Tony Perkis
Tony Perkis Jr. or "Uncle Tony" is a character played by Ben Stiller in the Disney movie Heavyweights. A brief biography is as follows:
Tony Perkis a fitness guru who hails from Western Pennsylvania. His father, Tony Perkis Sr. is a well-known businessman and the self-proclaimed "The Lighting Fixture King" who donated all the lighting fixtures in Tony Perkis' business, Camp Hope. Although now a famous fitness instructor, at the age of 12 Tony weighed 319 pounds. He has described himself during that period as having "bad skin, low self-esteem, and no self-respect." [1] Fortunatly, now he eats success for breakfast. with skim milk
Tony Perkis is famous world wide for his revolutionary fitness program known as the "Perkisystem", which has been denounced by medical professionals but retains the full endorsment of Tony and assistant Lars (not to mention his personal camera man, Kenny). One who is in the Perkisystem is said to be "Perkisizing". He tried to introduce this fitness breathrough to the world when he purchased Camp Hope, a camp for overweight teens in the hills of North Carolina. His motivation for the purchase of Camp Hope has been argued extensivally. Opponents point to exploitation, noting that Tony Perkis was filming a late-night infomercial promoting the Perkisystem and the kids were only there to be actors. However, it is important to note that Tony Perkis cared deeply for the campers, in fact. He knew each and every one of them, because he WAS one of them. He was often quoted saying, "All you need is Mother Earth, Father Sky, and your dear old Uncle Tony."
Unfortunatly the kids of Camp Hope could not handle the intense regiment of the Perkisystem, coupled with the fact that they could not repulse the monkey, part the wild horse's mane or feel the chi. This lead to an uprising where Tony Perkis was removed from his ownership of Camp Hope, much to the dismay of the campers cardiovascular systems. This revolt brought up a very important point: the Perkisystem does not work with cheaters like Gerald Garner (a camper at Camp Hope). Tony Perkis now lives a meager life of selling products door to door. He hopes that someday, the Perkisystem will once again rise to prominence.