Tony Deblase: a Tribute

Tony's Obituary as written by Joseph Bean and printed in the Summer 2000 LA&M Newsletter:

Tony DeBlase, LA&M Director Emeritus, Dies in Portland, Mourned Around the World

Tony DeBlase, one of the great innovators and leaders of the leather community and creator of the Leather Pride Flag, died peacefully in Portland, Oregon, on July 21, 2000, after an extended illness, largely involving liver failure. He is survived by his lover of more than 24 years, Dr. Andrew Charles in Portland, as well as his mother, Ida, and two sisters, Stephanie DeBlase and Mary DeBlase Hurst, all of South Bend, Indiana. DeBlase, born April 3, 1942, was just 58 at the time of his death.

Dr. DeBlase a mammalogist, specializing in the biology of bats-was engaged in museum administration and development for much of his professional life. His career in museums included at least ten years at Chicago's Field Museum and substantial work in the development of the Connor Prairie Museum in Indiana before he became involved in the founding and development of The Leather Archives & Museum, where he served as Vice President of the Board of Directors from 1992 until 2000.

A renowned gourmet cook, DeBlase was active in various cooking and dining organizations, and felt it was a great honor in 1999 to be permitted to cook for the International Association of Culinary Professionals at his home in Oregon.

Also known as Fledermaus-a name he usually reserved for fictions about leather and SM-and as Richard W. Krousher (you work out the nickname), author of Physical Interrogation Techniques, Tony DeBlase was one of the most active lecturers, demonstrators, instructors and one might even say philosophers of leathersex in the latter third of the 20th Century. His accomplishments as a leather leader are legendary.

An early member of Chicago Hellfire Club, DeBlase attended all but one of the club's infamous Infernos, a record only matched by one founding member. What's more, DeBlase was a major factor in the development of Inferno and in exporting the lessons learned and formulas tested there to other, less experienced SM clubs. He was the founder of the Contest and Demonstration Schedule at Inferno which, since its inception more than 20 years ago, has become an important factor in the success of the event.

In 1982, as Fledermaus, DeBlase produced a collection of stories, published by Larry Townsend as The Fledermaus Anthology, many of which have become imitated classics of the genre.

As the founding publisher of DungeonMaster magazine-49 issues from 1979 to 1994-DeBlase practically invented the field of SM technique publishing, preceded only by Larry Townsend's Leatherman's Handbook. Many of the articles from those DungeonMaster magazines, a major portion of them written by DeBlase himself, remain the best, most extensive or even the only published sources of the information they explain so carefully.

It was in 1986 that Tony DeBlase and his partner Dr. Charles moved from Chicago to San Francisco and purchased the Drummer family of magazines from Alternate Publishing. The previously ailing titles, Drummer included, thrived under Deblase's passionate direction, reaching their peak in power and influence by the time they were sold in 1992. And, in 1988, as publisher of Drummer and owner of the Mr. Drummer contest, DeBlase moved the contest from Gay Pride in June to late September to coincide with the Folsom Street Fair, creating "San Francisco Leather Pride Weekend," a six day calendar of leather and SM events, many of which depended on DeBlase for their success in some way.

As a project of the Leather Archives & Museum, DeBlase created the Leather History Time Line. Four editions of the time line have been published so far, the first in 1993 and the most recent in 1999.

Among the many honors and awards given to DeBlase in recognition of his achievements were NLA's Man of the Year award in 1987, Pantheon of Leather's Business Person of the Year Award in 1990, its Lifetime Achievement award in 1994 and the Forebear Award in 1997. Among the honors bestowed on him by the leather community, the one DeBlase said he treasured most was the coveted Caligula Award from Chicago Hellfire Club for service to Inferno.

Of course, the most widely celebrated of Tony DeBlase's achievements in the world of leather is and probably always will be the Leather Pride Flag which he presented to the world as a "proposed design idea" on May 28, 1989, at International Mr. Leather. As the creator of the flag, he was often asked to explain the colors and design, but consistently refused to do so, insisting that each person could do that for himself. The design was immediately embraced and began appearing in parades within a month of its introduction, and turned up in shops as a bumper sticker barely two months later. Deconstructions and recompositions of the flag's familiar black, blue and white stripes with a red accent-originally a hear- are common, but the design itself was accepted worldwide as introduced.

DeBlase the teacher and leather leader, the editor and editorialist, the writer and publisher; Fledermaus the story teller; and Dr. DeBlase the brilliant gourmet cook, scientist and textbook writer will all be long and fondly remembered, but it is Tony, the loyal friend and constant counselor of so many leathermen and leatherwomen who will be most profoundly missed by the hundreds or thousands who had come to depend on him for advice, instruction and comfort.

A private memorial was held in Portland just days after Tony's death. Other memorials will no doubt be held around the country, but plans are underway for a major memorial celebration of Tony Deblase's life during International Mr. Leather 2001, Memorial Day Weekend in Chicago.