Adultery (also called philandery, anglicized from Latin adulterium) is voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and someone other than the lawful spouse. Religious and legal interpretations of what constitutes adultery vary widely.

The term adultery has an Abrahamic origin, though the concept predates Judaism and is found in many other societies. The definition and consequences vary between religions, cultures, and legal jurisdictions, but the concept is similar in Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism and Islam.^[1]

Historically, adultery has been considered to be a serious offense by many cultures. Even in jurisdictions where adultery is not itself a criminal offense, it may still have legal consequences, particularly in divorce cases. For example, where there is fault-based family law, it almost always constitutes grounds for divorce, it may be a factor to consider in a property settlement, it may affect the status of children, the custody of children, etc. Moreover, adultery can result in social ostracism in some parts of the world.

Overview[link]

The application of the term to the act appears to arise from the idea that "criminal intercourse with a married woman ... tended to adulterate the issue [children] of an innocent husband ... and to expose him to support and provide for another man's [children]".^[2] Thus, the "purity" of the children of a marriage is corrupted, and the inheritance is altered. The law often uses the word "adulterate[d]" to describe contamination of food and the like.^[3]

Three recent studies in the United States, using nationally representative samples, have found that about 10–15% of women and 20–25% of men admitted to having engaged in extramarital sex.^[4][5][6] Other studies in the US have higher numbers (see United States below).

Definitions[link]

In the traditional English common law, adultery was a felony. Although the legal definition of "adultery" differs in nearly every legal system, the common theme is sexual relations outside of marriage, in one form or another.

For example, New York defines an adulterer as a person who "engages in sexual intercourse with another person at a time when he has a living spouse, or the other person has a living spouse."^[7] North Carolina defines adultery as occurring when any man and woman "lewdly and lasciviously associate, bed, and cohabit together."^[8] Minnesota law provides: "when a married woman has sexual intercourse with a man other than her husband, whether married or not, both are guilty of adultery."^[9] As recently as 2001, Virginia prosecuted an attorney, John R. Bushey of Luray, for adultery, a case that ended in a guilty plea and a $125 fine.^[10][11] Adultery is against the governing law of the U.S. military.^[12]

In common-law countries, adultery was also known as "criminal conversation". This became the name of the civil tort arising from adultery, being based upon compensation for the other spouse's injury.^[13] Criminal conversation was usually referred to by lawyers as "crim. con.", and was abolished in England in 1857, and the Republic of Ireland in 1976. Another tort, alienation of affection, arises when one spouse deserts the other for a third person.^[14] This act was also known as desertion, which was often a crime as well.^[15] A small number of jurisdictions still allow suits for criminal conversation and/or alienation of affection.^[16] Because of its abuse, at least one jurisdiction (Nevada) has abolished the tort of alienation of affection and has made it a misdemeanor crime to file such a lawsuit.

A marriage in which both spouses agree ahead of time to accept sexual relations by either partner with others is sometimes referred to as an open marriage or the swinging lifestyle. Both are a form of non-monogamy, and the spouses would not view the sexual relations as adultery, although it could still be considered a crime in some legal jurisdictions.

In Canada, though the written definition in the Divorce Act refers to extramarital relations with someone of the opposite sex, a British Columbia judge used the Civil Marriage Act in a 2005 case to grant a woman a divorce from her husband who had cheated on her with another man, which the judge felt was equal reasoning to dissolve the union.

Prevalence[link]

Durex's Global Sex Survey has found that worldwide 22% of people surveyed have had extramarital sex.^[17][18]

A 2005 scientific review of international published studies of paternal discrepancy found a range in incidence from 0.8% to 30% (median 3.7%), suggesting that the widely quoted figure of 10% of non-paternal events is an overestimate.^[19]

United States[link]

Alfred Kinsey found in his studies that 50% of males and 26% of females had extramarital sex at least once during their lifetime.^[20] Depending on studies, it was estimated that 26–50% of men and 21–38% women,^[21] or 22.7% of men and 11.6% of women, had extramarital sex.^[6] Other authors say that between 20% and 25% of Americans had sex with someone other than their spouse.^[22]

Cultural and religious traditions[link]

Man and woman undergoing public exposure for adultery in Japan, around 1860

Greco-Roman world[link]

In the Greco-Roman world there were stringent laws against adultery, but these applied to sexual intercourse with a married woman. In the early Roman Law the jus tori belonged to the husband. It was therefore not a crime against the wife for a husband to have sex with a slave or an unmarried woman.^[23]

It is well known that the Roman husband often took advantage of his legal immunity. Thus we are told by the historian Spartianus that Verus, the imperial colleague of Marcus Aurelius, did not hesitate to declare to his reproaching wife: "Uxor enim dignitatis nomen est, non voluptatis." ('Wife' connotes rank, not sexual pleasure, or more literally "Wife is the name of dignity, not bliss") (Verus, V).

