Sylvester Stallone
Stallone in 2010, Featureflash / Shutterstock.com
Birth Name: Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone
Place of Birth: New York City, New York, U.S.
Date of Birth: July 6, 1946
Ethnicity:
*50% Italian
*25% French Breton
*25% unclear; possibly German or Ashkenazi Jewish
Sylvester Stallone is an American actor, director, producer, and filmmaker.
He is the son of Jackie Stallone (born Jacqueline Frances Labofish), an astrologer, dancer, and women’s wrestling promoter, and Frank Stallone, Sr., who owned beauty salons and played polo. His brother is actor Frank Stallone.
Sylvester’s nickname is “The Italian Stallion.” Sylvester’s father was an Italian emigrant, from Gioia del Colle, Apulia. Sylvester’s maternal grandmother was French, of Breton ancestry.
It is not completely clear what Sylvester’s maternal grandfather’s ethnic background was. There are some indications that the family was German, and lived in the Russian Empire. An article in The Daily Mail, a British middle-market tabloid, stated that Sylvester’s maternal grandfather was of Jewish heritage, but it is not clear if this is accurate. There are many indications that he was not Jewish, and, it appears that, at least after they moved to the United States, Sylvester’s maternal grandfather’s family were Christian by religion (although it is possible that they were born Jewish).
Sylvester was raised Catholic, and is a practising Catholic.
Sylvester is married to model, entrepreneur, and business owner Jennifer Flavin. He has two children, including late actor Sage Stallone, with his first wife, Sasha Czack; and three children, including actress Sophia Rose Stallone and internet personality, model, and actress Sistine Stallone, with Jennifer.
Sylvester’s paternal grandfather was Silvestro Stallone (the son of Domenico Stallone and Maria Giuditta Patarino). Sylvester’s grandfather Silvestro was born in Gioia del Colle, Provincia di Bari Puglia, Italy. Domenico was the son of Silvestro Stallone and Pasqua Guida. Maria was the daughter of Gaudenzio Patarino and Maria Masi. Pictures of Sylvester’s father and paternal grandfather can be seen here.
Sylvester’s paternal grandmother was Pulcheria Nicastri (the daughter of Francesco Nicastri and Nunziata Speranza). Pulcheria was Italian, from Gioia del Colle.
Sylvester’s maternal grandfather was John Paul Labofish (the son of Charles Schachan/Shashan Labofish/Labofisz and Rose Ethel Lemlich/Lamlec/Lamletz/Lemletz). John was born in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. On census records and in other documents, Charles and Rose were listed as born in Germany most of the time, or in Russia, some of the time. Their language was usually listed as “German.” Charles was a patent attorney, and was the son of Eiel Labofish and Dora Brier.
Sylvester’s maternal grandmother was Jeanne Victoria Adrienne Anne Clérec (the daughter of Louis Victor Clérec and Marie Pauline Rodrigue). Jeanne was born in Brittany, France, to Catholic parents, and was of Breton ancestry. Louis was the son of Victor Clérec and Marie Perrine Calonec. Sylvester’s great-grandmother Marie was the daughter of Jean Jacques Edouard Rodrigue and Jeanne Marie Cavallan.
Sources: Genealogy of Sylvester Stallone – https://www.geni.com
Genealogy of Sylvester Stallone (focusing on his father’s side) – http://geneasud.com
Immigration record of Sylvester’s father – https://familysearch.org
Obituary of Sylvester’s father – https://www.washingtonpost.com
Sylvester’s maternal grandfather, John Paul Labofish, on the 1900 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
John Paul Labofish on the 1910 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
John Paul Labofish on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
John Paul Labofish on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Death record of Sylvester’s maternal great-grandfather, Charles Schachan/Shashan Labofish/Labofisz – https://www.familysearch.org
He looks very Italian imo.
All Russian language sources say that his great-grandmother Rose was from a wealthy Jewish family in Odessa. “Rose Leibowitz (sometimes Rabinovich or Lamlec) was from a wealthy Jewish family, who in the late nineteenth century had weaving factories and apartment houses on the fashionable street in Odessa…At the turn of the century she and her husband Charles, a representative of the famous firm “Singer”, moved to live in America.”
