Scene of the Week: Living in America
Why do we so fondly remember the character Apollo Creed? Is it because he was a world champion boxer? Or is it because he was a bombastic showman? I can’t help but think that the late great Muhammad Ali was at least one of the people that Carl Weathers looked to for inspiration as he was bringing the Apollo Creed character to life in the first four films in the Rocky franchise.
Apollo Creed was not only a great boxer, he knew how great he was. Creed brought the sizzle and the steak whenever he made a public appearance. But there was never more sizzle than Apollo’s grand entrance in Rocky IV. Creed was coming out of retirement to compete in a special exhibition match with Russia’s top boxer, Ivan Drago. And Apollo Creed just wasn’t coming back, he was coming back in grand style with an entrance that included an elaborate set, dancing girls and “The Godfather of Soul” himself, James Brown. Brown sings his Grammy Award winning song “Living in America” as Apollo makes his way to the ring.
Get ready to wave your flags as we relive one of the greatest entrances in the history of sports (at least sports movies) and try not to think about how the fight actually ends, you’ll just depress yourself…
