Born on March 11, 1974 and hailing from Danville, Virginia, Jon "Jonny Fairplay" Dalton was educated at Virginia Polytechnic Institute in Blacksburg. He soon relocated to Washington, D.C. and Portland, Oregon after college and finally settled in Los Angeles.
Jonny first appeared on reality television with Survivor: Pearl Islands through his best friend, Thunder D and his infamous "Dead Grandma" deception, in an effort to win the game. He soon became a breakout reality TV star and his "Dead Grandma" trick landed second place in E!'s 101 Most Outrageous TV Moments. Soon, Jonny signed a contract with TNA Wrestling, where he won an ESPY Award for best non-sports sports moment by being body slammed over the top rope by Chicago Bears All-Pro player Brian Urlacher. Since then, he has become a guest on several radio and television shows, appearing with hosts Howard Stern, Tyra Banks, Jack & Jon & Fez and the show Living It Up with Allie.
Jonny's fame rose to new heights as he appeared on MTV's True Life, and yielded the highest-rated episode in the history of the series. He also appeared on Celebrity Poker Showdown where he "Fairplayed" his longtime friend Trishelle Canatella by eliminating her from the game. His other appearances include those in A&E's Inked, where he was kicked out of the tattoo parlor, Reality Stars Fear Factor, where he became the first contestant in the history of the show to return after his eviction to serve as co-host.
Jonny continued to make reality TV interesting with his outrageous gimmicks when he appeared on the Summer 2005 Kill Reality, in which he created more memorable moments. In the same year, he appeared in the film, The Scorned, where he gave an impressive performance as a DQ. Because of his work on the reality television industry, he was honored with the Most Memorable Reality Star in the History of Reality Television Award at the Really Awards on Fox Reality.
Jonny returns to his roots in Survivor: Micronesia (Fans vs. Favorites), where he plays on team Favorites.
(Photo courtesy of CBS)