Up Front

ROCKY BALBOA, NEW DEMOCRAT

Has Rambo gone soft? Sylvester Stallone, poster boy for the ultratough, anti-communist Republicanism of the 1980s, is the No.1 political giver among Hollywood performers. And he has sent almost all of it to...the Democrats. Federal Election Commission records show

Sly has donated $70,000 to the Democratic Party since Bill Clinton's election--and only $1,000 to the Republicans.

Quite a change. In the 1991-92 election cycle, Sly gave $36,000 to Republicans and just $11,000 to Democrats. Why the switch? A Stallone spokeswoman had no comment. Over time, Sly's been a quirky political angel, helping hard-right Republicans (Oklahoma Senator Don Nickles) and maverick Democrats (California ex-Governor Jerry Brown).

The other big-money show-biz Democrats eclipsed by Stallone: Chevy Chase ($42,000), Barbra Streisand ($31,500), and Dustin Hoffman ($20,500). Tinseltown GOP givers are more modest: Jimmy Stewart has forked over $3,360 and Kelsey Grammer, of the Frasier TV series, $2,500.EDITED BY LARRY LIGHT AND JULIE TILSNER By Richard S. Dunham