In the end, there was just enough film left for a final re-shoot of the ending, originally intended as just a long shot of Rocky and Adrian leaving an empty stadium hand in hand – an iconic image which ultimately became the shot used for the promotional posters. The film footage of the original ending was tragically destroyed by fire with no trace left for history but for several rare still photographs captured of these moments at the time of the filming. The unforgettable “Adrian!” “Rocky!” “Adrian!” finale was actually a last-minute addition, and there were so few people left that friends and crew had to crowd one corner of the ring to feign the appearance of a large mob passing back and forth in front of the camera. 
There was no need to conjure up fake mob scenes when the movie opened. Test screenings showed that audiences loved the picture, and the crude promotional trailers released to the public created nationwide buzz around the little movie that could – “a movie for every nobody who ever needed somebody.”
