Frank Stallone: Veteran musician, actor, and entertainer

Markos Papadatos interviewed Grammy and Golden Globe-nominated artist Frank Stallone about his respected career in the music and entertainment industry, and his latest project which includes “Enzo: The Mafia’s Boxer.”

Winston Churchill once said: “Success is not final; failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” This quote applies to Frank Stallone.

‘Enzo: The Mafia’s Boxer’

Frank stars in the independent mob drama “Enzo: The Mafia’s Boxer,” which was directed by Alex Javo (who stars in the film).

Franks plays Giorgio Cantini, a consigliere to a local mafia boss, in a story that follows an up-and-coming boxer coerced into throwing a key match.

“That was good. We will see what’s up with that,” he said. “I have done a lot of movies, and one just bleeds into another. I can’t wait for people to see it.”

Future plans

On his future plans, he stated, “There are a few things in the works, but I cannot talk about them just yet. There are some exciting things going on.”

When asked if there is any new music in the works, Frank responded, “No, not at the moment. Well, that is another thing that has changed. Nobody is doing albums anymore except hip-hop and rap music acts.”

“For all intents and purposes, the music and film scene in Los Angeles is dead,” he observed. “Nobody films here anymore and all the songwriters have left; they have gone to other places such as Nashville. I am thinking of moving myself because there is nothing left here anymore.”

“People very rarely do movies here. There is no music industry at all. Most of the record labels have left, and they have gone to Nashville or other places. These days, these young acts can just use Pro Tools and make a record in their homes.”

Being a part of the Kennedy Center Honors for his brother Sylvester

Frank was thrilled that his older brother, Sylvester, was recognized at the Kennedy Center Honors. “That was great,” he exclaimed. “I was very honored to have been a part of that. It was a great deal of fun.”

“On July 6th, we will be celebrating my brother’s 80th birthday, which is unbelievable,” he admitted. “We look back on where we came from. I never wanted to be the biggest star. I know what I’m worth, and I know what I can do. Listen, Vincent van Gogh never sold a single painting when he weas alive. Now, his paintings go for hundreds of millions of dollars.”

The digital age

Frank expressed that he has a strong disdain towards AI and the digital age. “The digital age does not feel great,” he admitted. “I am not a fan of AI. I think it’s potentially very dangerous.”

“I feel that AI is ruining the arts and entertainment business,” he said. “All producers think about is saving money. They can just create an actor with AI. They don’t have to put them in a hotel, they don’t have to pay insurance, and they don’t have to give them a salary. They can just make something up, which is creepy in a way.”

“These days, people have driverless cars, but I am not into any of those things. I am more old-school. I think AI just disables people from being able to do things on their own,” he said.

“These days, I dissuade people to go into the entertainment business because the way I grew up in the industry vs. the way it is now, is completely different. I tell the youth to not try to become actors or musicians because the chances now of them getting their big break is slim to none because they don’t have casting calls anymore.”

Frank truly dislikes self-tape auditions. “I won’t do self-tapes myself,” he stressed. “Thank God, I saved my money. To sit there and talk in my phone and try to get any kind of emotion is just pointless. People have gotten lazy these days, and they use COVID as an excuse for everything.”

“These young kids that are coming up right now have to sit there and try to act into their phones. I tell casting people if they want me for a movie, they should just take a meeting. If they are not interested, then I am not interested,” he elaborated.

“I just think self-tapes are so degrading for actors. Back in the day, we would act with other actors in front of casting people. This way, they could see how we talk, how tall we are, and the expressions on our faces.”

“So, if anyone asks me to do a self-tape, I turn them down and I tell them that I am not interested. Self-tapes are just not my thing,” he noted.

“This is what young actors are facing now. It has nothing to do with the level of talent now vs. then. Personally, I just don’t know how anyone can give a good performance into a cell phone,” he expanded.

“The same thing holds true with self-driving cars. One of the friends encourages me to watch his car park itself. I tell him that he ‘shouldn’t be allowed to have a driver’s license.’ If you can’t park your own car, then you shouldn’t be able to drive. So, the same thing is true in the music business,” he explained.

Frank on ‘The Family Stallone’ and his Amazon documentary

Frank discussed being a part of the reality series “The Family Stallone.” “It’s a shame that it really didn’t get the push it deserved,” he said. “The same is true for my documentary, ‘Stallone: Frank, That Is’ on Amazon.”

“We had won fix awards for ‘Best Documentary’ for ‘Stallone: Frank, That Is’ but then COVID hit, and it just ruined everything,” he admitted. “COVID actually destroyed the industry. All the venues and concerts shut down. From a movie standpoint, no casting was done in person.”

“Personally, I feel that a great director who is doing movies would like to see the person they are casting by being in a room not over a phone. In a room, you can feel the energy and enjoy the back-and-forth banter. That is missing these days.”

“On my IMDb page, they have me done for 250-plus projects, where 101 of those are films. These days, they don’t look at footage, and they don’t do their research,” he noted.

“Back when I was coming up, they had some amazing casting directors such as Bonnie Timmermann and the legendary Lynn Stalmaster. They had been in the business for a long time and they knew how it worked. They knew that interaction between actors is important, and now, that interaction is gone,” he elaborated.

“These days, you have people in casting who four years ago were getting coffee for the executives in the studio. Again, you are not going to get a great audition from a cell phone. Sorry, but it’s very intimidating for the actor,” he said.

