Sylvester Stallone Success Story Sylvester Stallone’s story is one that has inspired many. From the depths of the Hollywood blacklist to his status as a household name, the actor and writer is a true success story. His Rocky movies and Rambo series are some of the most famous films in history and he went on to become a celebrated director, businessman, philanthropist and author. Today, in his late 70’s, Sylvester Stallone remains one of the world’s best-known actors but his route to success was anything but easy. A Long Way From Hollywood Sylvester Stallone was born in New York City on July 6, 1946, to Jacqueline Labofish and Frank Stallone Sr. His family background is Italian-American and he has two older sisters named Toni and Julie Ann. His mother left her husband when Sly was only three years old, so he moved with his siblings to live with their father’s parents in Washington Heights in northern Manhattan. His story started building dots was an amateur boxer, who won numerous Golden Gloves competitions which was one of the dots that gave him insight into a world that would be his key to success. As we see time and time again in Join Up Dots, the dots are not always clear at the time and can only be referenced as an amazing opportunity later on down the line. He attended high school at DeWitt Clinton High School but did not graduate as he had poor grades due to his persistent acting career which began at age 13 when he appeared in several commercials like Johnson & Johnson baby powder commercials or Richfield Oil commercials. He also appeared alongside Michael Caine on The Phil Silvers Show (1955) as well as on Mickey Rooney’s variety show where Sylvester got involved with the entertainment industry even further by doing stunt work for movies such as Bullitt (1968). He could see where he was heading and it was obvious to him that he had the talent to make himself a star. However as we find time and time again in life one persons vision of success is not how the world sees it. More often than not the world says “You ain’t going to get this easily but persevere and we’ll see what we can do for you in the future.”