FIRST OFF . . .

Sylvester Stallone apparently makes a better boxer and combat soldier than he does an arm wrestler. His “Over the Top” reportedly grossed about $4.5 million during the first three days of the long Presidents’ Day weekend. The figures are preliminary (most of the studios were closed Monday), but a source who follows box-office trends called “Over the Top,” for which the actor was paid $12 million, the first major flop of 1987. “Platoon,” boosted by eight Oscar nominations, continued to pack in moviegoers, grossing more than $11 million between Friday and Monday. Other films in the top five this weekend were “Outrageous Fortune” ($5.8 million), “Mannequin” (the top performing new release, with $4.8 million) and “Black Widow” ($3.6 million).