Tour Philadelphia with John Avildsen

His most revered work is the Academy Award-winning film  "Rocky" (1976) about a working-class Philadelphia boxer (played by a young, up-and-coming Sylvester Stallone) who takes on the world heavyweight champion.  The city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the sixth largest city in the USA. In "Rocky," the city served as its own cinematic character. “Philadelphia was the heart and soul of the story in a lot of ways because that’s where Rocky came from," he said.

As the film progresses to reveal Rocky’s character and the love story, Philadelphia plays a starring role in the backdrop. The famous scene where Stallone’s character victoriously runs up the 72 stone stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art (now referred to as the “Rocky Steps”) helped put the city on the map – thanks to the help of cinematographer Garrett Brown and composer Bill Conti’s uplifting music. Today, visitors from near and far continue the tradition and run up those same stairs. 

It's a beautiful town. It's got a lot of old buildings that are beautifully maintained with a lot of character... It's a very American city.

Historically, Philadelphia has played an important role as the place where the original 13 colonies joined together to declare independence from King George III of Great Britain.  Today, Avildsen appreciates Philadelphia’s iconic nature, beautifully maintained old buildings and elevated bridges.  He calls attention to Liberty Bell and Independence Hall where both the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence were written, a popular site for visitors today. 

Even though it’s the sixth largest city in the U.S., Avildsen refers to scenic Philadelphia as unique, beautiful and “just the right size.” When he was filming "Rocky," he said he “couldn’t have asked for a better location.”  To this day, a life-size statue of the fictional Rocky stands erect next to the Philadelphia Museum of Art for all to see.