none of the guys
ever took her seriously, see.
They never took her out
for any serious datin'.
- Why?
- 'Cause that's the way guys are.
They laugh when you talk dirty,
they think you're cute,
but after a while, you get
a reputation, that's it.
You get no respect,
you understand?
You get no respect.
And I gotta use a bad word.
Whore.
You understand? Whore.
See, you use dirty words
and maybe you end up becoming
a whore, you understand?
Come on, Rocky.
I'm just 12.
Hey, that don't matter
that you're 12. It don't matter.
You don't really have to be one.
You just act like one... that's it. Boom.
Hey, if you get a bad rap,
you understand?
Twenty years from now,
people are gonna say,
"Hey, you remember Marie?"
"No, who's she?"
"She's the little whore that hung out
at the Atomic Hoagie Shop. "
"Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah,
now I remember her. "
You see, they don't remember you,
they remember the rep.
You understand?
Hey, you got a boyfriend?
No, you ain't got a boyfriend.
You know why? Why don't you
think you have a boyfriend?
'Cause you're hangin' out with them
coconuts in the corner, understand?
You hang around coconuts,
you get nowhere.
They're lemons.
Lemons.
You hang out with nice people,
you get nice friends, you understand?
You hang out with smart people,
you get smart friends.
You hang out with yo-yo people,
you get yo-yo friends.
You see?
It's simple mathematics.
- I hope you ain't...
- I won't.
What was I gonna say?
You hope I don't keep acting like
a whore, or I'll turn into one, right?
- Yeah, something like that.
- Good night, Rocky.
Good night, Marie.
Take care, you know?
- Hey, Rocky?
- Yo.
Screw you, creep-o!
Yeah, who are you
to give advice, creep-o? Huh?
Who are you?
- Are the doctor's reports confirmed?
- Definitely.
It says here Mac Lee Green
has suffered a severely cracked
third metacarpal in his left hand.
Damn.
Of course, we can
cancel the fight indefinitely
if you're set on fighting Green.
Hey, it ain't just Green!
What about all the time
Apollo has invested?
I believe
we can find a solution.
Solution nothin'. You better find me
another ranked contender.
And I mean in a flash, Jergens.
Don't play games with my client.
Apollo's already done
a million dollars worth of publicity,
has made contractual obligations
with 20 different organizations...
he's not going
to be embarrassed!
I contacted Ernie Roman's manager.
Ernie's fighting in France
that same week.
Then get me Buddy Shaw!
Hell, he's ranked fifth!
Went to California
and gained 50 pounds.
I get a hold of every
worthwhile contender
and they all say the same thing...
five weeks just isn't enough time
to get into shape.
Shape nothin', man!
They're afraid.
They know everybody in the world's
gonna see this fight,
and none of them's
got a prayer of whippin' me.
They're makin' excuses
so they don't have to be the chump
to get whipped in front
of the whole civilized world.
All I can say
is I'm a good promoter.
I've promoted fights
in every goddamn country in the world,
and I've broken my ass over this one.
But I don't know
what the hell else to do!
I do.
Without a ranked contender,
what this fight is gonna need
is a novelty.
This is the land
of opportunity, right?
So Apollo Creed,
on January 1st,
gives a local underdog fighter
an opportunity.
A snow-white underdog,
and I'm gonna put his face
on this poster with me.
And I'll tell you why.
Because I'm sentimental.
And a lot of other people
in this country are just as sentimental,
and there's nothing they'd like better
than to see Apollo Creed
give a local Philadelphia boy
a shot at the greatest title in the world
on this country's biggest birthday.
Now, that's the way I see it.
And that's the way it's gonna be.
Apollo, I like it.
It's very American.
No, Jergens.
It's very smart.
Okay, I'll see you later, man.
- What? What is it?
- I just wanna check this thing out.
Now, you said pick up
two yards from Snyder
and a grand from Cappoli, right?
No, no. No, no. Two yards
from Cappoli and a grand from Snyder.
- Two yards. Two yards.
- Write it down, okay?
Yeah, I got it. Got it.
Who's this girl you're going
out with tomorrow night?
How'd you know?
You know.
Don't you think I hear things?
A lot of canaries
flying around the docks.
- I'm going out with Paulie's sister.
- Hey, Rocky.
- What?
- I hear she's retarded.
She ain't retarded.
She's shy, you know?
I'll tell you what to do.
Take her to the zoo.
I hear retards like the zoo.
- This bum gotta say that?
- Who're you calling a bum?
- I'm calling you a bum!
- Okay, relax. Relax.
Buddy's in a bad mood.
It's his prostate.
He's always in a bad mood.
You know, you oughta count
your blessings, Buddy.
You're still a healthy person,
you know that?
- I don't like your face.
- I don't like yours, either!
- Kiss my ass!
- Move your shoulders down!
- Get out of the car!
- Relax, relax! Relax. My ears.
What, are you driving me crazy?
Both of yous.
- Buddy doesn't like you.
- Yeah.
Some guys, they just hate
for no reason, capisce?
- Yeah.
- Come here.
There's 50 bucks. You and your girl
Adrian have a nice time, you hear?
Thanks.
Hey, how'd you know her name?
You don't think I hear things?
- Hey, Rock.
- What?
- Remember what I told you.
- What'd you tell me?
Take her to the zoo.
- Some more coffee, Mr. Creed?
- No, thanks, Shirley.
What do you think
about Billy Snow?
Fouls.
How 'bout Big Chuck Smith?
- Yeah.
- Nah. He's too old and dull.
Hey, Bobby Judd.
He's a good boy.
No, I don't feel any heat
from that name.
Joe Zach's a good prospect.
Exactly what are
you looking for, Apollo?
This is what I'm looking for.
The Italian Stallion.
Rocky Balboa?
Never heard of him.
Look, it's the name, man.
The Italian Stallion.
The media will eat it up.
Now, who discovered America?
An Italian, right?
What would be better than to get it on
with one of his descendents?
He's a southpaw.
I don't want you messing around
with southpaws.
- They do everything backwards.
- Southpaw nothin'.
I'll drop him in three.
Apollo Creed
meets the Italian Stallion.
Sounds like a damn monster movie.
Hey, what are you doing
with that bat, huh?
I used to be deadly at stickball.
You sure your sister knows I'm comin'?
She's very excited.
- Look at my swollen hands.
- Yeah.
The joints from walkin' and
carryin' meat in and out of freezers.
It plays hell on the joints.
Maybe you oughta see a doctor.
What do you think?
I don't need a doctor.
I need a different job.
Different job. What kind of turkey?
Big turkey or small turkey?
Talk to Gazzo about me. Tell him
I'm a good man and nothin' bothers me.
I'd make a great collector.
Bustin' bones don't bother me.
Don't bother you.
A big turkey, right? Huh?
Gazzo's gotta come... forget Gazzo.
It's a bad job, you know what I mean?
