Early Life and Career
Lou Pearlman was born and raised in Flushing, Queens, the only child of Jewish parents Hy Pearlman, who ran a dry cleaning business, and Reenie Pearlman, a school lunchroom aide. Pearlman is the first cousin of Art Garfunkel. His home at Mitchell Gardens Apartments was located across from Flushing Airport, where he and childhood friend Alan Gross would watch blimps take off and land. According to Pearlman's autobiography, Bands, Brands, & Billions, it was during this period he used his position on his school newspaper to earn credentials and get his first ride in a blimp. (This version of events is disputed by Gross, who claims he was the school reporter, and allowed Pearlman to tag along.)
His cousin Garfunkel's fame and wealth helped fire Pearlman's own interest in the music business. As a teenager he managed a band, but when success in music proved elusive, he turned his attention to aviation. During his first year as a student at Queens College, Pearlman wrote a business plan for a class project based on the idea of a helicopter taxi service in New York City. By the late 1970s, he had launched the business based on his business plan, starting with one helicopter. He convinced German businessman Theodor Wüllenkemper to train him on blimps and subsequently spent some time at Wüllenkemper's facilities in Germany learning about the airships.
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