Later in Roman history, as William E.H. Lecky has shown, the idea that the husband owed a fidelity similar to that demanded of the wife must have gained ground, at least in theory. Lecky gathers from the legal maxim of Ulpian: "It seems most unfair for a man to require from a wife the chastity he does not himself practice".^[24]

The lending of wives practiced among some people was, as Plutarch tells us, encouraged also by Lycurgus, though from a motive other than that which actuated the practice (Plutarch, Lycurgus, XXIX). The recognized license of the Greek husband may be seen in the following passage of the Oration against Neaera, the author of which is uncertain, though it has been attributed to Demosthenes:

We keep mistresses for our pleasures, concubines for constant attendance, and wives to bear us legitimate children and to be our faithful housekeepers. Yet, because of the wrong done to the husband only, the Athenian lawgiver Solon allowed any man to kill an adulterer whom he had taken in the act. (Plutarch, Solon)

The Roman Lex Julian, Lex Iulia de Adulteriis Coercendis (17 BC), punished adultery with banishment ^[25] The two guilty parties were sent to different islands ("dummodo in diversas insulas relegentur"), and part of their property was confiscated.^[25] Fathers were permitted to kill daughters and their partners in adultery. Husbands could kill the partners under certain circumstances and were required to divorce adulterous wives.

Abrahamic religions[link]

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (June 2008)

Biblical sources[link]

The Hebrew Bible (the Tanakh or Old Testament) prohibits adultery in the seventh of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:14). Adultery in traditional Judaism applies equally to both parties, but it only applied in situations where the woman is married (Lev. 20:10). The punishment in the Hebrew bible for adultery is stoning to death.

Christianity[link]

Adultery is considered by Christians to be immoral and a sin, based primarily on passages like 1 Corinthians 6:9–10. Although 1 Corinthians 6:11 does say that "and that is what some of you were. But you were washed", it still acknowledges adultery to be immoral and a sin. The sixth commandment (seventh in some traditions) ("Thou shalt not commit adultery") is also a basis, but see also Biblical law in Christianity.

Jesus taught that indulgence in adulterous thoughts could be just as harmful to the soul as actual adultery, and it is clear that both carry the same weight of guilt:

But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (Matthew 5:28)

and he also says

But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery.(Matthew 5:32)

Some churches have interpreted adultery to include all sexual relationships outside of marriage, regardless of the marital status of the participants.^[26]

Rabbinic Judaism[link]

Adultery in traditional Judaism applies equally to both parties, but depends on the marital status of the woman (Lev. 20:10). Though the Torah prescribes the death penalty for adultery, the legal procedural requirements were very exacting and required the testimony of two witnesses of good character for conviction. The defendant also must have been warned immediately before performing the act.^[27]

At the civil level, however, Jewish law (halakha) forbids a man to continue living with an adulterous wife, and he is obliged to divorce her. Also, an adulteress is not permitted to marry the adulterer, but, to avoid any doubt as to her status as being free to marry another or that of her children, many authorities say he must give her a divorce as if they were married.^[28]

Also, Jewish law recognizes the "law of the land" in these matters, so that if the law of the land has greater restrictions, then they will also apply.^{[citation needed]}

According to Judaism, the Seven laws of Noah apply to all of humankind; these laws prohibit adultery with another man's wife.^[29]

Islam[link]

Zina (زنا) is an Arabic term for illegal intercourse; premarital or extramarital. Various conditions and punishments have been attributed to adultery.