- You got a match?
- Go to him for me. As a favor.
Yeah. Yeah. You know,
the last time I had a turkey
was when they
were having a $2 special
at Horn and Hardog's
about three years ago.
Last year me and the turtles
had spam. What do you think?
Yeah, that sounds
like a good idea.
Your sister knows
I'm coming for sure, right?
Yeah, yeah.
She's very excited.
I'm all alone
Hey, will you forget
about Gazzo, huh?
- I don't ask nobody twice.
- I don't ask nobody twice.
Stay away, baby
Hey, your sister... you sure
your sister knows I'm comin'?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
She's very excited.
Yeah?
Paulie? You're late.
Called the hospital? She calls
the hospital if I'm ten minutes late.
How you doin'?
I told you she's very excited.
Paulie, why didn't you tell me
you were bringing him here?
Look at me.
I'm not ready for this.
Would it make a difference
if you were?
He's a friend,
and now he's taking you out.
No, I can't.
You're in the kitchen,
and I want you out right now.
Hey.
Hey!
Hey, I want you
outta here instamatically!
I'm sick of seein' you hanging around
like a freakin' spider!
Go out! Live!
Enjoy life!
Paulie, I can't go!
Don't get wise with me,
now, huh?
- I'm tired of you being a loser.
- Don't call me that, Paulie!
Apollo Creed says he'll
be shopping for another victim
to fill Green's vacancy for
the bicentennial championship fight.
Why didn't you tell me
you were bringing him home?
- How do you know I didn't?
- I'm not gonna go, Paulie! I can't go!
- I won't go!
- Why?!
Paulie, it's Thanksgivin'.
I got a turkey in the oven.
Oh. A turkey in the oven?
A turkey in the oven.
You want the bird?
Go in the alley
and eat the bird.
Oh, Paulie.
I want you outta here!
Get outta the house!
Go out and enjoy
your freakin' life!
You hungry, Rock?
Yo, Paulie, listen. Maybe we just
better forget all this, you know?
- Just forget it.
- Forget nothin'.
Go ahead.
Tell her somethin' funny.
Ain't nothin' to talk about. She's in
a bad mood, I'm in a bad mood.
You know how to do funny.
You wanna go out with my sister?
- Yeah.
- Well... come on.
I don't know what to say.
Yo, Adrian,
it's me, Rocky.
Rocky, you know?
Listen, uh...
I don't know what to say,
'cause I ain't never talked
to no door before, you know?
I mean, what do I say
to a door... hey, listen...
Come on.
You're doin' fine.
I ain't doin' fine.
I look like an idiot.
Keep doin' what you're doin'.
You're funny.
I know all about these things.
I feel like a jerk.
Yo, Adrian,
it's Rocky again, you know?
Listen, uh...
I know you ain't too happy
at this moment, you know,
but could you do me a favor?
I ain't got nobody to spend
Thanksgiving with, you know?
So, uh...
how 'bout maybe you and I maybe
go out together, get something to eat.
I don't know. Maybe laugh a little bit.
Who knows, you know?
Would you like to, uh...
I don't know. Would you like to maybe,
you know, you and me go out together?
What do you think?
Would you like to?
We're gonna have a good time.
We'll have a real good time.
Thanks for the bird.
I'm gonna turn the TV off.
I got a headache.
- What does your sister like to do?
- Ice skate.
Adrian, come on.
You're lettin' the heat out.
Who pays the bills around here?
Listen, I don't want
no turkey anyway, you know?
But it was Thanksgiving.
- It was what?
- It was Thanksgiving.
Yeah, to you.
But to me it's Thursday.
- It looks kinda quiet, you know?
- I think it's closed.
No, I think maybe we're just early
or something like that.
- Yo!
- Yo!
- We're closed.
- What?
I said we're closed.
Yeah. Hey, listen, I'm gonna
smooth this guy out here.
So just wait here for a few minutes.
I'll be right back, okay?
- We could go someplace else.
- No, it's okay.
Hey, listen, are you closed
to the general public,
or are you closed to everybody...
you know what I mean?
Look, it's after 6:00, it's Thanksgiving.
That's why there's nobody here.
And besides, you ain't
supposed to be in here.
So do me a favor
and not stay here, huh?
- Would you do me a favor?
- Hey, come on. We're not operatin'.
Look... this girl here
ain't feelin' well, you know.
The doctors say she should go out
and exercise once in a while,
and ice skating's probably
the best thing, know what I mean?
So what do you want from me?
I want you to do me a favor.
You could see she ain't feelin' too good.
If you could let her on the ice,
I'd appreciate it. For a few minutes.
Ten minutes, ten bucks.
Ten bucks? How 'bout eight...
eight bucks?
Come on. It's Thanksgiving.
All right, nine bucks,
you got a deal.
You have the ice to yourself.
Ten bucks.
Give her the blades.
Aren't you skating?
Nah. I ain't skated since I was 15.
That's when I started fightin'...
when I was 15.
Skating's kinda bad
for the ankles, you know?
Yeah.
You're a pretty good skater,
are you?
You know, like I was saying before
on the way over here.
Fightin' used to be tops
with me, but no more, you know?
All I wanted to do at a fight
was prove I was no bum...
that I had the stuff
to make a good pro, you know?
You never got the chance?
Hey, I ain't cryin' about it, 'cause I
still fight. I kinda do it like a hobby.
I tell you what the trouble is...
I'm a southpaw.
- What's a southpaw?
- A southpaw means you're left-handed.
And a southpaw
throws your timing off, you see.
Other guys it throws their timing off,
makes them look awkward.
Nobody wants to look awkward.
- You know where southpaw came from?
- Nine minutes!
I'll tell ya. A long time ago, this guy...
maybe a couple hundred years ago...
he was fightin' in the...
I think it was around Philadelphia...
and his arm... he was left-handed,
and his arm was facing towards
New Jersey, you see, and that's south.
So then that's why they
call 'em southpaw, you see?
Southpaw, South Jersey.
South Camden, southpaw.
You know what I mean?
I don't know. Things probably
worked out for the best, don't you think?
Never got a chance, though,
because you're left-handed, huh?
Well, that's absolutely true,
you know. Watch out.
I just dislocated my finger.
Look at that. No, wait.
Hey, it ain't your fault. Look.
See? Look, I had it...
it's an old wound, you see that?
Look. See?
Nothin'. It bends like that, see?
I originally done it...
look, push the button.
Bong. It works.
It ain't your fault.
- Look, I'm gonna show you somethin'.
- Seven minutes!
Yeah, I originally done it.
I carry pictures of all my fights.
I originally done it
in the Baby Crenshaw fight. See that?
Big Baby's about the size of an airplane.
I broke both my hands on his face.
I lost that fight, but that's a nice picture,
don't you think? See how it works there?
Real nice.
Come on.
You having a good time?
I'll tell you... you could see
I ain't too graceful. I don't move well.
