Early years

Tony Pearson was born the second youngest of eight children (five girls and three boys). His mother, Daisy Pearson, was a stay at home mom and his father, Sam Pearson, worked as an ice and coal delivery man. Pearson grew up during the civil rights era of the early 1960s in Memphis, Tennessee. In 1959, at age two, Tony's parents divorced, at which time he was taken to an aunt to raise him. This family member was in her later years and financially and emotionally unable to care for a young child. In 1970 they moved to St. Louis, Missouri where he attended Normandy Junior and Normandy High School. In 1973, after years of abuse and neglect, the intervention of his high school counselor and the State of Missouri took custody of Tony from his aunt and placed him into a group home.

Individual competition

Tony Pearson known for his symmetrical lines and razor sharp definition. Pearson's stage name was "The Michael Jackson of Bodybuilding" due to his similar facial appearance to the entertainer. His career began to take off as he worked his way through the amateur competitive ranks. In 1977 winning the Amateur Athletic Union's (AAU) Mr. Los Angeles (Junior), and the 1978 Mr. Los Angeles (Los Angeles, CA), Jr. Mr. USA, (Sacramento, CA), Jr. Mr. America, (Austin, TX), Mr. California (short), (Sacramento, CA), and (AAU) Mr. America, (Cincinnati, OH). At the age of twenty one, Pearson was the second youngest to win Mr. America (the youngest was Casey Viator at the age of nineteen), (Preceded: Dave Johns 1977), (Succeeded: Ray Mentzer 1979). Other bodybuilding competitions won during his twenty-year career include the 1979 World Bodybuilding Guild (WBBG) Professional (the official start of his professional bodybuilding career), Mr. World,^[2] ( New York, NY ), (Preceded: Anibal Lopez 1978), ( Succeeded: Anibal Lopez 1980), and the WBBG Olympus Mr. Olympus Pro, (Preceded: Sergio Oliva 1978), 1979 World Amateur Bodybuilding Association, (WABBA) World Championships, (Verona, Italy), the 1980 National Amateur Bodybuilders Association (NABBA) Pro Mr. Universe.,^[3] (London, England), (Preceded: 1979 Bertil Fox), (Succeeded: 1981 Robby Robinson), 1983 International Federation of Bodybuilding (IFBB) Pro Denver Grand Prix Winner, (Denver, CO). Pearson also competed in the (IFBB) Mr. Olympia in 1984 (New York, NY) and a second time in 1985 (Brussels, Belgium) placing 12th in both competitions.

Couples competition

Pearson was first introduced to couples posing in 1979 when he made a guest appearance with the "First Lady of Bodybuilding", Lisa Lyon, at the Mr. Los Angeles Competition. This was the first time a male bodybuilder and a female bodybuilder performed on stage together. Pearson and Lyon were pioneers in this new category of Mixed Pairs. In 1980, Chris Dickerson and Stacy Bentley won the first International Federation of Body Building (IFBB) Professional World Mixed-Pair Competition. In 1981, Dickerson won again with Lynn Conkwright. In an unprecedented winning streak, Pearson won six International Federation of Body Building (IFBB) Professional World Mixed-Pair titles with four different partners in 1982 and '83 (Shelley Gruwell), '84 (Carla Dunlap), '85 (Tina Plakinger), '86 (Juliette Bergmann), and '88 (Carla Dunlap).

In 2010, at the age of fifty-three, Pearson returned to the stage guest posing with his former Mixed Pairs partner 2001 Ms. Olympia Juliette Bergmann at the 2010 "Juliette Bergmann Bodybuilding Classic" in the Netherlands, and also made a guest appearance at the FIBO Power 2011 in Germany. In 2014 at the age of fifty-seven, Tony returned to competitive competition winning the Men's open (short) and the Grandmaster's over 50 class at the NABBA USA American Championship's, also capturing the Joe Meeko Memorial Men's best poser award.

Other competitions

In 1991 and 1992, Pearson competed in World Bodybuilding Federation WBF shows launched by professional wrestling mogul Vince McMahon. A group of thirteen professional bodybuilders were named (WBF Body Stars). Pearson's stage name was dubbed "The Jetman". In 1993 Pearson promoted a supplement line (ICOPRO), Integrated Conditioning Program, developed by Dr. Frederick Hatfield (also known as "Dr. Squat") for Vince McMahon.

Honors and awards

In 2007, Pearson was inducted into the "Muscle Beach Bodybuilding Hall of Fame" in Venice Beach, CA. Other professional bodybuilders to receive this honor include Arnold Schwarzenegger, Frank Zane, and Joe Weider.^[4]

Media appearances

Tony has appeared on: Man from Atlantis: "The Disappearances" television movie (minions) MGM, 1977, Good Morning America Show 1978, The Merv Griffin Show 1979, Rose Parade, Pasadena, CA, 1979, ABC Wide World of Sports, 1983, 1984, NBC Sportsworld, 1983, 1985, 1986, Soul Train (Health and Fitness Segment), 1987, La ultima Cena……Del, TV Comedy Show Special, 1988, (himself), Empty Nest, Gesundheit (role: stud with suds,) 1994, WBF BodyStars, (TV Show) USA Network, 1991 (himself), Bodybuilders on "Card Sharks" game show, 1987 (himself) CBS, WWF/WBF BodyStar Wars Challenger, 1991 (himself) "Tug of War" between the WBF and WWF Stars. Flex Magazine Workout (co-hosted by Shawn Ray), (TV Show), ESPN 1993

Tony has been featured in the fitness and lifestyle magazines: Sports Illustrated, Ebony Magazine, Muscle & Fitness, Iron Man, Muscle Mag International, Flex Magazine^[5] In September 2019 Pearson published his memoir 'Driven' - My Secret Untold Story - Based on a True Story.

On Aug. 25, 2023, Variety Magazine announced that Generation Iron and The Vladar Company had acquired distribution rights for Driven: The Tony Pearson Story, a feature documentary detailing Pearson's life and career.^[6] Produced by Tequila Mockingbird Productions, the film won the Grand Prize for Best Documentary Feature at the 2023 Golden State Film Festival.^[7] The documentary is set to premier in English-speaking territories on Apple, Amazon, Google Play and VUDU on Oct. 6, 2023.^[6]