Under Muslim law, adultery in general is sexual intercourse by a person (whether man or woman) with someone to whom they are not married. Adultery is a violation of the marital contract and one of the major sins condemned by God in the Qur'an:

Qur'anic verses prohibiting adultery include:

"Do not go near to adultery. Surely it is a shameful deed and evil, opening roads (to other evils)."^{[Quran 17:32]}

"Say, 'Verily, my Lord has prohibited the shameful deeds, be it open or secret, sins and trespasses against the truth and reason."'^{[Quran 7:33]}

Punishments are reserved to the legal authorities and false accusations are to be punished severely.^[30] It has been said that these legal procedural requirements were instituted to protect women from slander and false accusations: i.e. four witnesses of good character are required for conviction, who were present at that time and saw the deed taking place; and if they saw it they were not of good moral character, as they were looking at naked adults; thus no one can get convicted of adultery unless they both themselves agree and give their confession under oath four times ^[31]

Other historical practices[link]

In Native American cultures, severe penalties could be imposed on an adulterous wife by her husband. In many instances she was made to endure a bodily mutilation which would, in the mind of the aggrieved husband, prevent her from ever being a temptation to other men again.^[32][33]

The Laws of Manu of ancient India, for example, said: "though destitute of virtue or seeking pleasure elsewhere, or devoid of good qualities, yet a husband must be constantly worshiped as a god by a faithful wife"; on the other, hand, "if a wife, proud of the greatness of her relatives or [her own] excellence, violates the duty which she owes to her lord, the king shall cause her to be devoured by dogs in a place frequented by many."^[34]

In England and its successor states, it has been high treason to engage in adultery with the King's wife, his eldest son's wife and his eldest unmarried daughter. The jurist Sir William Blackstone writes that "the plain intention of this law is to guard the Blood Royal from any suspicion of bastardy, whereby the succession to the Crown might be rendered dubious." Adultery was a serious issue when it came to succession to the crown. Philip IV of France had all three of his daughters-in-law imprisoned, two (Margaret of Burgundy and Blanche of Burgundy) on the grounds of adultery and the third (Joan of Burgundy) for being aware of their adulterous behaviour. The two brothers accused of being lovers of the king's daughters-in-law were executed immediately after being arrested. The wife of Philip IV's eldest son bore a daughter, the future Joan II of Navarre, whose paternity and succession rights were disputed all her life.^[35]

Consequences[link]

Criminal penalties[link]

Asia[link]

In some East Asian countries or regions, including North Korea, South Korea and Taiwan,^[36] adultery continues to be a crime. In the Philippines, adultery (defined as consensual sexual intercourse between a married woman and a man who is not her husband) and a related act of concubinage (a man cohabiting with a woman who is not his wife), are considered crimes under the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines. Adultery is not a crime in mainland China, but constitutes grounds for divorce.^[37]

In Pakistan, adultery is a crime under the Hudood Ordinance. The Ordinance sets a maximum penalty of death, although only imprisonment and corporal punishment have ever actually been imposed.^{[citation needed]} The Ordinance has been particularly controversial because it requires a woman making an accusation of rape to provide extremely strong evidence to avoid being charged with adultery herself. A conviction for rape is only possible with evidence from no fewer than four witnesses. In recent years high-profile rape cases in Pakistan have given the Ordinance more exposure than similar laws in other countries.^[38] Similar laws exist in some other Muslim countries, such as Saudi Arabia.

In Indian law, adultery is defined as sex between a man and a woman without the consent of the woman's husband. The man is prosecutable and can be sentenced for up to five years (even if he himself was unmarried) whereas the married woman cannot be jailed.^{[citation needed]} Men have called the law gender discrimination in that women cannot be prosecuted for adultery^[39] and the National Commission of Women has criticized the British era law of being anti-feminist as it treats women as the property of their husbands and has consequentially recommended deletion of the law or reducing it to a civil offense. The Government is yet to act.^[40] Extramarital sex without the consent of one's partner can be a valid grounds for monetary penalty on government employees, as ruled by the Central Administrative Tribunal.^[41]

In Southwest Asia, adultery has attracted severe sanctions, including death penalty. In some places, such as Saudi Arabia,^[42] the method of punishment for adultery is stoning to death. Proving adultery under Muslim law can be a very difficult task as it requires the accuser to produce four eye witnesses to the act of sexual intercourse, each of whom should have a good reputation for truthfulness and honesty. The criminal standards do not apply in the application of social and family consequences of adultery, where the standards of proof are not as exacting.^{[citation needed]}

Europe[link]

Most European countries have decriminalized adultery. Adultery is not a crime in most countries of the European Union, including Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, Finland, Portugal, Italy, Spain, Greece or Sweden.