But I'll tell you, I can really swat, you
know what I mean? I can really hit hard.
But I'm a southpaw, and nobody wants
to fight no southpaw, know what mean?
Huh?
You know how I
got started in fightin'?
- Huh?
- No.
Am I talkin' too loud?
- No.
- Three minutes!
My father... he's, uh...
my old man, he was never too smart.
He says to me, "You weren't born
with much of a brain,
so you better start using
your body," right?
So I become a fighter.
Oh.
- You know what I mean?
- Yeah.
Why are you...
why are you laughin'?
My mother...
she said the opposite thing.
What'd she say?
What'd she say, the opposite?
She said you weren't born
with much of a body,
so you better develop your brain.
Did she say that?
Yo! Time!
Can I ask you a question?
Absolutely.
- Why do you wanna fight?
- 'Cause I can't sing or dance.
Eh, oh.
Don't fall! Don't fall!
Hey, that was terrific.
I'm pretty good at this.
You like the way I skate?
The last fight I had, I had
with this guy named Spider Rico.
He busted my head up.
You see that scar?
I'll tell ya...
things get pretty rough in the ring.
You know, with some people,
I'm very shy by nature, you know?
I suppose.
I say you're very shy
by nature, you know?
I suppose.
Ey! Ey.
The bum from the dark.
Get a job, you bum!
You know, some people think
that being shy is a disease,
but it don't bother me none.
It don't bother me, either.
Then why'd I bother
bringing it up, huh?
'Cause I'm dumb, that's why.
I think we make
a real sharp couple of coconuts.
I'm dumb, you're shy.
What do you think, huh?
I don't understand why anybody
would wanna be a fighter.
Hey, you gotta be a moron.
You gotta be a moron to wanna be
a fighter, you know what I mean?
It's a racket where you're
almost guaranteed to end up a bum.
- I don't think you're a bum.
- Well, I'm at least half a bum, you know?
But I'll tell ya somethin'.
The worst thing about fightin'
is the mornin' after, you know?
- The mornin' after?
- I'll tell you. Yeah.
The mornin' after a fight, you're nothing
but a large wound, know what I mean?
Sometimes I got pains
all over me.
I feel like callin' a taxi to take me
from the bed into the bathroom.
Your hair hurts, your eyes hurt,
your face is all busted up,
your hands are swollen, you know?
Look at this face.
See that nose?
That nose ain't never been broken.
I've had guys bustin' on it,
I had guys chewin' on it,
twistin' it, punchin' it...
I mean, whack! Boom!
These guys,
they hittin' my nose all the time.
Never broken. I'm very proud of that.
Isn't that rare? That's rare.
- Why do you do it if it hurts?
- Why do you think?
'Cause... you can't sing and dance.
Yeah, somethin' like that.
Somethin' like that.
Hey, you wanna come inside?
No. I gotta go.
Hey, come on.
Hey, I got some animals.
I got these rare... very rare
animals inside. Come on. Come on in.
No, no. I gotta go.
Well, I gotta go, too.
I gotta go to the bathroom. Come on.
Come on.
- No, I gotta go.
- Hey, look at this face.
Is that a face you could trust
or what? Huh? Is it?
They oughta stick this face
on a stamp. What do you think?
Come on. Come on in.
Yo. Come on.
Click.
Yo, Adrian, are you hungry?
No.
I got some things in there. If you
like soda, some donuts or something.
A couple cupcakes.
Huh? No?
I think I got
some chocolate in there.
No?
Hot in here, you know?
I could go for some music.
Yo, Adrian.
These are the exotic animals
I was tellin' you about.
These are my friends
Cuff and Link.
I sold 'em to you.
Sure, I know you sold them to me.
Remember you were workin'
at that pet shop, huh?
First day you was there, I came in
and bought both these animals, huh?
Yeah, I remember that.
I came and I bought this bowl
and I bought the, uh, bought
the animals themselves, some food,
the marbles that go
in the bottom there.
Remember?
Remember that mountain?
I had to get rid of that mountain, though,
'cause they kept falling over and flipping.
Yo, why don't you
come on over here and sit down?
Hmm?
It's a nice couch.
I don't know.
There's big bugs in there, you know.
It's safer over here.
You wanna sit down?
Uh, these...
these your parents?
Yeah, that's...
that's both of them there.
Is this you?
Yeah, that's me
when I was eight years old.
That's the Italian Stallion
when he was a baby.
Why don't you come on over
and make yourself comfortable? Relax.
Do you have a phone?
No, I ain't got no phone.
I had it pulled 'cause of people
calling all the time, and, uh,
who needs the aggravation,
right? The interruptions.
Who'd you wanna call?
I wanna let my brother
know where I am.
Why?
I think he might be worried.
Well, I'll call your brother,
if that's the problem.
Yo, Paulie, your sister's with me!
I'll call yous back later!
See ya!
What's the matter?
You don't like the room, do ya.
It's fine.
Well, it's only temporary,
you know.
It's not that.
What's the problem?
You don't like me?
You don't like the turtles?
What's the problem?
- I don't think I belong here.
- It's okay.
I don't belong here.
Well, you know, it's okay,
'cause you're my guest.
I don't...
know you well enough.
I've never been
in a man's apartment alone.
Well, I...
they're all the same. You know.
I'm not sure I know you well enough.
I don't feel comfortable.
Yo, Adrian, you know,
I ain't so comfortable either.
I should go.
Don't go, please.
Don't go. Don't go. Don't go.
Don't go.
Do me a favor?
What?
Take off these glasses.
You have nice eyes.
Do me another favor?
Would you take off that hat?
I always knew you was pretty.
- Don't tease me.
- I'm not teasing you.
I ain't teasin' ya.
I just...
wanna kiss you.
You don't have to kiss me back
if you don't want.
But I wanna kiss you.
Worm, I heard
you had a fight comin' up.
Yeah, I'm gonna fight
next month.
That's good, man. You come down to
the gym, we'll see that you get in shape.
How's your weight?
- I weigh 175.
- Hey, Rock. How you doin', babe?
- Hey.
- Oh, Mick was lookin' for you up there.
- For me?
- Yeah.
- You sure?
- Yeah, yeah, yeah.
He was lookin' for you, Jack.
Get on up there and see him.
Yeah. It ain't locked, right?
- Yeah, yeah.
- All right, go on, man.
Hey, you got somethin' for me?
Yeah, there was some guy here
from Miles Jergens lookin' for you.
They need sparring partners
for Apollo Creed.
- You're puttin' me on.
- There's the card.
- When was he here?
- About an hour ago.
They're probably lookin' for
sparrin' partners for Creed, you know?
I said that before,
you dumb dago!
I've been comin' here for six years,
and six years you been stickin' it to me.
I wanna know how come.
You don't wanna know.
Yeah, I wanna know how come.
- You wanna know?
- I wanna know!
