Adrian Pennino

Adrianna "Adrian" Balboa (née Pennino) (April 25, 1950 - January 11, 2002) was a fictional character from the Rocky series, played by Talia Shire.

Biography

She was the shy wife of two-time heavy-weight champion Rocky Balboa, and the young sister of Paulie Pennino. She started working in a pet shop, where Rocky would visit frequently needing food for his domestic turtles. The two were brought into a relationship by her brother Paulie.

They went to an ice rink on Thanksgiving Day where Rocky told her about his fighting career and his style. She asked him why he wanted to fight and he said that his father told him he had no brains and should develop his body. Adrian was surprised, as her mother said that she wasn't much of a body person and should develop her brain. After his fight with Apollo Creed, Rocky proposed to Adrian and the two were married on February 8, 1976. In March 1976, Adrian found out she was pregnant but she didn't look after herself particularly well - she went back to the pet shop and overworked. This led to her collapsing in the shop, and her baby son being delivered a month prematurely. Adrian went into a coma for a week - on waking, she found Rocky on her bedside and the couple saw their child for the first time. Adrian suggested that the baby should be named after the father; Rocky Balboa Jr.

After Rocky's success, the two spent fourteen years living in mansions and witnessing Rocky Jr. do well in a fine school, but in 1986 Paulie signed a power of attorney and the Balboas lost millions of dollars and their home. They went back to Philadelphia where Adrian returned to the pet shop. In autumn 2001, Adrian discovered she was dying from ovarian cancer. She died peacefully in her sleep on January 11, 2002 with her family by her side, aged 52.