United States[link]

In the United States, laws vary from state to state. In those states where adultery is still on the statute books (although rarely prosecuted), penalties vary from life sentence (Michigan)^[43] to a $10 fine (Maryland) to a Class B misdemeanor (New York)^[44] to a Class I felony (Wisconsin).^[45]

In the U.S. Military, adultery is a potential court-martial offense.^[12] The enforceability of adultery laws in the United States is unclear following Supreme Court decisions since 1965 relating to privacy and sexual intimacy of consenting adults.^[46] However, occasional prosecutions do occur.^[47]

Other consequences[link]

For various reasons, most couples who marry do so with the expectation of fidelity. Adultery is often seen as a breach of trust and of the commitment that had been made during the act of marriage .^[48] Adultery can be emotionally traumatic for both spouses, and often results in divorce.^[49]

Adultery may lead to ostracization from certain religious or social groups.^[50]

Adultery can also lead to feelings of guilt and jealousy in the person with whom the affair is being committed. In some cases, this "third person" may encourage divorce (either openly or subtly).^[51] If the cheating spouse has hinted at divorce in order to continue the affair, the third person may feel deceived if that does not happen.^[52][53] They may simply withdraw with ongoing feelings of guilt, carry on an obsession with their lover, may choose to reveal the affair, or in rare cases commit violence or other crimes.^[54]

Since adultery can lead to divorce, it may have long-term consequences for children in the family. Children of divorcees are twice as likely to have problems as adults with mental illness, substance abuse, and failed relationships.^[55]

If adultery leads to divorce, it also carries higher financial burdens.^[56] For example, living expenses and taxes are generally cheaper for married couples than for divorced couples.^[57] Legal fees can add up into the tens of thousands of dollars.^[56] Divorced spouses may not qualify for benefits such as health insurance, which must then be paid out-of-pocket.^[58]

Like any sexual contact, adultery may result in sexually-transmitted diseases. Since most married couples do not routinely use barrier contraceptives,^[59] the cheating spouse is very likely to transmit any infection to their unwitting spouse. This is a form of physical victimization that extends beyond the emotional and social consequences often associated with infidelity.^[60] Adultery is still illegal in some jurisdictions, such as Wisconsin, where it is a felony.^[61]

Violence[link]

Inca woman and man to be stoned for adultery, by Huamán Poma

Historically, female adultery often resulted in extreme violence, including murder (of the woman, her lover, or both, committed by her husband). Today domestic violence is outlawed in the Western World, but this is not the case in many developing countries.

Honor killings[link]

Honor killings are often connected to accusations of adultery. Honor killings continue to be legal in parts of the world.

According to the report of the Special Rapporteur submitted to the 58th session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (2002) concerning cultural practices in the family that reflect violence against women (E/CN.4/2002/83):

The Special Rapporteur indicated that there had been contradictory decisions with regard to the honour defense in Brazil, and that legislative provisions allowing for partial or complete defense in that context could be found in the penal codes of Argentina, Ecuador, Egypt, Guatemala, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Peru, Syria, Venezuela and the Palestinian National Authority.^[62]

Part of article 340 of the Penal Code of Jordan states that "he who discovers his wife or one of his female relatives committing adultery and kills, wounds, or injures one of them, is exempted from any penalty."^[63]

In Syria, Article 548 states that "He who catches his wife or one of his ascendants, descendants or sister committing adultery (flagrante delicto) or illegitimate sexual acts with another and he killed or injured one or both of them benefits from an exemption of penalty."

According to the UN in 2002:

"The report of the Special Rapporteur ... concerning cultural practices in the family that are violent towards women (E/CN.4/2002/83), indicated that honour killings had been reported in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Pakistan, the Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey, Yemen, and other Mediterranean and Persian Gulf countries, and that they had also taken place in western countries such as France, Germany and the United Kingdom, within migrant communities."^[62][64]

Stoning[link]

Stoning, or lapidation, refers to a form of capital punishment whereby an organized group throws stones at an individual until the person dies, or (in ancient Judaism) the condemned person is pushed from a platform set high enough above a stone floor that the fall would probably result in instantaneous death.^[65]

Stoning continues to be practiced today, in parts of the world. Recently, several people have been sentenced to death by stoning after being accused of adultery in Iran, Somalia and Afghanistan.^{[66][67][68][69][70][71]}

See also[link]

• Adultery in literature
• Affair
• Crime of passion
• Cuckold
• Emotional affair
• Family therapy (Relationship counseling)
• Fornication
• Honor killing
• Incest
• Incidence of monogamy
• Jesus and the woman taken in adultery
• Mistress
• On-again, off-again relationship
• Open marriage
• Polygyny threshold model
• Polysexuality
• Swinging

References[link]

• Donaldson, Geoff. "The Gay Times of Dustin and Thomas". Dan's Publishing. 2-10. 2009.

