The movie Rocky (1976) was born from Sylvester Stallone’s struggles as an actor and his inspiration from a 1975 boxing match between Muhammad Ali and underdog Chuck Wepner, who lasted 15 rounds against the champ. Stallone wrote the script in three days, channeling his own frustrations into Rocky Balboa, a small-time Philadelphia boxer given a shot at the heavyweight title, and fought to star in the film despite producers’ initial preference for a bigger name, securing the role on a $1 million bu

On January 1st, 1976, Rocky Balboa fought Apollo Creed for the first time in the Academy Award-winning film "Rocky." | IMDb