MANAGEMENT   |   PARTNERS   |   ADVISORS

TONY SHAPIRO
Chief of Staff to the CEO

 

Tony Shapiro has had a unique and illustrious career. His father was a very well known criminal attorney as well as a professional diver (considered to be the best diver in the world in 1954). His father was the original inspiration for the defense attorney in Oliver Stone's screenplay for the movie Midnight Express; the key difference was that in real life Shapiro Sr. brokered an international deal that freed his client, whereas in the movie the prisoner escaped.

Tony followed a different path into athletics than his father, but was a successful athlete nonetheless in baseball. After a very successful college baseball career, Tony signed with the Chicago Cubs of the MLB in 1995.

In 1999 Tony began working for Chester Aldridge, whom he had met while playing college baseball in 1990. He worked for Chester Aldridge for a start-up toy and game company that had secured the rights to two Top 100 games. Tony was responsible for managing the key accounts with many well-known retailers.

Following this, Tony became the personal assistant to the former CEO of Disney Interactive International. This role eventually led to a multi-faceted position at a worldwide video game publisher, Red Mile Entertainment, where Tony became the personal assistant to the company's president.

During his 10-year association with Chester Aldridge, Tony has been a key source of business deals. His achievements include founding and sourcing technology. He has grown an experienced management team around the technology, while his main focus includes handling all administrative operations for the Company.

Tony co-founded South 5 Records, a music label that has exclusively licensed the rights to Austin Brown, the nephew of Michael Jackson. At South 5 Records, Tony helps manage relationships with many high profile entertainment industry executives and artists.