Further reading[link]

• McCracken, Peggy (1998). The romance of adultery: queenship and sexual transgression in Old French literature. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 0-8122-3432-4.
• Mathews, J. Dating a Married Man: Memoirs from the "Other Women. 2008. ISBN 1-4404-5004-8.
• Best Practices: Progressive Family Laws in Muslim Countries (August 2005)^{[dead link]}
• Hamowy, Ronald. Medicine and the Crimination of Sin: "Self-Abuse" in 19th Century America. pp2/3
• Moultrup, David J. (1990). Husbands, Wives & Lovers. New York: Guilford Press.
• Glass, S. P., and Wright, T. L. (1992). Justifications for extramarital relationships: The association between attitudes, behaviors, and gender. Journal of Sex Research, 29, 361–387.
• Jack Goody A Comparative Approach to Incest and Adultery The British Journal of Sociology, Vol. 7, No. 4 (Dec., 1956), pp. 286–305 doi:10.2307/586694.
• Pittman, F. (1989). Private Lies. New York: W. W. Norton Co.
• Rubin, A. M., and Adams, J. R. (1986). Outcomes of sexually open marriages. Journal of Sex Research, 22, 311–319.
• Vaughan, P. (1989). The Monogamy Myth. New York: New Market Press.
• Blow, Adrian J.; Hartnett, Kelley (April 2005). Infidelity in Committed Relationships I: A Methodological Review. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy. INFIDELITY IN COMMITTED RELATIONSHIPS I: A METHODOLOGICAL REVIEW | Journal of Marital and Family Therapy | Find Articles at BNET at www.findarticles.com
• Blow, Adrian J; Hartnett, Kelley (April 2005). Infidelity in Committed Relationships II: A Substantive Review. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy. INFIDELITY IN COMMITTED RELATIONSHIPS II: A SUBSTANTIVE REVIEW | Journal of Marital and Family Therapy | Find Articles at BNET at www.findarticles.com

External links[link]

Look up Adultery in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Look up adultery in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Adultery

Alexis Amore attending the XBIZ Awards at Avalon, Hollywood, CA on Feb. 10, 2010
Born	(1978-12-29) December 29, 1978 (age 33)[1] Lima, Peru [1]
Other names	Alexis Amour, Alexis Lamore[1]
Ethnicity	Peruvian [1]
Height	1.57 m (5 ft 2 in)[1]
Weight	51 kg (110 lb)[1]
No. of adult films	290 as actress, 1 as director (per IAFD)[1] as of April 2012
Website
http://www.clubalexisamore.com

Alexis Amore (born December 29, 1978) is the stage name of a Peruvian^[2] pornographic actress, exotic dancer and model.

In January 2003, she re-entered the industry after a short break, and signed exclusively with Jill Kelly Productions (JKP) and began in February 2003. She eventually left the company and, in June 2004 she signed an acting and directing deal with Anabolic Video under which she would direct eight to 10 movies and star in six films a year. This made her Anabolic's first 'contract girl'.^[2]

In 2005 she became the Video Team spokeswoman and exclusive contract performer. Alexis Amore is also known as the “Peruvian Princess,”. She was to be the central talent for Video Team's Ethnicity Films line, which specialized in Latin, African-American and interracial titles.

She is to represent Video Team at press events, signings and meet-and-greet shows with fans. At this time she had over 300 films to credit in the adult industry.^[3]

Since early 2006, Amore has infrequently written for AVN Insider, is a contract girl for Metro/Video Team, and has a sex-toys contract with California Exotic Novelties.

Awards[link]

• 2003 AVN Award nominee – Best All-Girl Sex Scene, Video – Still Up in This XXX^[4]
• 2004 1Down.com Best XXX Feature Entertainer
• 2004 Nightmoves Magazine Best Actress
• 2006 AVN Award nominee – Best Tease Performance – Zrotique^[5]
• 2006 AVN Award nominee – Best Group Sex Scene, Film – Sentenced^[5]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Alexis Amore

• Official website
• Alexis Amore on Myspace
• Alexis Amore on Twitter
• Interview at RogReviews.com
• Interview in Xcitement Magazine
• Alexis Amore at the Internet Movie Database
• Alexis Amore at the Internet Adult Film Database
• Alexis Amore at the Adult Film Database

Rocky V is an American film released as the fifth film in the Rocky series in 1990. It stars Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Stallone's real life son Sage, and real life boxer Tommy Morrison as boxer Tommy Gunn, a talented yet raw boxer.^[1] Sage played Robert Balboa, whose relationship with his famous father is explored.

