Tony's Bodybuilding Journey

Bruce Von Stiers

I really don't know much about bodybuilding. I know that there have been competitions for bodybuilders, including Mr. Olympia and Mr. America. And I know there are famous bodybuilders such as Charles Atlas and Arnold Schwarzenegger. But that is pretty much the extent of my knowledge about bodybuilding and bodybuilders.

Tony Pearson is a bodybuilder. And not just any bodybuilder. He has won numerous competitions and bodybuilding championships.

But Tony's rise to being a top competitor was not always an easy road. His life has had its ups and downs, living in poverty and suffering abuse from a relative he was forced to live with.

Tony's life has been chronicled in a documentary film. This film is titled Driven: The Tony Pearson Story.

The film opens as Tony is about to step on stage for a bodybuilding competition. In the background, an interview is asking Tony if people ever feel embarrassed looking at his muscles. And does he feel embarrassed about that. It kind of seems strange to begin a film like this, but the film is not just about bodybuilding. It shows the struggles that Tony encountered and how he overcame them.

The film shows Tony at various locations that were prominent in his life. He is in Memphis, where he was born. We learn about how his mother left the family and his dad then pawned Tony and his sister off to their great-aunt to raise them. Tony describes the abuse he suffered from the relative. And about the squaller they lived in, a shack with no plumbing and no electricity.

Later the film shows Tony at his old high school in St. Louis. The family had moved there at one point. Through the help of people at the school, Tony was removed from that abusive home and into foster care.

It's at high school that Tony begins what will become a lifelong career in bodybuilding. Rehabbing a wrestling injury had Tony's coach take him to a gym. This was the famous Turner's gym that had gained such notoriety that many of the top athletes in the bodybuilding world trained there.

Tony's later decision to move to California brought forth some interesting connections. Turner sends him to the owner of Gold's Gym in Venice, California. But when Tony gets to California, there are a few setbacks. Eventually he meets Arnold Schwarzenegger and things move forward for Tony.

In amongst the story of Tony's life, the film interjects elements of bodybuilding history. The audience will learn quite a bit about George Turner and his noted gym. There is also a little segment on Muscle Beach as well as the origin and evolution of Gold's Gym.

All through the documentary there is a sense of gentleness and peace about Tony. Rising from abuse, poverty and other hardships can make a person hardened or narcissistic. But all through the film, Tony seems to have come to terms with what he has had to overcome and shows great humility and gratefulness for the things in life that have been afforded him.

Earlier I mentioned the competition that opened the film. It was to be Tony's final competition of his career. At age 63, he wanted to compete one last time. This was to be the bookend for a career that he began at age 19, back in St. Louis. Again, Tony entered the competition with humility and grace.

Tony also wrote a book of the same title that was published in 2019. That book also chronicled Tony's life and how he overcame adversity to become a top bodybuilding competitor.

The film was directed by Andrew Menjivar, who also co-produced it. The other producers were Cameron A. Mitchell and Thresa Richardson. The production company for the film was Tequila Mockingbird Productions. The film is being distributed through Generation Iron and the Vlader Company.

The film won the grand prize for Best Documentary feature at the 2023 Golden State Film Festival.

Driven: The Tony Pearson Story is a terrific film. It shows how Tony came through adversity to become a top bodybuilding competitor. It also shows the gentleness and humility of someone who could have become bitter and resentful, but somehow came out a lot better person.

And I did learn a bit more about bodybuilding from watching the film.

Driven: The Tony Pearson Story is now available on Amazon, Apple, Vudu and Google Play. Here is a web page that Generation Iron set up for viewing links: https://generationiron.com/watch-driven-tony-pearson-movie/

Here is a link to the film's trailer as well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63wWI5nRTPw .

Tony does have a website. There you can learn a little bit more about him, and also view the trailer for the film. The website can be found at https://tonypearsondriven.com/

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© 2023 Bruce E Von Stiers