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Hundreds of people in gray sweats and black knit caps climbed the most famous staircase in film history on Friday to mark 50 years since "Rocky" first hit theaters, setting a world record while doing it.
Fans gathered at the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art to form the largest gathering of people dressed as Rocky Balboa, according to Guinness World Records.
The required look was a black beanie, gray sweatpants and sweatshirt, and black high-top Converse sneakers, the outfit the boxer wears in the film’s famous training montage.
The crowd swelled through the afternoon, with latecomers greeted by cheers as they rushed in to help with the attempt. Organizers checked in participants with a running gag. "What’s your name?" the announcer asked one fan. "Rocky Balboa," came the reply.
Guinness required at least 250 people for the record. An announcer said the final certified count was 570.
Once the record was confirmed, the group ran up the stairs together and posed for a photo in front of the museum.
The record attempt is part of a month of events the city has staged to honor its fictional underdog.
They include a race up the same steps Rocky climbed in the film, a ceremony marking the permanent installation of the Rocky statue, and a "meat market challenge," where fans can re-create the scene in which Rocky trains by punching slabs of frozen beef.
Written by Sylvester Stallone, the 1976 film follows a small-time boxer from the South Philadelphia neighborhood who gets a shot at heavyweight champion Apollo Creed in a bout held in the city as part of America’s bicentennial celebrations. Rocky loses the fight but earns the crowd’s respect, and wins the heart of Adrian, a shy clerk at a local pet store.
The movie was made for less than $1 million. Stallone was an unknown actor at the time, and he wrote the script in a bid to find work for himself.
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