After Stallone directed the second through fourth films in the series, Rocky V saw the return of director John G. Avildsen, whose direction of the first film won him an Academy Award for Best Director.

Plot[link]

This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. Please help improve it by removing unnecessary details and making it more concise. (January 2011)

Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) and his trainer Tony "Duke" Evers (Tony Burton) are in their dressing room after the Drago fight. Tony praises Rocky for his victory, but Rocky, seemingly in some form of severe physical discomfort, asks Tony to summon his wife Adrian (Talia Shire). His hands are shaking, and he cannot make them stop. In distress, he mistakenly calls out for "Mick", the name of his deceased former trainer, Mickey Goldmill.

Rocky returns home from the Soviet Union and is greeted by his son, Robert (Sage Stallone). At a press conference, a promoter named George Washington Duke (Richard Gant) tries to goad Rocky into fighting Union Caine, the new #1 contender to his championship in Tokyo, but with Adrian insisting on her husband's retirement, Rocky decides, at least for the time being, not to take the fight with Cane.

Rocky, Adrian and Paulie (Burt Young) return home to find that Paulie had Rocky unknowingly signed a 'power of attorney' over to Balboa's accountant, who had, in turn, squandered all of Rocky's money on bad business deals (it is also revealed the accountant had not paid Rocky's income taxes in 6 years) and Rocky decides to take the fight with Cane. However, Rocky has suffered significant brain damage during the Drago bout, and he can no longer fight without further risking his health. Rocky is forced to move back into his old working-class Philadelphia neighborhood, where he and his family must try to start their lives all over again. The only thing Rocky doesn't lose is Mickey's gym, which Mickey had willed to Robert. Rocky then begins training boxers at Mickey's gym, Adrian gets her old job back at the pet store across the street and Paulie goes back to the meat packing plant.

Things start to look up when Rocky meets a hungry young fighter from Oklahoma named Tommy Gunn (Tommy Morrison) and takes him under his wing. Training the young fighter gives Rocky a sense of purpose, and Tommy fights his way up the ladder to become a top contender. Rocky eventually becomes so distracted with Tommy's training that he winds up neglecting Robert who becomes withdrawn and angry, falling in with the wrong crowd at school and as a result, he begins acting out at home. Tommy's impressive rise through the ranks catches the eye of Duke, who uses the promise of a title shot against Cane (now the champion) to lure him away from Rocky. Duke pulls up outside the Balboa house with Tommy in tow, who has now been deceived into thinking that Rocky doesn't have his best interests in mind. When Rocky tries to convince him otherwise, Tommy drives off in a huff, leaving Rocky for good.

As Rocky watches Tommy speed off into the night, his head suddenly pounds with nightmarish flashbacks of his fight with Drago. When Adrian attempts to comfort him, Rocky's frustrations finally boil over. He confesses his life had meaning again when he was able to live vicariously through Tommy's success. She reasons with him, telling him Tommy never had his heart and spirit – something he could never learn. When this realization hits him, Rocky embraces his wife and they begin to pick up the pieces. After finding Robert hanging out on a street corner, Rocky apologizes to his son and they mend their broken relationship.

Tommy wins the heavyweight title by knocking out Union Cane in the first round, but is booed by spectators after the fight and hounded by reporters. They insist Cane was nothing but a "paper champion", because Cane didn't win the title from Balboa. Therefore, the public would never consider Tommy the real champion unless he fights a worthy opponent. With Tommy enraged by the press's reaction, Duke tells Tommy he needs to fight Rocky man to man. Duke and Tommy show up at a local bar to goad Rocky into accepting a fight. But after Tommy hits Paulie, Rocky challenges Tommy to a street fight on the spot. Despite Duke's warnings to keep the fight in the ring, Tommy accepts.

Rocky is beaten down by Tommy and is seemingly out for the count, his head once again pounding with hellish visions of the fight with Drago and Mickey’s funeral. He then hears the voice of his old mentor urging him to get up and get back in the fight, to go just "one more round". Rocky gets back up, and utilizing his vast street fighting knowledge, defeats Tommy by knocking him into the grill of a bus with his final blow. Afterwards, Tommy gets arrested, and Duke commends Rocky, trying to appeal to him. Duke threatens to sue if Rocky touches him, but after a brief hesitation, Rocky punches Duke in the gut anyway, knocking him onto the hood of a car. The crowd cheers as the bankrupt Rocky shrugs and quips "Sue me for what?"

