Anthony Blum

Biography
Tony Blum is a 22 year old Wormwood senior, with a major in film studies and a minor in history. He was born and raised in Winter Park, Florida, a suburb of Orlando, where he lived for 17 years before moving to live with his dad in Minneapolis the summer before senior year of high school (a year or so after his parents' divorce). His dad, being an alum, is the one who made the executive decision for Tony to attend Wormwood, which is simply just another tick under the reasons why they don't get along. He has no siblings, but has a fairly large extended family with quite a few cousins around the same age.

Amanda, his mother, likely passively plucked the name Anthony (Old Roman; "worthy of praise") from a baby book, not even two-thirds of the way through the A-names before wondering where she set that one glass of wine she'd been sneaking (Saint Anthony is the patron saint of lost things, after all). And then there's Blum, Yiddish for flower, deceptively charming, a name that Roy at least at one point had been thrilled to pass on. Short and sweet. And Howard… well, that’s just Grandpa’s name. (Though Tony has grown into insisting his middle name is Motherfucking.)

Tony had what some might call an interesting childhood; his dad was a higher-up at a local casino, often traveling cross-country for business (or what he claimed to be business, anyway). He was raking in more than enough each year, and then some; they had a two-story house with a pool, and his mom didn’t have to work. Weaned almost exclusively on Coca Cola and the American Dream, Tony probably said the word fuck before he even knew how to walk. His dad's work tended to surround everything, seeping into every square inch of their home, and Amanda, who was easily disappointed and pretended she didn't know about Roy's mistresses, spent most of her time drinking and being generally overbearing. She claimed Anthony was destined for greatness, throwing him into every extracurricular she could to ensure he was well-rounded, but, well... he was never quite that good at anything that they wanted him to be good at. But he was a good kid, at some point– and smart, too– a little unmotivated, but he made friends easily with his boyish jokes and childish bravado. He often got caught reading under the sheets with a flashlight, swiping snacks from the cabinet, hiding his less than amazing report card. Y'know, regular kid things.

The thing is, it can be argued that Roy and Amanda Blum were just never really cut out to be parents (it has been argued, actually, many times, by Tony himself– it’s not like anyone else is gonna do it– giving him any siblings was out of the question after they realized that one was quite enough). This sentiment grew dangerously throughout his formative years; the older he got, the less picturesque his parents’ life seemed to be. Maybe it was because he’d finally gotten old enough to sense their vitriol towards each other, or perhaps they’d just started to give up on hiding it. They would often use Tony to spite one another, and he'd use them right back. While they were both distracted with their own pettiness, he was able to get what he wanted out of them simply by complaining to one about the other. (Sure, it’s fucked up, but so is having a kid when you’re in a loveless marriage!)

He eventually became self-assured, sentient, finally grew out of idolizing Roy, started to get called a smartass by his parents, aunts, uncles, et cetera. And yet, at this point, it was normally said in such a fond way that he felt like he was actually doing something right. Add the compulsion to engage in dangerous antics for shits and gigs, intense authority issues, and ignoring any legitimate problems until they go away onto all that, and the result is someone who’s much better at lying than telling the truth. His parents’ strictness increased once high school rolled around, and he’d gotten more and more autonomous and deceptive. Grades slipping, sneaking out every weekend, sex and alcohol, throwing finessed hundreds away on card games, acting like he wasn't stoned as hell during family dinner– all of these became common occurrences.

His parents divorced when he was sixteen, his mom keeping the Florida house while his dad moved to Minnesota to work primarily at a new business location. During that year, tensions increased between Tony and his mom, and eventually, he ended up moving to Minneapolis to live with Roy during the summer before his senior year of high school, hopeful to no longer be bogged down by his mom’s incessant nagging.

What Tony didn’t really expect was that he and his dad were about to find out much more about each other than either of them expected, or likely ever would have wanted. Without his mom there to mediate, there was no one to urge either of them to keep their mouths shut– and Roy Blum is not a very nice guy. Things escalated to a point where whatever plans Tony had to get bribed into an inner-city college somewhere far away from Minnesota were squandered, along with most of his potential and money that was never really his in the first place. Wormwood was his punishment, but if someone else paying for tuition and housing is a bad thing, he can’t really complain (he still does, but I digress). He picked history as his minor, the only subject he’d ever consistently passed, and film studies as his major, as he is confident he's going to be winning awards for writing films one day.

During his time at Wormwood, he's matured a bit, especially during the past few months... Whomst Knows What Will Happen Next :)

Personality
Tony is an only child from a well-off family, and can tend to be quite spoiled if given the opportunity. Makes a lot of bad decisions, but at least he's decisive. He's always been extroverted, easily entertained, and extremely quick-witted, but is also very prone to bouts of cynicism and immaturity. His parents are in no way good role models, but they're two of the only people he really had to look up to growing up, which honestly explains a lot about why he is the way that he is.

He's an extremely indulgent person, riddled with vices and always attempting to live in the now. He smokes a lot, drinks a lot, and has arguably poor personal hygiene (it's the depression) but consistently covers it up with cologne, so at least you know he has some self-awareness. Despite this, he does have a hold on some grandiosity, almost never wearing the same thing twice and having little fear to envision a successful future for himself. He knows he's funny, and enjoys using it for dumb reasons. He presents himself as very Kaufman-esque, without regard for potential judgement until everything is said and done, often getting on others' nerves on purpose just for his own amusement. Loves attention, and has a naturally flirty disposition despite being extremely emotionally stunted. Absolutely needs therapy.

Relationships

 * Best friends with Skip.
 * Roommates with Kennedy and Val.
 * Kinda-sorta dating Natty.

Trivia

 * His birthday is May 20, 1998.
 * It's pronounced bloom!
 * Is suspected to be a bird.
 * Has perfect pitch.
 * Has terrible music taste.
 * Has the ability to fart on command.
 * Genuinely thinks Adam Sandler is the greatest actor of our time.
 * Is not a "good" driver in the legal sense, but when it comes to reflexes and speed, he's technically great at it. This is what happens when you get your license in Florida.
 * Has his ears, eyebrow, and septum pierced, as well as a myriad of crappy tattoos.
 * Undiagnosed ADHD & depression (parents were very much "there's nothing wrong with MY kid" energy)
 * Has had a Twitter account for almost a decade (aptly named @spiders666999), but he doesn't let anyone he actually knows follow him.
 * Probably owes everyone he knows at least five bucks.