Okay, I'm gonna tell ya!
'Cause you had the talent
to become a good fighter,
and instead of that,
you became a leg-breaker
to some cheap, second-rate loan shark.
It's a livin'.
It's a waste of life!
Yes, may I help you?
Oh! You must be Mr. Rocky Balboa.
Mr. Jergens is expecting you.
Just a moment.
Mr. Rocky Balboa
to see you, sir.
Fine.
- Will you please go in, Mr. Balboa.
- Can I have that?
Oh, certainly.
Thanks.
Mr. Balboa.
How are you?
George Jergens.
Take a chair, please.
Thanks.
Mr. Balboa.
- Call me Rocky.
- Rocky.
Tell me, Rocky,
you got any representation?
You have a manager?
- No. It's just me.
- Oh.
Rocky, I've got a proposition
I'd like to make to you.
- Uh, sparrin'?
- Beg your pardon?
Well, it's just I know
you're lookin' for sparrin' partners,
and I just wanna say
I'm very available, you know.
I'm sure you are.
Absolutely. Sparrin' with the Champ
would be an honor.
- And you know what, Mr. Jergens?
- What?
I wouldn't take no cheap shots, either.
I'd really be a good sparring partner.
You don't understand me, Rocky.
My proposition is this...
Would you be interested
in fighting Apollo Creed
for the World
Heavyweight Championship?
No.
Listen, Rocky...
Apollo's seen you fight.
He likes you.
He wants to fight you.
Well, it's just that, you see, uh...
I fight in clubs, you know.
I'm really a ham-and-egger.
This guy... he's the best, and, uh,
it wouldn't be such a good fight.
But thank you very much,
you know.
I appreciate it and all that.
Rocky? Do you believe that America
is the land of opportunity?
Yeah.
Apollo Creed does.
And he's gonna prove it
to the whole world
by giving an unknown
a shot at the title.
And that unknown is you.
He picked you, Rocky.
Rocky, it's the chance
of a lifetime.
You can't pass it by.
What do you say?
All right, fellas, fellas.
That's enough pictures.
We wanna ask Apollo
a few questions.
Apollo, how do you like
the city of brotherly love?
Well, just being in Philadelphia
makes me feel patriotic.
Beautiful people in a beautiful city
comin' up to me on the street
wishing me the best.
I love my Philadelphia brothers,
and I'm proud to be an American.
Champ, Apollo,
why did you agree to fight a man
who has virtually
no chance of winning?
Look, if history proves one thing,
American history proves
that everybody's got a chance to win.
Didn't you guys ever hear
of Valley Forge or Bunker Hill?
- Apollo, Apollo, Apollo.
- Yes?
It is a coincidence
that you're fighting a white man
on the most celebrated day
in the country's history?
I don't know about that.
Is it a coincidence
that he's fighting a black man
on the most celebrated day
in the country's history?
Right on!
Tell the truth, brother!
Listen, Apollo, tell me... how do you
feel about your challenger?
- How do I feel about him?
- Yeah.
What do you mean?
Come here, Rock.
My main man,
Rocky, ain't you Italian?
Yeah, I'm Italian.
Well, now, what does that mean?
It means if he can't fight,
I bet he can cook.
All right, Rocky.
Do me a favor.
His lungs... punch 'em out.
Paulie.
But, Rocky, how do you expect
to fight Apollo Creed?
Uh, well, geez, you know.
Creed's the best.
I guess I'll have to do
the best I can.
Tell me, Rocky,
just between us...
where did you get the name
"Italian Stallion"?
Oh... uh, I invented that
about eight years ago
when I was eatin' dinner.
Rocky, now your payday
will be $150.000.
Any comment?
You... you got no comment,
Rocky, right? No comment.
Right.
Thank you, Rocky.
Wait a minute. I just wanna
say hi to my girlfriend, okay?
- I, uh...
- Yo, Adrian! It's me, Rocky.
Look at this. Can you believe
all this? They put a microphone on me.
- You didn't.
- Thank you, Rocky.
- Quit pushin', man!
- Thank you, Rocky.
Don't it matter he's makin' you
out a fool? I'd break his lips.
- He's taking cheap shots.
- It don't bother me none.
Yo, Rock... I guess you'll be looking
for people to help you out.
- Help in what?
- Keep you livin' the clean life.
I'll do okay. You know.
You need someone to help
with the exercise,
and someone standing by with a towel,
or runnin' errands. You know.
Hey, yo, Paulie, who cared
about me yesterday, huh? Nobody.
So I just think I'm
gonna train myself, you know.
Without such good people
around to help,
you don't have
such a good chance.
Einstein flunked out of school twice.
That so?
Yeah.
Beethoven was deaf.
Helen Keller was blind.
I think Rocky's
got a good chance.
Want me to get you
a beer, Paulie?
Hey, you lookin' to do a good deed?
Keep out of my freakin' life!
- What'd I do?
- Nothin'.
- What? Did I say something wrong?
- You didn't say nothin'. It's all right.
That's right... you didn't say nothin'!
Nothin' at all!
- I gotta go.
- Oh.
Where's the freakin' pretzels?!
I got the pretzels!
Hey! We ain't got any beer?
I thought you were supposed
to pick up some beer.
How'd you like hearing
your name on TV tonight?
I was shocked.
Why'd you do that?
Come on.
You're puttin' me on, right?
Absolutely.
What time should I expect you?
Oh, about 7:00.
Hey.
Hey...
You know how I said that stuff
on TV didn't bother me none?
Yeah.
It did.
Listen, the reason I brought you here
is because, uh...
I wanna know if you got any money
for training expenses, eh?
I got a few dollars.
A few bucks? Well, here.
Put this in your glove.
- What's this?
- 500 bucks. Don't worry about it.
You know, you ain't never
had any luck,
but I think this time Lady Luck may be
in your corner. What do you think?
Maybe. Maybe.
Hey, thanks for the money,
Tony, you know.
It's okay. Don't worry about it.
See ya, all right?
- Hey, wait a minute.
- What?
You're in training, huh?
Come on.
Hey.
- Yo, Tony.
- What?
You gonna show up at the fight?
Ringside.
Hey, ey.
I'll see ya.
Yeah?
Hello, kid. I seen your light.
Can I come in?
- Yeah, sure.
- Yeah, good.
Hey, it's a nice place here.
All right, anyway,
what I come to tell you is that, uh...
that what happened to you
is freak luck.
- Yeah, freak luck.
- Ain't it true? Look at the other guys.
Now, they're good fighters, right?
They're colorful, they got good records.
They fight their guts out
for peanuts.
But you...
you get a shot at the title.
Freak luck is a strange thing.
Yeah, sure it is.
Can I sit down?
Yeah, sure.
What the hell are those?
Oh, those are domestic turtles.
The one on the top is Cuff
and the other guy's Link.
The rest of them are marbles.
Yeah? They make good soup,
don't they?
