ROCKY has come out fighting to save the North-East's most famous concrete eyesore from demolition.
Hollywood legend Sylvester Stallone, who starred in the Rambo and Rocky movies, is now appearing in a remake of the classic gangster film, Get Carter, shot in 1971.
Now Sly has waded into the row over the demolition of the Gateshead multi-storey car park, the grim backdrop to the original film, which is now awaiting the bulldozers.
The 54-year-old action hero star of Demolition Man has made a personal plea to redevelopment bosses at the Gateshead Town Centre regeneration Company to reconsider their plans to pull down the car park.
In a Film 2000 interview with Jonathan Ross, broadcast last night, Stallone said: "The car park used in the film was a classic moment to Get Carter. Please don't pull it down."
A spokesman for the programme said: "We told Sylvester Stallone that the car park was to be pulled down.
"He had not been aware of this so, when asked if he wanted to send a message to the powers that be of course he was happy to do so."
Nigel Goodall, managing director of Gateshead Town Centre Regeneration Company, said: It is generally agreed that the existing shopping centre and car park are past their sell-by date and need radical improvement."
Chris Riley, 42, of the Get Carter Appreciation Society, said: "If the developers won't listen to the Demolition Man, I don't know who they will listen to.
"The car park is a very important landmark. It is a classic 1960s design and part of the history of the area."
The Trinity Square multi-storey is to be demolished to make way for a new supermarket.
In the film's remake, the role of Carter has been changed from a London gangster to a New York loan shark with Stallone paid a reputed $17.5m for his part
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