Sylvester Stallone at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood
Sylvester Stallone helped celebrate Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's 90th anniversary yesterday (22.01.14).
The 'Rocky' movies legend was present as Leo the Lion - the symbol of the MGM group, who can be seen roaring at the start of all their movies - cast his paws in cement outside the iconic TCL Chinese Theatre IMAX in Hollywood.
He told BANG Showbiz: "Once upon a time this amazing studio employed the finest creative minds in showbusiness. The most accomplished writers, actors, celebrated directors and producers found a home at MGM. I did and I was lucky enough to show up with this guy we called Rocky Balboa, and the character was born under the MGM banner.
"We may have had the 'Eye Of The Tiger', but it was the lion that put us on the map and made it all happen."
Leo - a live trained adult male lion - then set his paws in wet cement, a Chinese Theatre Hollywood tradition, which sees him follow such luminaries as George Clooney, Matt Damon, Marilyn Monroe and Ben Stiller.
Addressing the crowd, MGM CEO Gary Barber added: "Sylvester Stallone's contributions to MGM and the company's legacy cannot be overstated. Rocky Balboa is a symbol of perseverance, resilience, unrivalled stamina and love. Almost 40 years ago MGM's United Artists released the first 'Rocky' film, which became an instant classic. The film received 10 Oscar nominations received Best Picture. Thank you Sly for being such a strong supporter of MGM and a good friend of ours.
"As we move forward in the next chapter for MGM, we're invigorated by our recent successes and look ahead to continue the excitement in the near future, including the upcoming releases of 'Robocop', 'Hercules', '22 Jump Street' and he third film in the enormously successful 'Hobbit' trilogy ... Join us, as we celebrate MGM's 90th."
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