Anyway, look... I'm here to warn ya
that you gotta be very careful
about this shot
that you got at the title,
because, I don't know,
like the Bible says...
you ain't gonna get
a second chance.
Yeah. All right.
You thought of that, huh?
Well, what you need
is a manager.
A manager.
Listen to me.
I know because I've been
in this racket for 50 years.
- 50 years, huh?
- 50 years.
God, I've seen it all.
All of it.
- You know what I done?
- What?
I have done it all.
You shoulda seen me when I
knocked Giny Russo outta the ring.
Outta the goddamn ring.
That's, uh, September the 14th, 1923.
And it was the same night that Firpo
knocks Dempsey outta the ring.
The same night. So, who gets
the publicity? Figure that out.
- Dempsey.
- That's right. But why?
- 'Cause he was Champ.
- No! Because he had a manager.
I had nothin', man.
I wanna show you somethin'.
Look at my face for a minute.
Look at this.
I got 21 stitches over this left eye.
I got 34 stitches over this eye.
You know what?
I had my nose busted 17 times.
The last time was
with that fight with Sailor Mike.
I got that clip in here.
That was a good fight.
You wanna read that?
You... oh, it doesn't matter.
Anyway, he put this vegetation
on my ear.
Ah, Rocky Marciano.
You know, you kinda remind me
of the Rock, you know that?
You really think so?
That's right. You move like him,
and you got heart like he did.
Yeah, I got heart,
but I ain't got no locker, do I, Mick?
Uh... anyway,
you know, when I begun
in this business, kid...
Look, kid, I wanna make a suggestion.
Don't drink that piss before a fight.
You know, it's no good for you.
If you don't mind my sayin'.
Anyway, you know,
when I started this racket,
pugs like us,
we was treated like dogs.
For ten bucks,
you gotta tear somebody's throat out.
But I never had no management.
You know...
One time,
this... this son of a bitch that I fought,
he put a nail right there.
- Thumb.
- The thumb, yeah. In the glove.
And he punched
so many holes in my face.
I had the spit
shootin' out of my cheeks.
Can you imagine that?
Anyway, I'll tell ya what I looked like
when I was, uh, in my prime.
I want you to look at some...
will you look at that? Look at that.
That's the way I looked...
before these guys got at me.
That's nice. You take very
good care of the picture, though.
But I never had...
I never had no management...
that's the trouble!
But now I got all this knowledge.
I got it up here.
Now I wanna give it to you!
I wanna give you this knowledge.
I wanna take care of you.
I wanna make sure that all this shit that
happened to me doesn't happen to you.
You know what I mean?
The fight's set.
Listen to me.
I wanna be your manager.
- You follow that, do you?
- The fight's set. I don't need a manager.
But you can't buy
what I'm gonna give you.
I mean, I've got pain
and I've got experience.
Well, I got pain
and I got experience, too.
Listen, kid...
- Hey, yo. Hey, Mick.
- What?
I needed your help about
ten years ago, right? Ten years ago?
- Right.
- You never helped me. You didn't care.
Well, if you wanted help...
I say, if you wanted help,
why didn't you ask?
Why didn't you
just ask me, kid?
Look, I asked,
but you never heard nothin'!
Well, I...
I, uh...
I know I...
I'm 76 years old.
And, uh... well.
Where the hell is...
Took you long enough to get here.
Took you ten years
to come to my house?
Huh, what's the matter?
You don't like my house?
Does my house stink?
That's right... it stinks!
I didn't have no favors from you!
Don't slum around me!
Talkin' about your prime.
What about my prime, Mick?!
At least you had a prime!
I didn't have no prime.
I didn't have nothin'!
Leg's are goin', everything is goin',
Nobody's gettin' no nothin'.
Guy comes up, offers me a fight.
Big deal.
Wanna fight the fight?
Yeah, I'll fight the big fight.
I wouldn't wanna fight. Know what's
gonna happen to me? I'm gonna get that!
I'm gonna get that!
And you wanna be ringside
to see it? Do ya?
You wanna help me out?
Huh? Do you wanna see me
get my face kicked in?!
Legs ain't workin',
nothing's workin',
but they go.
"Go on, fight the champ. "
Yeah, I'll fight him.
Get my face kicked in.
And you come around here.
You wanna move in here with me?!
Come on in!
It's a nice house!
Real nice.
Come on in and move. It stinks!
This whole place stinks.
You wanna help me out?
Well, help me out!
Come on, help me out.
I'm standin' here!
It's only about 28 degrees.
We'll check that forecast in just a minute.
I feel very mischievous.
Very weird. Very...
Well, the thing is,
I got vinyl seats in my car.
When I hit the seats this morning,
I just went. "Whew!"
I'm thinkin', if I'm up,
everybody in the Delaware Valley
should be up. Do you agree with me?
I mean, at three minutes past 4:00,
what else are you gonna do?
- Hello?
- Good morning, Mrs. Kramer.
This is Don Cannon,
W- I-B-G Philadelphia.
- How are you this morning?
- Huh?
- Mrs. Kramer?
- What?!
I think you have a lot of nerve calling me
at this hour in the morning! Goodbye!
W-I-B-G
Philadelphia
Me and Mrs. Kramer are up,
and it's a good morning.
I tell ya, I need someone to snuggle with,
We deserve it. We've been getting away
with murder the last couple weeks.
Our high today could possibly
be 58, and that's it.
Tonight we're back down
on the 20 degree range,
a little colder in the suburbs,
and tomorrow, with a little bit of luck,
we may hit 40 somewhere.
But it's 28, it's awfully chilly.
Make sure you have it
snuggled on before you bring it out.
Come on.
Stinks in... hey, come on.
It stinks in here, you know.
Yeah... I know.
Hey, did you kill all these things?
No. Across the street.
This place is like
an animal morgue, you know?
- It's a little cold in here, ain't it?
- Yeah.
Who killed all these things?
What, are you crazy, Paulie?
If you don't pay Gazzo,
you end up on the hook.
Come on, Gazzo's a good man.
You know that.
Hey, don't get excited.
I know that.
That's why I want you to talk to him
about me... the collectin' job.
Get me out
of this stinkin' freezer.
Why don't you do yourself a favor?
Why don't you keep this job,
because you eat better, you know?
Moo.
Does it ever snow in here?
Uh... you and my sister.
How you gettin' along together?
How do you think?
Well, I'm not sure, Rock.
What's the story?
About what?
What's the story?
What's happening?
Do you really like her?
Sure, I like her.
I don't see it.
What's the attraction?
I don't know.
It fills gaps, I guess.
- What's gaps?
- I don't know. Gaps.
She's got gaps, I got gaps.
Together, we fill gaps. I don't know.
You ballin' her?
Hey.
Hey, you don't talk dirty
about your sister.
Are you screwin' my sister?
You see? That's why I can't connect
you with Gazzo, you know that, Paulie?