Everything focuses only on Rose, and almost nothing about Charles.
Rose had sister Eudoxia , and there her grandson Valeriy Kravchenko with Jacqueline. (http://www.livestory.com.ua/family/2009/04/13/014150.html)
No information about German roots at all. But I think Charles can be from Germany, but his (and Rose’s) surname is still sounds so Jewish.
Thank you for looking.
I believe all those references are simply repeating the same story (the story possibly originated with what the KGB told Sylvester’s mother).
Of course “Rabinovich” and its variations sound very Jewish, but I wasn’t able to find any documentary proof that this was Rose’s surname. “Lamlec” sounds more plausible. “Eudoxia” also isn’t a very common Jewish name for the time.
I agree “Labofish” can sound Jewish, but I haven’t been able to find any Jews with this surname (or any other family). Many non-Jewish German surnames end with “fish” or “fisch”, and my theory that the family were ethnic Germans fits with the fact that they almost always listed “German” as their language on American censuses (and sometimes even as their birthplace).
BTW, not to bother you too much, but did you see the discussion about Ansel Elgort’s paternal grandmother? It’s very difficult to figure out her exact ethnicity (Polish? Russian? Jewish?). Her husband was Jewish for sure.
http://ethnicelebs.com/ansel-elgort
No problem!
Yes, fact what they listed “German”as their language really strange…Ok, If I find anything else, I’ll let you know. I will try to look for something about Rose’s parents and Charles.
About Elgort.
His grandmother’s name “Sophie Didimamoff” sounds Russian, but i can’t find NO ONE with that surname in Russia. The closest that I found to this name is “Dedimoff. Maybe their name was change on arrival in the US, like many others, maybe not.
Sophie’s brother’s name Constantine is popular name among ethnic Russians. But I am still absolutely not sure that they were not Jews.
Sophis’s mother name “Kurtz” can be also German.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen Russian Jews list their language as “German”, so the Stallone situation is unique.
Elgort is weird, too. I believe they listed their birthplace as “Galicia” (where many Jews came from). “Raphael” is an unusual name for a Russian of any sort of the time, but it did happen. There are some Polish people named “Kurtz”, but no Russians.
The Didimamoffs lived in a mostly Jewish neighborhood in 1910, but lived in mostly non-Jewish areas afterwards. After Raphael died, Catherine re-married to an ethnic Czech.
Also, very few ethnic Russians lived in New York in 1910. It was extremely unusual until the revolution. One of my theories is that the Didimamoffs were upper-class, assimilated Russian Jews, and that’s why they used “Constantine” and didn’t speak Yiddish. But I could be wrong.
It’s all very confusing.
Yes, upper-class, most likely that’s true, becouse all their names sounds more Russian then Jewish. But it’s all really confusing.
He looks like he had his nose done his nose never used too look like that i’m not being funny.
nnnnn may have been right about Sylvester Stallone’s maternal grandfather not being Jewish.
While The Daily Mail states that Sylvester’s grandfather was of Jewish heritage (and Stallone and his mother may believe so as well), I can’t find any documentary evidence of Sylvester’s grandfather being Jewish.
While the surname “Labofish” does not sound like an ethnic Ukrainian or Russian surname, Sylvester’s grandfather could have been of ethnic German descent.
Does Sylvestore Stalloen like chicken nuggets?
Where do you look for evidence? How do you decide whether is reliable or not?
For genealogy, I look at various records, already made genealogies, or birth/marriage/death announcements.
Newspapers, magazines, etc. are reliable to one degree or another, but none are definitive (for example, in their obituary of actor Leon Ames, The New York Times wrote that his parents were Russian immigrants, which is patently absurd).
Then again, records and already made genealogies are not definitive either.
his dad was from Gioia del Colle, Apulia
Correction
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Stallone,_Sr.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Stallone,_Sr.