Yo, Adrian! Do You Know Linden's Famous Faces?

Did you know that one of Hollywood's biggest action stars got his start right here in Linden?

Long before he stepped into the ring as Rocky or battled bad guys as Rambo, Sylvester Stallone called our neighborhood home. His family lived at 1956 Seminary Road from 1952 to 1962, right about the time Georgia Avenue became a two-lane “highway.”

The Stallones were more than just residents; Sylvester's father, Frank Stallone Sr., owned a beauty salon in the area. While the salon's exact location has been lost to history, it may have been in the Seminary Place shopping center, which was constructed from 1929-1931 and served as the heart of neighborhood shopping. Interestingly, the center faces Seminary Place instead of Georgia Avenue, because it was built to serve the surrounding neighborhood at a time when Georgia Avenue functioned more as a connector to Washington than the busy commercial corridor we know today.

Like many Linden families, the Stallones likely made regular trips to Snider's Supermarket, which operated in Seminary Place from 1946 before moving to its current location immediately to the west in 1962. It's easy to imagine a young "Sly" tagging along on errands, never suspecting he would one day become one of the world's most recognizable movie stars.

Stallone wasn't the only future celebrity growing up in the Silver Spring area. Rock legend Joan Jett attended Randolph Junior High and Wheaton High School before going on to form The Runaways and launch a successful solo career. Academy Award-winning actress Goldie Hawn graduated from Montgomery Blair High School, where she appeared in the school's 1963 production of Bye Bye Birdie before pursuing dance and acting professionally.

Within a few years, three young people from Montgomery County would leave the area and become household names in music and film.

Linden looks a little different today than it did when the Stallones lived here, but many of the neighborhood's landmarks remain. Snider's still serves the community more than 60 years after moving to its current building, Seminary Road continues to connect neighbors old and new, and the tree-lined streets that shaped a young Sylvester Stallone remain much as they were when he called Linden home.

The next time you drive down Seminary Road or stop at Snider's, take a moment to imagine a young "Sly" riding his bike through the neighborhood or tagging along on a grocery run. It's a reminder that extraordinary stories often begin in ordinary places—and that one of Hollywood's biggest stars once called Linden home.