Because you got a big mouth,
you know. You just talk too much.
It's gettin' cold in here.
I'm going home.
Cold in here?!
It is cold in here!
It stinks in here,
and you stink!
Hey, you're breakin' the ribs.
If you do that to Apollo Creed,
they'll put us in jail for murder.
I'll see ya tomorrow morning, okay?
- I turned the heat up.
- Thanks.
You know, your brother's a good man,
but he's awful pushy, you know?
- You want me to rub you down?
- No, I'm just... I'm just sore, okay?
I'll just... just sit here.
- You sure?
- Yeah, I'm sure.
Hey, come on.
No foolin' around, all right?
I'm tired.
Hey, Adrian,
I'm serious now.
There's no foolin' around during training,
understand? I wanna stay strong.
- You're not kiddin'?
- No, I ain't kiddin'.
- You sure?
- Yeah, I'm sure.
Listen, why don't you
just make the meat, okay?
Okay, I'll make the meat.
Yo.
- It's okay.
- I'm sorry.
Hey.
Right, right.
Left, left.
Underneath.
Come on, underneath.
Underneath, underneath,
underneath. Come on!
Hold it. Hold it.
Hold it, Rock, will ya?
You drive me crazy.
You're so sloppy
because you're off balance.
Let's try this. Now, take this string.
Tie it to both ankles.
Leave about two feet of slack.
I ain't never had good footwork.
Never mind footwork.
Now you're all balanced.
Marciano had the same problem,
and this string cured it.
Here's the idea...
that if you can move and you can hit
without breaking the string,
you got balance.
You become
a very dangerous person.
- You follow?
- You're lookin' good, Rock.
- Thanks.
- Let's go.
That's it. That's it.
Underneath.
- Hey, Rock.
- What?
- How 'bout you give us your autograph?
- Get outta here!
Don't you ever interrupt me
while I'm conducting business.
Move your little
chicken asses out of here.
Listen, kid. You!
You lay off that pet shop dame.
Women weaken legs.
Yeah, but I really like
this girl, you know?
Then let her train ya!
- Okay, no more foolin' around.
- Okay. Now hit it.
Women weaken legs, huh?
- Yo, Rock.
- Yo, Rocky.
Yo.
Yo.
Yo, you look great.
- Really?
- Oh, yeah.
Terrific. I mean,
you could be a heartbreaker.
You'll walk down the street
breaking hearts,
the way you're lookin'...
very sharp.
I got... I got another surprise for you.
What?
Hey, Butkus! Hey, Butkus!
Come here, kid! Come here!
To keep you company
when you run.
Come on in and meet the family.
The owner ever come back?
- He's yours. He's yours if you want him.
- Do I want him? Come here!
What's he eat... this dog?
- He eats little turtles.
- Yo, Butkus!
What's that, Butkus, huh?
Whose truck is this? Come on.
One call from me,
you're a celebrity.
- You're gonna need exposure.
- Oh, don't breathe on me, Paulie!
That's the big time!
Don't I know about these things?
You don't know nothin'!
What do these guys want from me?
To watch you train! Boom.
What is the matter with you, Paulie?
This was supposed to be private.
- I'm doin' you a favor!
- You ain't doin' me no favors!
You're embarrassin' me
in front of everybody,
you make me look bad
in front of your sister...
You see this cigar? I'll stick it
in your ear. Don't do these things to me!
You should've called me up
or something... leave a message.
Don't do that!
My sister really likes you.
I'm gonna kill you one of these days,
I swear to God!
Come on. Come on.
- Baby!
- Baby.
Here he is, the next
heavyweight champ, Rocky Balboa!
Hi, there. Rocky Balboa.
Listen, we wanna get a brief interview
with you. It won't take long.
- What about me?
- What about you?
- I'm in charge of the meat.
- Fine. Will you stand behind it, please?
Listen, just settle yourself in.
Just relax.
What we're going to do is
just ask you a few questions, Rocky.
Just a few questions
about your unique training method.
Talk to the folks at home.
They really wanna know
how you got into this.
I mean, this isn't an everyday thing.
Jimmy, you guys ready?
Let's roll.
Rocky, why don't you turn
right around here.
Just don't take no cheap shots,
you know?
No, I won't do that.
Just relax, Rocky.
Today we're here with
heavyweight challenger Rocky Balboa.
- The reason we're standing...
- The meat guy's stickin' his face in.
Let's try it again, Rocky.
Today we're here with
heavyweight challenger Rocky Balboa.
The reason we're standing
in this refrigerated box
is that Mr. Balboa has
an unusual method of training.
In a moment,
he's going to demonstrate that
for the viewing audience at home.
But first, Rocky, how did you
come to train in an icebox?
Uh, well, my friend...
the guy over there...
let me in one day and I hit
the beef here and kinda liked it.
And since I become a challenger,
the owner don't mind that I come in.
Is this a common training method?
Do other fighters pound raw meat?
No, I think I invented it.
Don't forget to confirm the reservation
for my people at ringside,
and be sure
to fly my barber to Philly.
How much is being channeled into
West Coast closed circuit advertising?
- $300,000.
- Make it 450.
And send the mayor's wife
and make sure we get a picture
of it for all the newspapers.
Do you wanna run
the 15 radio spots in the Midwest?
I think you could spend your money
better in Canadian publicity.
By the way... I've got
a couple of friends up in Toronto
who'd probably be able
to get you a good tax break.
George, I like your friends.
Hey, Champ...
you oughta come look at this boy
you're gonna fight on TV.
Looks like he means business.
Yeah, I mean business, too.
Shirley, we got
any more coffee out there?
Oh, certainly, Mr. Creed.
I'll get you some right away.
After the fight, I may just retire
and run for emperor.
The arena's
the only program concession,
and the gross rental of the arena
is gonna include the 400 ushers, right?
Diana Lewis, in the meat house
with southpaw Rocky Balboa.
And he called the reporters?
Yeah, it threw
my whole training schedule off.
Don't be mad at him.
He's just trying to help.
Adrian, I ain't mad,
it's just that, uh,
when a reporter's around,
I get out of joint
'cause they take cheap shots,
and Paulie knows that.
Paulie keeps askin' me
for a job all the time,
but he don't know nothin'
about fightin'.
Are you gonna say
anything to him?
What's to say? I just don't know
what he wants from me.
I don't want nothin' from you.
I don't want nothin' from you.
This ain't no charity case.
Get outta my house.
It's not just your house.
You ain't no friend no more.
- Get out of my house, I just says.
- Don't talk to him like that.
Both of you get out of my house.
Yo.
It's cold outside, Paulie.
I don't want you messin' her,
and I don't raise you
to go with this scum bum!
Come on! Wanna hit on me?
Come on!
I'll break both your arms
so they don't work for ya!
That's right! I'm not good enough
to meet with Gazzo...
That's what I think of Gazzo!