The next day, Rocky and Robert take a trip to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and Rocky gives his son Rocky Marciano's cuff-link, given to him years ago as a gift from Mickey. The film ends with a shot of Rocky's statue looking out over Philadelphia.

Cast[link]

• Sylvester Stallone – Rocky Balboa
• Talia Shire – Adrian Balboa
• Burt Young – Paulie Pennino
• Sage Stallone – Robert Balboa^[2]
• Tommy Morrison – Tommy Gunn^[3]
• Richard Gant – George Washington Duke
• Tony Burton – Tony "Duke" Evers
• Burgess Meredith – Mickey Goldmill
• Michael Williams (III) – Union Cane

The film contains cameos by several sportswriters and boxing analysts, most notably Al Bernstein, Stan Hochman and Al Meltzer. Sportscaster Stu Nahan makes his fifth and final appearance in the Rocky series, this time as a sports journalist.

Rocky's priest friend Father Carmine (Paul Micale) makes his second of two appearances in the Rocky series, the first being in Rocky II.

The character "Tommy Gunn" was played by Tommy Morrison. Morrison's nickname in boxing was "The Duke" similar to George Washington Duke, who becomes his manager in the movie. Morrison has claimed to be the grandnephew of John "The Duke" Wayne.

Michael Williams (III), who plays Union Cane, was also a real-life boxer. He and Morrison were to have an actual match about a month after Rocky V was released, but had to be canceled when Williams was hurt. The match was being hyped as "The Real Cane vs. Gunn Match".

George Washington Duke (Richard Gant) is the main antagonist of the film, and based on Don King.

Jodi Letizia, who played street kid Marie in the original Rocky (1976), was supposed to reprise her role here. Her character was shown to have ended up as Rocky predicted she would: a whore, but the scene ended up on the cutting room floor. Although she can briefly be seen during the street fight at the end, the character would eventually reappear in Rocky Balboa (2006), as a bartender and confidante to the aging Rocky. Actress Geraldine Hughes took over the role.

Kevin Connolly, who gained success as Eric Murphy on HBO's Entourage, was in his first acting role as neighborhood bully Chickie.

Production notes[link]

Some of the fight sequences were filmed at The Blue Horizon in Philadelphia, a venue which was a mecca for boxing in the city during the 1970s.

Scenes with Mickey, played by Burgess Meredith, were trimmed in the final film when Rocky fights Tommy. Mickey appeared in ghost form on top of the railway bridge, giving words of encouragement. In the final film, this was made into flashbacks. The speech Mickey gives to Rocky in the flashback sequence is based on an interview with Cus D'Amato given in 1985, shortly after Mike Tyson's first professional bout.

The image of Gunn's first professional fight, the pullback from the mural of Jesus over the boxing ring, mirrors the opening shot of the first Rocky movie. Adrian goes back to working at the pet shop she first worked at in the original Rocky.

The golden glove necklace featured so prominently in this film was first seen in Rocky II (worn by Apollo Creed), then again throughout Rocky III and IV. As a promotional gimmick, replicas of the necklace were distributed to moviegoers at the Hollywood premiere of Rocky V at Grauman's Chinese Theatre.

The famous red, white and blue boxing trunks first worn by Apollo Creed in his fight with Rocky in the first film make their fifth and final appearance in this film. Rocky's leather coat introduced in Rocky IV makes its second and final appearance in the franchise at the start of the movie.

The Ring Magazine belt in Rocky's basement and the identical belt Morrison wins in the ring have changed slightly from the previous movies; they are missing the four side panels showing famous champions George Foreman, James J. Corbett, James J. Braddock, and Floyd Patterson.

According to Stallone, pro wrestling legend Terry Funk helped choreograph much of the street fight between Rocky and Tommy Gunn.

Original Ending[link]

In the original script, Rocky is killed during the final fight with Tommy, dying in Adrian's arms in the street.^[4] Through most of the filming and production, this was to be the outcome; it wasn't until the film was nearing completion that Stallone decided against Rocky's death and went with the current ending. According to him, the director, and the studio had second thoughts. Eventually, Stallone rewrote the ending, saying that he decided to change it because Rocky was supposed to be about perseverance and redemption, and having him die in a street brawl would be against the roots of the series.

