(SOUNDBITE OF BILL CONTI SONG, "GONNA FLY NOW (THEME FROM "ROCKY")")
SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
Forty-eight years ago, the ultimate sports underdog movie was a long shot itself. "Rocky," starring a guy named Sylvester Stallone, was a small, low-budget film about a down-and-out prize fighter with a one-in-a-million shot at the world title.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ROCKY")
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (As fight commentator) Rocky's right. Rocky's got him on the level.
SIMON: "Rocky" beat cinematic heavyweights to win the best picture Oscar in 1977. The "Rocky" franchise now includes five sequels, three installments of the spin-off, "Creed," many, many training montages, and still, one of the most recognizable theme songs ever...
(SOUNDBITE OF BILL CONTI SONG, "GONNA FLY NOW (THEME FROM "ROCKY")")
SIMON: ...This one not written by BJ Leiderman, who does our theme music. Last year, Rocky's hometown opened a new visitor center near the famous Rocky statue outside the Philadelphia Art Museum steps. Rocky himself, Sylvester Stallone, came to cut the ribbon. That day, December 3, just happened to be the date of the release of the original "Rocky" film. Kathryn Ott Lovell is the president and CEO of the Philadelphia Visitor Center.
KATHRYN OTT LOVELL: So we were like, wow, let's ask our elected officials to name this Rocky Day forevermore in Philadelphia.
(SOUNDBITE OF SURVIVOR SONG, "EYE OF THE TIGER")
SIMON: News of Rocky Day spread across the globe.
LOVELL: We were in the Parkway Visitor Center and Rocky shop at the base of the steps the day before Rocky Day. And the amount of people coming into that shop - it was thousands of people, and they all just kept telling us they were there for Rocky Day. And honestly, I had a little panic attack because I was like, we made it up (laughter). Rocky Day isn't really a thing.
SIMON: It was such a thing. The Philadelphia Visitor Center announced this week that Rocky Day is now Rocky Fest, nearly a weeklong celebration. Fans can take a 90-minute bus tour of and see the sights of some of the most famous scenes in "Rocky," like Mighty Mick's famous gym...
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ROCKY")
BURGESS MEREDITH: (As Mickey) You lay off that pet shop dame. Women weaken legs.
SYLVESTER STALLONE: (As Rocky) Yeah. But I really like this girl, you know?
MEREDITH: (As Mickey) Then let her train ya.
SIMON: ...And the church where Rocky was blessed before the fight, and for romance.
(SOUNDBITE OF BILL CONTI'S "FIRST DATE")
SIMON: Rocky date night was at the Penn Ice Rink, where Rocky and Adrian had their first date on the ice.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ROCKY")
TALIA SHIRE: (As Adrian) Aren't you skating?
STALLONE: (As Rocky) I ain't skated since I was 15. You know, that's when I started fighting, when I was 15. Skating's kind of bad for the ankles, you know?
SIMON: You can bring your partner, stick around, find a new one during the speed skating - speed dating hour.
LOVELL: So that folks can hopefully meet their own Rocky or Adrian that night.
SIMON: Philadelphia is rich with American history, and that includes and now commemorates - ladies and gentlemen in this corner, the perpetual underdog challenger, Rocky Balboa. Kathryn Ott Lovell of the Philadelphia Visitor Center says...
LOVELL: They're coming to Philadelphia not because, you know, we are the birthplace of democracy (laughter), and because of Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. They're coming because of this fictional figure that means something to them.
SIMON: Rocky Fest will run from December 3 to the 8, and if you could go the distance and be there every day, you, too, can say...
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ROCKY")
STALLONE: (As Rocky) Yo Adrian. Adrian.
(SOUNDBITE OF BILL CONTI SONG, "GONNA FLY NOW (THEME FROM "ROCKY")") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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