Stallone: 'Richard Gere Blames Me for the Gerbil Rumor'
Wednesday December 13, 2006
Via Jeanette Walls: Richard Gere and Sylvester Stallone so disliked each other when they were both working on the set of The Lords of Flatbush, said Stallone in a recent Q & A session with readers of Ain't It Cool News, that the two came to blows, leaving the director no option but to fire one of them.
"Richard was given his walking papers and to this day seriously dislikes me," Stallone mused. "He even thinks I’m the individual responsible for the gerbil rumor. Not true... but that’s the rumor."
"Richard was given his walking papers and to this day seriously dislikes me," Stallone mused. "He even thinks I’m the individual responsible for the gerbil rumor. Not true... but that’s the rumor."
Comments
Back in the mid 80’s when i was still in High School a derivative of this legend was going around. Back then the person in the lead was Jerry Penacoli of Extra. When the rumor went around Jerry was still a newscaster on NBC in the Philly area. Jokes about the story went around. People claimed that people they knew had first hand knowledge of this, while others protested for the hoax it was. Penacoli casted our news for years after that rumor, and went onto to more national fame. Oddly enough ten years back I moved to the Cincinnati area, when i first got here the same thing was said to have been said about one of the local news guys here and it would have been close to the same time people in my area were claiming the newscaster in question was Penacoli.
I was a dinner party in West Hollywood in 1991 or ‘92 when a woman came in late. She was a nurse at California Hospital and said she was late because Richard Gere came in and needed emergency surgery to remove a “hamster” from his ass.
Everyone laughed and suggested the nurse call the National Enquirer and see if she can get any money for the story. I don’t know if she did or not.
I swear all this happened BEFORE the story came out in the media. In fact, when I first read about Richard Gere and a gerbil I was shocked because I remembered the dinner party. I really believe this incident did indeed happen and the fact that Gere doesn’t deny (or confirm) speaks volumes.
Mr. Gere…shame on you sir….shame…….An american Tale: Fieval goes West…how about An American Tale 3: Fieval ends up in Richards Geres old man ass. Shame on you sir…shame.
You have to have a serious dent in your skull to believe such a tale…not what Sly said publicly, but what they are accusing Richard Gere of. The things some people are willing to believe as fact is beyond me!
The reason he doesn’t make a comment is because to do so would stir up the pot and be beneath his dignity. Of course it didn’t happen, and I feel sorry for him having to carry this urban legend around! Shame on people who spread these kind of rumors!
I think the real story here is that Stallone blatantly states its a rumor, laying this long-time myth to rest. He and Gere may not have liked each other, but maybe this is a subtle apology for past hostility? After all, he IS saying the gerbil rumor was just that, a nasty rumor started by somebody..just not him. So for the people still buying into the gerbil story…Stallone just told you it’s a load of B.S. =)