Frank’s advice for young and emerging actors and entertainers

“Personally, I love the arts,” he enthused. “These days, they have taken music and drama out of schools. So, there is nowhere for kids to get their foot in the door or hone their craft unless they do regional theater.

“When I came up in the industry, I learned on the job myself. I did small little movies, but I gained a ton of experience,” he admitted.

“There are some songwriters who died in poverty unknown such as Stephen Foster, who wrote some of our greatest songs,” he said. “Money doesn’t really equate to talent. I’ve seen people in bars who are some of the most phenomenal musicians I’ve ever seen in my life. You just push forward and do what you do.”

“I would tell up-and-comers to find a small boutique agency that returns your phone calls, that likes you, and that is coming for you and coming up with new ideas. If not, then you are just wasting your time. Also, you need to develop tough skin. Don’t be too trusts and don’t be taken advantage of.”

“Every star is going to fade. My brother’s career is one of the few exceptions and very weird because he had a 10-year stretch where nobody picked up the phone. No one was calling for him until he did ‘Rocky Balboa,’ followed by ‘The Expendables’ and now, ‘Tulsa King’.”

“Speaking of ‘Tulsa King,’ it is the No. 1 streaming show in the world right now. These days, you have to be a fighter," Stallone emphasized. “You have to fight for your place. You just go in and do the best that you can. Also, remember that you are not going to get every part. A lot of it in this industry is timing and luck.”

“If ‘Rocky’ came out two years later in 1978, it might not have been the same movie because there might not have been the same audience yearning for a new face in pictures. So, it goes that way,” he elaborated.

“Young and aspiring actors need to remember to not quit their day jobs. Just because they may be a hit in Iowa, doesn’t mean that they will have a big career. The industry doesn’t work that way; it just doesn’t.”

“There are some actors that work for years and years waiting tables, doing plays, and they still don’t make it until later on in their lives,” he observed.

“It’s a very turbulent, unrelenting and somewhat of a cruel business. So, I just tell people to make their money and save it,” he added.

Frank Stallone on his love for working

“I would love to work more as I am getting older. While I don’t like the business part of the industry, I do like the artistic part of it. I love acting, being creative, and hanging out on a set.”

“I like doing concerts and everything that goes with that. That is what I enjoy. I let my manager, Chuck Binder, handle the business aspect of the industry, which he seems to enjoy. What I love about Chuck is that he has had huge stars in his career, but he always makes himself available and he always gets back to you.”

“Chuck is always working very hard, he is trying, and he always comes up with something great,” he added.

Stage of his life

On the title of the current chapter of his life, Frank stated, “Right now, I am very financially well-situated.”

“I don't have to go out and buy a brand-new car. I don't care about those things anyway. I have my hobbies. I have my friends that I hang out with. I'm a competitive trap shooter and I really like to work,” he said.

“At times, the Stallone surname has been more of a curse than a blessing in my life. Trust me on this. I’ve had to deal with a lot of prejudice; however, I know who I am and I know my worth and my talent,” he said.

Frank continued, “I know what I can do. I’ve played every dump club for almost 20 years before I did ‘Staying Alive.’ So, I came up on the hard road, where I had to really stand and deliver. It has been 60 years since I turned professional as a musician.”

“So, they can't tell me what I can or cannot do. I know I'm not a Shakespearean actor. That’s a fact. The same goes for anybody because not everyone can play every role,” he said.

“John Wayne, Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, and Clint Eastwood, all did their thing. They played different roles, but they knew their niche,” he noted.

“Harrison Ford is not going to play ‘Othello,’ and Mark Wahlberg is not going to do Eugene O’Neill’s ‘Desire Under the Elms.’ That’s not his niche. So, you need to find what you are good at,” he added.

“I remind the young actors to not go out and spend all their money, and they shouldn’t do drugs or get involved in horrible relationships,” he said. “I’ve known actors who had a lot of money, but they are broke now. Avoid making bad decisions and having bad people around you.”

“There are guys like Mark Harmon who have not been off the TV since the ‘70s. He lives a settled life, and he has done incredibly well, and he knows where he is at, and he is doing great,” he said.

“The same holds true for Robert Wagner, who is 96 years old, and goes from one series to the next. RJ is very likable, and everyone loved him. He is 96 years young now, and he is doing very well. The same goes for Linda Evans,” he added.

Success

On his definition of the word success, Frank said, “Success means being able to fulfill your personal goals. Again, some people think of it as financial. I think of it more on a creative end.”

“If finance comes with success, then fine. Success is when a great musician comes up to me and tell me that they listened to my album growing up, and that they have found it great. That means more to me than anything, especially getting kudos from somebody you respect.”

“While other people think of success as making a lot of money or fame, I’m not superficial. I’m gregarious, a little outrageous and eccentric. There are very few people that stay at the top level… Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, and Michael Jackson are three who have stayed at a marquee level for almost their whole careers,” he elaborated.

Message for his fans

For his fans and supporters, Frank expressed, “I love my fans! I answer all my fanmail. I really do! I get them from all over the place… Germany, France, the U.S. People take the time to write these beautiful letters with beautiful return envelopes. When they take the time to send me something, I take my time to respond to them and send them personalized autographed photos back.”

For more information on veteran actor and musician Frank Stallone, follow him on Instagram.