Yo, Adriatic!

Earlier this year, the town of Zitiste, Serbia, erected a statue of Rocky Balboa and flanked it with giant chickens in order to show the town’s hard-working spirit.

Well, move over, Sly, because more fictional characters are coming to Eastern Europe! The New York Times reports today towns in Serbia have erected or are planning on erecting statues of Tarzan, Bruce Lee and topless model Samantha Fox. (One would only imagine the reporter was simply fooled — “Ha! We made that guy from the Times think we’re building a statue to Samantha Fox!” they’d say, in Serbian or whatever — on that last one, but he writes: “Officials boasted that the statue would be larger than Rocky, but so far the only sign of Ms. Fox’s likeness is an empty pedestal in a local art gallery, with the word ‘rumors’ written on it.”)

The statues are uplifting to some, but Serbian visual artist Milica Tomic called the statues “a dangerous joke in which history is being erased and replaced by Mickey Mouse.” (Note to Tomic: You’re supposed to use Donald Duck for these analogies.)

“This turning to Rocky or Tarzan is unhealthy and dangerous,” she said. “We need to find a way of representing our grief, our responsibility and our despair. Until we do that, Serbia cannot come to terms with the present and the future.”

Samantha Fox, though, now that’s inspiration.

And Now, Video Of The Historic Moment

Thanks to YouTube and a Serbian with a camcorder, there is now video of the unveiling of the Rocky Balboa statue in Žitište, Serbia. If you’re wondering, this unveiling took place at an event called “Chicken Fest,” and you can see funny band names in a promo here. (Ha ha! Rambo Amadeus!)

Be sure to watch the unveiling video at least halfway through, where you can hear an incredibly spot-on impression of Rocky Balboa.

Serbia Zitiste Dzingl Chicken fest [YouTube]
Rocky Balboa Monument in Serbia [YouTube]

Cocks Dig Rocky

Earlier this year, a small town in Serbia announced it was going to put up a Rocky statue in order to distract the citizens from the giant floods and landslides it had suffered. Putting up a likeness of Rocky Balboa would inspire the citizens of Zitiste, about 35 miles north of Belgrade.

They have now unveiled the statue, along with a few giant chickens. (Perhaps Rocky will fight a giant chicken in Rocky VII.) “Our idea has really stirred the public,” said the mayor, Zoran Kasalovic. “Now, no one in Serbia can say they don’t know about Zitiste.” Or its giant chickens.

Serbian village unveils Rocky Balboa statue [AP/MSNBC.com]
[Photo via AP/Yahoo]