Now you're a big-shot fighter
on your way up,
you don't even throw a crumb
to your friend Paulie!
When I go
and get you meat every morning!
You forgot that!
Then I even give you my sister, too!
- Only a pig would say that!
- I'm a pig?
A pig gives you the best?
You're such a loser!
I don't get married because of you!
You can't live by yourself!
I put you two together!
And you... don't you forget it!
You owe me!
- You owe me!
- What do I owe you?!
You're supposed
to be good to me.
What do I owe you, Paulie?!
What do I owe ya?!
I treat you good!
I cook for you, I clean for you,
I pick up your dirty clothes!
I take care of you, Paulie!
I don't owe you nothin'!
And you made me feel
like a loser!
I'm not a loser!
- You're busted!
- What?!
You're not a virgin!
You let him into your pants!
She's busted!
I can't haul meat no more!
You want a roommate?
Absolutely.
Okay, now, when you
walk into the ring
with the number one
heavyweight of the world,
you'll be ready, won't ya?
Why? Because I waited
for 50 years to make you ready.
You'll be able to spit nails, kid.
Like the guy says,
you're gonna eat lightning
and you're gonna crap thunder.
You're gonna become
a very dangerous person.
- Yo, Mickey.
- Hey! How are ya?
Oh, Rock. I want you to meet
our cutman here, Al Salvani.
- Take a look at his eye.
- How're you doin'?
- That's right.
- It ain't bad. I seen worse.
You ain't so bad yourself.
- Cover up. Things'll be okay.
- Cover up? You cover up.
Go and take a shower, will ya?
Okay, Mick.
I'll see ya tomorrow.
You covered that Whitmar fight,
didn't you?
That's why you wanted me.
Listen, we got a winner here!
We got a chance!
He goes to the body
like nobody you've ever seen.
You just stand by, boy.
We're gonna win.
Hey, Rock,
It's okay I talk to ya?
Okay you talk to me?
Sure.
I figured some angle
to make some money off your name.
My name?
- How's that?
- Advertisin'. I know about that stuff.
What do you know
about advertisin'? Huh?
Hey, you can make money
off my name, make it, okay?
I'm gonna take a shower.
- Wanna help me off with these?
- Sure.
Trying hard now
It's so hard now
Trying hard now
You're gonna kill him!
Getting strong now
Won't be long now
Getting strong now
Gonna fly now
Flying high now
Gonna fly
Fly
Fly
Rocky.
What brings you here tonight?
Mr. Jergens,
the poster's wrong.
What do you mean?
Well, I'm wearin' white pants
with a red stripe.
It doesn't really matter,
does it?
I'm sure you're gonna give us
a great show.
Try to get some rest, kid.
Good night.
I can't do it.
What?
I can't beat him.
Apollo?
Yeah.
I've been out there
walkin' around, thinkin'.
I mean, who am I kiddin'?
I ain't even in the guy's league.
What are we gonna do?
I don't know.
You worked so hard.
It don't matter,
'cause I was nobody before.
Don't say that.
Oh, come on, Adrian.
It's true.
I was nobody.
But it don't matter either,
you know?
So, I was thinkin'...
It really don't matter
if I lose this fight.
It really don't matter
if this guy opens my head, either.
'Cause all I wanna do
is go the distance.
Nobody's ever
gone the distance with Creed.
And if I can go that distance...
...see, if that bell rings
and I'm still standin'...
...I'm gonna know
for the first time in my life, you see...
...that I weren't just another bum
from the neighborhood.
Time, kid.
Let's go.
I'll wait for you here.
Or how 'bout I wait here
and you fight, huh?
You're lookin' very great today...
you know that?
I gotta go now, but, uh,
don't you leave town, huh?
Wish me luck.
I'm gonna need it.
Good luck.
Say, Adrian, you don't think
this robe is too baggy, huh?
Good luck.
Don't leave town.
I'd like to have you meet my colleague
workin' the fight with me... Stu Hansen.
Thank you, Bill Baldwin.
The electricity is all over
the place tonight as Rocky Balboa...
Hey, what the hell is that?
I trained you to be a fighter,
not a billboard.
- I'm doin' it for a friend.
- What do you get out of it?
Paulie gets three grand,
I get the robe.
Shrewd.
The story about tonight's fight,
their difference in style,
you can quote a recent
sports magazine which said,
"Could be the caveman
against the cavalier. "
I noticed a buzzing
in the background now, Bill.
Could be the challengers
getting ready to get into the ring.
Rocky! Look at my date.
Cost me $200.
- 250.
- I gotta go. I gotta work.
- How's the robe?
- It's a little baggy.
A 50 to 1 underdog
living a Cinderella story,
and he's captured people's
imaginations all over the world.
We love you, Rocky!
- Good luck, champ.
- Hey, thanks for showin' up.
And his record... 44 victories.
He's got 38 by knockout,
and he's lost 20 fights.
Which makes me wonder,
can he stand it...
the stamina and the skill
to last the three rounds?
Because Las Vegas odds say no.
Rocky Balboa
climbing into the ring now.
The Italian Stallion.
Some meat sign
on the back of his robe there.
Have you seen what that was?
Shamrock Meats, Inc.
A lot of noise coming from the back.
You could go deaf with that noise.
You have the spotlights.
Is that the world
heavyweight champion Apollo Creed?
He's in a boat... riding in a boat.
Is he supposed
to be George Washington?
Obviously so. He's got the hat on,
the whole thing. Look at that.
It's been confirmed.
The world champion Apollo Creed
is doing an imitation
of George Washington.
- He's throwing money.
- I don't believe it.
Remember we were talking about
George Washington throwing the dollar?
Throwing the dollar.
'Course, if you threw a dollar
in those days, it went a lot farther.
Oh, he's taking his...
White wig came off,
the hat came off.
And the crowd is loving
every minute of it... look at that.
Here is the world
heavyweight champion.
Apollo Creed...
for you around the world
he was dressed as George Washington,
the father of our country.
I want you!
Oh! Look at that!
Uncle Sam himself.
I want you!
All of you!
"All of you. " he's saying.
He looks like a big flag.
I want you.
You.
- Is he talkin' to me?
- He's talkin' to you.
- Is he talkin' to me?
- Let him talk while he can talk.
I want the Stallion!
He says, "I want the Stallion.
I want the Stallion. "
In foreign countries,
during WWI,
there was the picture of Uncle Sam
with his finger pointed like that.
A recruiting poster for our fellows
in the service... the Army and the Navy.
- "I want you. "
- That's what he's doing a take of.
- There he is.
- That's it, Creed.
Creed in three.
What do you think
that outfit cost?
Ladies and gentlemen...
Good evening.
A very happy New Year.
Welcome to Philadelphia.
Well, everybody who's anybody
is here tonight.
Time...
Time does not permit me to introduce
the many luminaries of politics,
show business, and the sporting world
who are with us tonight.
