How one man made a career as a Rocky impersonator
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
Mike Kunda, a Rocky superfan, can support himself solely with his impersonating gigs.
Narratively has the story on how Mike Kunda, a Rocky superfan, can support himself solely with his impersonating gigs.
“It’s not just how he looks. It’s when he starts to move, the inflection in his voice, the mannerisms. All of that combined makes him the most accurate Rocky in the world,” Chris Wiseman [a fellow Rocky fan] says. “He pays attention to the exact style of zipper Rocky wears. It makes him special.”
Kunda even managed to track down the store in California that supplied Stallone’s fedora in “Rocky Balboa.” Sometimes, he’ll wear the gray sweatsuit that the fighter wore on his training runs. Pulling this look together took five years of scouring eBay for just the right 1950s-era sweats with the particular waistband.
Mike Kunda, in character as Rocky, leads a tour of "Rocky Balboa" filming locations.
“I put grease on it like Rocky. It’s a ratted, tatted sweatsuit just like his,” Kunda says. “I want to be as close and authentic as possible.”
For a gig as Rocky, Kunda’s main responsibility is usually to work the room, whether a cramped restaurant or a cavernous convention center. Clients usually want him to talk, pose for photos, and stay in the moment as the character.
“Sometimes they want to put you in a headlock or wear the hat,” he says. “With cellphone cameras and social media they’ll often direct you, ‘Come over here, say something to my wife, to my sister.’ You gotta be witty and quick and sharp.”