Mistakes[link]

In the ensuing years following the film's release, Stallone acknowledged that the injury Rocky suffers subsequently forcing him to retire, referenced in the film as a potentially lethal form of 'Brain Damage' was inaccurate. ^[5] Stallone stated that having discussed the story with many boxing medical professionals, the injury Rocky suffered was a milder form of brain damage, similar to that of a long term concussion that many boxers suffer from and by modern day standards are still able to gain licenses to box and would not have prevented Rocky from gaining a license to box nor killed him. ^[6]

Tony Burton briefly reprises his role as Duke at the beginning of the film. However, during his scenes, Rocky refers to him as "Tony". In the credits, Burton is credited as playing "Tony," as opposed to "Duke" (perhaps to avoid confusion with the George Washington Duke character) Rocky V is the second time in the series to do so, with the first being Rocky II as Apollo asked "What are you afraid of, Tony?" Rocky Balboa names Burton's character, "Duke Evers". Most fans take this to imply that his name is Tony 'Duke' Evers.

Reception[link]

Anticipated to be one of the big hits of the 1990 holiday season, Rocky V finished second in its opening weekend to Home Alone and never recovered.^[7] The film earned $14 million on its opening weekend and $40 million in total US box-office sales, about one-third of its predecessor's take. Rocky V however made almost twice as much overseas and thereby a total of $119.9 million worldwide.

In addition to its disappointing numbers at the box office, Rotten Tomatoes reports that Rocky V has a 27% "rotten" rating on its site. The film departed from the standard Rocky formula on display in the previous four films, which made it extremely unpopular with the audiences that had been drawn to the previous sequels. Stallone himself has gone on record in agreeing that he wasn't satisfied with the finished product, saying "I wanted to finish the series on a high and emotional note, and Rocky V didn't do that." He also faced critique over the decision to bring John G.Avilsden back to direct the film having done the first, as oppose to directing the film himself as he had done with the 2nd, 3rd and 4th installments. Stallone claimed that he wanted to work an easier schedule than what he had done previously, and therefore had less input on the film's production as well as post-production. Criticism was also drawn from the film's ending, claiming following Stallone's last minute decision not to kill Rocky, the film's build-up and narrative was lost.

On July 8, 2010, in an interview with The Sun, Stallone was interviewed about the Rocky films. When he came to Rocky V, Stallone replied he made it out of greed, and reiterated that this was part of his motivation in making Rocky Balboa, a 6th installment to the series.^[8]

Nonetheless, Stallone was still praised for his performance and the film received some positive feedback from some fans, with the Los Angeles Times regarding it as the best of the Rocky sequels.^[9]

[edit] Sequel: Rocky Balboa

As a result of, and in response to, Rocky V's poor box office performance (and the general dissatisfaction with the end of the franchise), 16 years later Stallone wrote, directed and starred in Rocky Balboa, the sixth and final chapter to the saga. The sixth film was an attempt to redeem the character for a final chance to come back as a hero again, and do the story justice by bringing it full circle; as for Rocky's ability to fight again, Stallone suggested that advances in medical science during the period between the films had shown that the injuries mentioned in Rocky V were less debilitating than once thought, and that he would receive a "clean bill of health" today. It succeeded by grossing over $70 million at the US box office as well, and $85 million abroad, and getting largely positive reviews from both fans and critics. ^[6]

Soundtrack[link]

The soundtrack is not an original motion picture score, but rather has music from and inspired by the film. This soundtrack features Joey B. Ellis, MC Hammer, 7A3, MC Tab, Rob Base, and Bill Conti. Most of the soundtrack is rap music, rather than Bill Conti tunes. Also, two of the scores from Rocky IV were featured in this film's trailer, but were not present in the actual film. "Measure of a Man" was written by Alan Menken and performed by Elton John.

Like Rocky IV, a full version of "Gonna Fly Now" with lyrics is not heard in the film. However an instrumental horn version is played during the early scene where Rocky gets off the airplane, and at the end of the move after Rocky defeats Tommy, the first few seconds of the original version can be heard – though it never makes it to the lyrics.

References[link]

External links[link]

Film portal

• Rocky Anthology Official Site
• Rocky V at the Internet Movie Database
• Rocky V at Box Office Mojo
• Rocky V at Rotten Tomatoes
• Rocky V at AllRovi
• Total Rocky Fan Site