But I would like to present
one of the immortals of pugilism,
a champion
in and out of the ring,
Philadelphia's own Smoking Joe,
the beloved Mr. Joe Frazier!
How you doin'?
Don't hurt him, okay?
Go light on him.
Come on, now.
...he's been in his career
as a fighter.
Now he's coming over
to talk to the Champ.
- Hey, how 'bout that?
- Hey, Joe.
- You've been ducking me long time.
- No, Joe. You're next, Joe.
- I want you, you understand?
- You're next, Joe!
They must be friends.
Joe Frazier!
The fight is on the way. Settle down
because it won't be long now.
And now...
for the main event.
The challenger,
white trunks,
weighing 190 pounds,
Philadelphia's favorite son,
The Italian Stallion,
Rocky Balboa.
And on my right,
wearing red, white and blue,
weighing 210 pounds,
undefeated in 46 fights,
the master of disaster,
the undisputed,
heavyweight champion of the world
Apollo Creed.
I want you and you.
You. You.
You, chump.
I want you!
You boys both fought in Philadelphia
before, and you know the rules.
No low blows,
watch your heads, no butting.
Shake hands now
and come out fightin'.
Put your hands up there, chump.
- Come out fightin'.
- Come on. Come on.
Rocky's takin' it carefully.
He's just going over and being calm,
it looks like from here.
There goes the big hat.
I've never seen a fighter
that concerned about his hair.
And there's the bell
for round one.
The fighters come into the center
of the ring, looking at each other.
Rocky just looking.
The Champion gives one
of the left-handed jabs right there.
The Champ's stinging,
the slower challenger jabs at will.
In fact, it just looks like Rocky's
blocking the blows with his face.
The Champion doesn't look
the best he's ever been,
but he's really moving now.
Well, the Champion
is smiling now.
He's toying with this man.
Trying to give the fans
their money's worth.
He's very clearly outdoing
the challenger right now.
I'll get you. Come on.
He's just trying to make this man
make him... see! Make him miss like that.
Oh, the Champ
is just taunting him now.
He's dancing around.
I don't believe it!
- The Champ is down.
- Yes, he is!
Creed is down!
What a surprise this is!
This is the first time the Champion
has ever been knocked down.
Six... seven... eight.
Appears to be all right.
A little glassy-eyed, but okay.
Let's go to work right now, Rock!
Come on!
Now Rocky coming back out,
and he's like a bull in a china closet.
He really wants it.
Boy, the Champion's
coming back.
He's coming off the floor now,
and he's trying...
A left, a right, another left,
another right, combination!
Into the face!
And that's the Apollo we know.
Now he's taunting him.
He's taunting Rocky.
"Come on, let's go. "
Left. There's another left.
Another left.
There!
Left and right.
Rocky's got him on the rope!
Come on.
Okay, break.
Punch. Hit me. Hit me.
I tell you, there's no way we expected
this kind of hitting from him.
Oh, no way,
but with the ability of the Champion...
Apollo unloading a left, really
trying to get him up against the ropes.
They're leading him over to his corner.
Rocky can hardly find his way.
He's sitting down now.
I told ya! I told ya!
Your nose is broke.
- How's it look?
- Ah, it's an improvement.
I want you to quit chuckin' and jivin'.
I want you to stick and move.
Go for the ribs.
Don't let that bastard breathe.
The guy's great.
He doesn't know it's a damn show.
He thinks it's a damn fight.
Finish this bum and let's go home.
Stay to the body. The body!
You're doing great!
Creed got knocked down
at the end of the first.
He came back strong at the end
of the first, but he's working hard.
A smart left.
Another left and a right.
And now coming
into the corner again.
Oh, Balboa's taking
a tremendous beating here.
Oh, come on, man. Can't you fight?
Stop clownin' around here
and give these people something to see.
He says he wants him!
If you folks aren't aware... you're
watching a battle... I tell you that.
Balboa trying to fight back.
Oh! He tagged the Champ
with a tremendous hook!
The Champion is trying
to get himself out of there,
but he just can't do it.
He is being barraged with lefts
and rights to the head, to the body.
Balboa is smacking the Champion
right on the kisser.
And the referee's... they're ready
to keep going. Look at that!
- Back to your corner.
- Put that chump back in his corner.
- Come on, Creed.
- Balboa doesn't want to quit. Hey.
This is gonna be a tough one.
Now he's got him. A left.
A hard left
and a right combination.
What is keeping him up, Bill?
I don't know.
He can't even get his gloves up
to protect himself.
He needs to stop, Bill.
Down! Down!
Stay down!
Apollo dancing around
with his arms in the air.
...five... six...
seven... eight... nine...
Apollo can't believe it.
The Champion got a left
to the ribs... his right rib.
Oh, this has been
a tremendous...
- Okay, Champ?
- Yeah, I'm okay. I'm okay.
It hurts, though.
He broke my rib.
I can't see nothin'.
You gotta open my eye.
- Cut me, Mick.
- I don't wanna do it!
Go on, cut me.
Cut me.
Try it.
Oh, God.
You're bleeding inside, Champ.
I'm gonna stop the fight, understand?
You ain't stoppin' nothin', man.
You ain't stoppin' nothin'.
- You stop this fight, I'll kill ya.
- All right.
- Go if you wanna go.
- I'm goin'.
You gotta go.
You gotta give it all. Give it all!
You gotta get him.
You gotta work on that body.
The crowd is on fire.
The 15th and final round.
They look like they've been
in a war... these two.
Oh, the Champion
really tagged him!
And Apollo clearly protecting
his right side... his ribs.
Hard left and right!
- Look at the blood coming from his face.
- Oh, he's spitting up blood now.
A tremendous right hand by Rocky.
Go for it! Go for it, Rock!
Listen to this crowd!
Oh! Another to the rib.
That left hand again right to the chin!
Oh! He's got him
up against the ropes!
Apollo the Champ.
Ain't gonna be no rematch.
Ain't gonna be no rematch.
Don't want one.
Rocky, you went the 15 rounds.
How do you feel?
I feel all right.
What were you thinking about
when that buzzer sounded?
Adrian!
What? Adrian!
Rocky?
Rocky?
Ladies and gentlemen,
your attention, please...
Rocky?
Rocky!
You've had the privilege
of witnessing the greatest exhibition
of guts and stamina
in the history of the ring.
Adrian!
Rocky!
Ladies and gentlemen,
we have a split decision.
Adrian!
Rocky!
...for Creed.
- No plans out there for a rematch?
- Ain't gonna be a rematch.
Oh, come on.
I don't know yet, okay?
You heard him, ladies and...
Rocko! That's my friend. Rocko!
- Hey, you're breakin' the jacket.
- Let's go, Buddy. Come on.
Paulie?
- Adrian? Adrian!
- Rocky!
Adrian!
Hey, where's your hat?
I love you.
- I love you!
- I love you.
I love you.
I love you.