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Introducing SYLVESTER STALLONE: “I Wasn’t Stupid. I Was Just Misunderstood.” from On Purpose with Jay Shetty. Follow the show: On Purpose with Jay Shetty Jay sits down with Sylvester Stallone to trace the extraordinary journey from a painful, unwanted childhood to the creation of Rocky, and the $360,000 offer he turned down rather than compromise his self-respect. Stallone reflects on the decades of rejection, health struggles, and career setbacks that shaped the man behind the legend. He opens up about his mother’s emotional distance, his father’s advice on his deathbed, and the life philosophy he discovered only after letting go of the need to constantly fight. With Love and Gratitude, Jay Shetty Mazda crafts cars for people who do more than simply move. Visit Mazdausa.com to learn more. Consumer reports does not endorse products or services. JAY'S DAILY WISDOM DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX Join 900,000+ readers discovering how small daily shifts create big life change with my free newsletter. Subscribe here: https://news.jayshetty.me/subscribe Check out our Apple subscription to unlock bonus content of On Purpose! https://lnk.to/JayShettyPodcast What We Discuss: 00:00 Introduction 01:09 The Steps 01:48 The Fortune Teller Who Predicted His Future 03:39 The Power of Writing Your Thoughts Down 05:10 The Regret of Not Meeting Elvis Presley 05:55 Overcoming His Fear of Public Speaking 08:30 Birth Complications & Childhood Hardships 10:00 Queens Boarding House 11:40 Cinema As Sanctuary 13:23 The Words That Left Internal Scars 14:54 Making Peace With Rejection & "Mirror Therapy" 19:15 Writing About Edgar Allan Poe & Creating Rocky 20:27 Using Cruel Labels As Motivation 24:25 The Hells Angels Story 27:59 Turning Down $360,000 To Sell Rocky 31:35 Imposter Syndrome & Stepping Into Rocky's Shoes 33:29 Channeling Real-Life Pain In Acting 38:00 Rocky As A Love Story 41:26 The Painful Relationship With His Mother 49:45 Parents' Final Days 53:47 Learning To Let Go of Anger 56:12 An 8-Year Career Slump & The Return Of Rocky 59:06 Health Battles, Borrowed Time & Aging Gracefully 01:02:20 What Makes A Good Friend? 01:03:25 The Key To 29 Years of Marriage 01:07:30 Life Before Vs. After 40 01:13:20 The Power Of Dreams & Concrete Vision 01:16:38 Finally Getting His Father's Apology 01:19:35 Sylvester Stallone On Final 5 Episode Resources: The Steps | https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-steps-sylvester-stallone Website | https://sylvesterstallone.com/ Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/officialslystallone Facebook  | https://www.facebook.com/share/1FMjtjkWJA/?mibextid=wwXIfr Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices DISCLAIMER: Please note, this is an independent podcast episode not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced in conjunction with the host podcast feed or any of its media entities. The views and opinions expressed in this episode are solely those of the creators and guests. For any concerns, please reach out to [email protected].

We explore some of the biggest and most controversial architectural changes to the White House over the years, and how they compare to the current ballroom project. And Jess shares the shameful secret of what she did inside the White House on a fifth grade field trip. Find out more at plodpod.com. Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents You can learn more about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory tragedy from Civics & Coffee: A History Podcast: https://www.civicsandcoffee.com/from-tragedy-to-charity-dr-david-conrad-perez-on-fire-in-the-heart-of-the-city/ Check out our merch shop at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On America’s 250th birthday, we look at The Declaration of Independence, and how John Adams may have contributed to one of its most enduring promises. Learn more about author and professor Danielle Allen at https://danielleallen.scholars.harvard.edu/ For more information about The Huntington Library's "This Land Is..." exhibit visit https://www.huntington.org/this-land-is Find out more at plodpod.com. Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch shop at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the spirit of Texas, we’re sharing this episode from the archives where we took on the single deadliest disaster to befall a presidential cabinet – the explosion aboard the USS Princeton in 1844. We look at four of the key players aboard and how they got there - President John Tyler, Secretary of State Abel Upshur, Captain Robert Stockton, and Julia Gardiner, "The Rose of Long Island" – and how this tragedy shook up Tyler's plans for love and Texas. Find out more at plodpod.com. Join our Patreon family at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents for exclusive bonus content! Check out our merch shop at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Houston Event June 13th, 2026 Details: https://calendar.houstonlibrary.org/event/16693436 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We go behind the story that Howard just published in Smithsonian Magazine, digging into the forgotten origins of the story that William Howard Taft got stuck in a White House bathtub. Check out the article: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/popular-lore-claims-that-william-howard-taft-got-stuck-in-a-bathtub-new-research-sheds-light-on-the-legends-forgotten-origins-180988386/ You can also hear Howard on these recent podcasts: The Big Fib: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/will-we-impeach-wisdom-when-telling-fibs-about-us-presidents/id1348469682?i=1000748336772 Talk That Pod: https://talkthatpod.net/episode-002-howard-dorre/ Find out more at plodpod.com. Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch shop at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We kick off a season full of weird science and pseudoscience with a tale of two very different chairs in Philadelphia—George Washington’s “rising sun” chair and Benjamin Rush’s tranquilizer chair. Then we welcome Colleen Shogan, former archivist of the United States and CEO of the exciting new initiative In Pursuit, honoring America’s 250th. Check out the excellent essays from In Pursuit written about presidents and first ladies and written BY presidents and first ladies (and more) at inpursuit.org Find out more at plodpod.com. Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch shop at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join us this season for weird science! Deeply researched, deeply irreverent dives into the real—and pseudo—scientific beliefs of the early presidents and founders. Find out more at plodpod.com Consider joining our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We pin down the truth behind the tall tales of Abraham Lincoln’s reputation as a Hall of Fame wrestler credited with inventing the chokeslam.  Find out more at plodpod.com. Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch shop at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We look into the giant victory balls that kept on rolling during William Henry Harrison’s 1840 presidential campaign. Then we welcome Jerry Landry of the Presidencies of the United States podcast to talk about Harrison’s rise to fame and the most likely explanation for his death just one month into his term. Find out more at plodpod.com. Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch—including our William Henry Harrison: For A Good Time Not A Long Time shirt—at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We dig into the eerie presidential death cycle known as Tecumseh’s Curse or the Zero-Year Curse. Tracing the origins of the legend to Native American revenge, planetary alignment, and even Satan, we look at the facts and fantasies behind this pattern—and how it had a real-life impact on the presidency. Find out more at plodpod.com and send your local lore to [email protected]. Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We dig into the truth and lore about the mysterious life and death of Sarah Shelton Henry, Patrick Henry’s wife—a woman who suffered from mental illness and was confined in the basement of their home in Beaverdam, Virginia. This local lore was suggested by our listener Klayr. An essential source in putting this episode together was the book "In Sickness and in Health: The Marriage of Patrick Henry and Sarah Shelton" by Mark Couvillon. Find out more at plodpod.com and send your local lore to [email protected]. Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We welcome James Bish and Dr. Richard Gardiner to talk about why they strongly believe the story of George Washington and his father’s cherry tree is not a myth—and that the real myth is that the story has been firmly debunked.  James Bish is the author of I Can't Tell A Lie: Parson Weems and the Truth about George Washington's Cherry Tree, Prayer at Valley Forge, and Other Anecdotes Bish and Gardiner cowrote a fascinating paper backing up their claims: An Analysis of the Scholarly Consensus Regarding George Washington and the Cherry Tree “Myth.” Find out more at plodpod.com Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the first part of our deep dive into one of the greatest myths in American history, we explore Mason Locke Weems—the complex character behind the story of young George Washington taking a hatchet to his father's favorite cherry tree. Who was this book-peddling parson, and how did this story become so popular and so debunked? You'll definitely want to hear our next episode, too, where we talk with two men seeking to turn everything you know about this myth on its head. Find out more at plodpod.com Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

20 years after William Howard Taft’s famous possum and taters feast inspired the failed Billy Possum toy, a real live Billy Possum wandered into the annals of presidential—and baseball—history. This is his story. Check out our Season 4 episode "The Rise and Fall of Billy Possum" and Howard’s just-published article in Smithsonian Magazine about Billy Possum at https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-a-stuffed-animal-named-billy-possum-triedand-failedto-replace-the-teddy-bear-as-americas-national-toy-180986072 Find out more at plodpod.com Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 You can still get our 2025 Presidential Pets wall calendar at https://www.lulu.com/shop/plodding-through-the-presidents/presidential-pets-plodding-through-the-presidents/paperback/product-rmv895m.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We kick off Season 6 with a deep dank dive into a hoax about the early presidents and cannabis that fooled a Surgeon General in 1971 and is still claiming victims today. It’s the straight dope on the relationship between hemp and presidents like George Washington, John Adams, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln. Find out more at plodpod.com Join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents Check out our merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/plodding-through-the-presidents?ref_id=24294 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices