I just finished watching “Rocky II” on AMC.  I’m mesmerized by the Rocky story, both on-screen and off.   Even after watching it for the hundredth time, I still find myself at the beginning of each sequel wondering whether or not Rocky wins the fight at the end, and still yell at the screen “hit him, hit him” long after I remember that yeah, he is gonna land that punch.

At a time in society when I find it difficult to respect or hold in any regard many of the mainstream Hollywood actors or ”celebrities” of the day, Sylvester Stallone is an exception.  He’s more than just another “rags-to-riches” story, he’s a testament of a human spirit so tenacious, so dogged that failure was never an option, even when it was a very real probability during some of his darkest moments.  I envy people like him.  They have a “knowing” in their calling, an unshakeable faith in themselves that surpasses simply trusting in the future; they know without doubt what they’ve come to this earth to accomplish, even when all they can see in front of them is a muddled road riddled with uncertainty. A “knowing.”  What a gift that knowing is, but when success finally sidles up to a doorstep, it’s easy to forget that it often comes with a very large price tag attached.

If you’ve never heard the story of Sylvester Stallone’s “Rise to Rocky,” take a few minutes and listen to Tony Robbins in his own words speak about Sylvester’s triumph over seemingly insurmountable adversity.  Can you imagine a guy so confident in his destiny that as an unknown hungry and more often than not penniless screenwriter, he turned down an initial offer of $125,000 for his script, an offer made while he was so “dead broke” he actually had to resort to selling his beloved dog for $25?  More money than he could have ever imagined at the time was dangled in front of him and refused, all because he would have been denied the right star in his film, something he knew with certitude was part of a much bigger plan.  Subsequent offers of $250,000 and $325,000 followed, again declined by Stallone because he knew, he just knew, that he was born to play Rocky.  Now that’s what we Italians call “appuntamento con il destino,” a true date with destiny.

Most of us are aware of how Sylvester’s career turned out and the success he’s achieved.  But did you also know that when he finally sold his script for the rock-bottom price of $35,000, a price that granted him the exclusive right to play Rocky in the film, one of the first things he did was to track down the man who purchased his dog and pleaded to buy him back, negotiating an inflated fee of $3,000?  “Butkus,” his loyal canine companion went on to his own cameo role in the film as Rocky Balboa’s dog.  I just love a happy ending. Happy 4th of July.  Independence comes to those who stand firm in their beliefs even when it seems hard to do so.

Here’s Tony Robbins talking about about Sylvester Stallone and the Rocky story: