When Ralph worriedly asked ""Curly"" about the hurricane, he was mocked by answers from two of his cohorts:Curly: "The wind blows so hard, the ocean gets up on its hind legs, and walks right across the land.His deceptive duplicity was soon discovered, and he was flogged and imprisoned for his fraudulent behavior, but was able to escape.The actor""s award-winning performance required an incredible transformation of his character over a 23-year period (from 1941 to 1964), including La Motta""s two marriages, boxing ring fights with the likes of Sugar Ray Robinson (to whom he lost the title), and his decline to a Miami, Florida nightclub owner and a sleazy, two-bit, lewd comedian in a New York nightclub.Plot SynopsisThe Prologue:A subtitle card begins the film: "The Western and Atlantic Flyer speeding into Marietta, Ga.Hanging Lady: First time?Ted: NO, I""ve been nervous lots of times.An out-of-place train conductor-stationmaster (with a pocket watch on a gold chain) at the foot of the stairs came upon a lovelorn young couple, a soldier named Bill (Cyril O""Reilly) and his girlfriend (Amy Gibson) hugging, and gave them an alert: "Better get on board, son.