"Rocky" may move to Philadelphia Art Museum steps

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - A statue of fictional boxer Rocky Balboa may move to the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum, where the character played by Sylvester Stallone famously ran while training for a fight.

The city's Art Commission was set to vote on Wednesday whether the 8-foot, 6-inch bronze statue of Rocky, his arms raised over his head in victory, should be brought out of storage and placed at the museum steps.

Where to put the statue has been debated in Philadelphia since Stallone donated it in 1982 after the filming of "Rocky III."

The art museum refused the gift and the statue spent two decades outside the Spectrum, a sports arena in South Philadelphia. More recently, it has been in storage since it was used in the latest movie in the "Rocky" saga, the yet-to-be-released "Rocky Balboa."

Under the proposal by the city's Department of Public Property, the statue would be placed at the bottom of the steps, although in the trademark run symbolic of his struggle in the first "Rocky," in 1976, the fighter reached up his arms at the top of the broad steps. Visitors to the museum often run up the same 72 steps, copying the famed scene.

The art panel, a group of nine appointed by the mayor to oversee art and design on the city's public property, was split on the statue's move when it met a month ago, but speculation is it will allow the move after a vote at this week's meeting.

Rocky's character became popular because it "represents the underdog spirit," and people like being reminded of that, said William Burke, a staffer for the Art Commission.

But some members of the commission argue the statue does not qualify as fine art since it was a movie set prop and has no place at one of the nation's top art museums, Burke said.

If the panel votes to allow the move, the statue is expected to be installed in its new location at a ceremony on Friday.