Leather Hall of Fame 2017 Inductee List

P R E S S R E L E A S E

Leather Hall of Fame 2017 Inductee List

December 10, 2016

The Leather Hall of Fame was established to honor and preserve the legacy of the extraordinary men and women who have significantly shaped the history of the leather/BDSM communities worldwide since 1950. The Board is pleased to announce the 2017 inductees: Durk Dehner, Peter Fiske, and MSC Hamburg.

Durk Dehner (b. May 23, 1949)

Durk Dehner provided much of the institutional and organizational structure that made the art of Tom of Finland (2009 inductee) widely known in the United States and around the world. Originally from Canada, by the 1970’s Dehner was a hustler and worked as a model for Bruce Weber and others in New York. He wrote a fan letter to Tom after seeing one of his drawings at the bar, and they became pen pals and eventually business partners and artist and muse. They created the Tom of Finland Company in 1978 and the Tom of Finland Foundation (ToFF) in 1984. For more than 30 years, Dehner and the ToFF have been the curator owners of TOM House in Los Angeles, where he and Tom lived during the last and most prolific years of the artist’s life. The ToFF has preserved and helped popularize Tom’s work, and is a key institution preserving and fostering masculine gay sexual art.

Peter Fiske (b. 1945)

Whip & Whipping expert Peter Fiske has been a mentor to two generations of leather folk.
Originally from New York City, Peter Fiske has been a leatherman for more than 50 years.
He is a Stonewall veteran & a member of the Stonewall Veterans Association. He moved to San Francisco in 1966 and was a member of the Koalas MC San Francisco from 1966 to 1969. Peter is a founding member and Chairman Emeritus of the 15 Association San Francisco and of Delta International (Chairman and Coordinator 2009/2010), and a long time member of GMSMA, SNC London and the Chicago Hellfire Club. Peter was presented the Caligula Award at Inferno XXV in 1996. Also known as “Daddy Peter,” he is a well known educator and has presented at hundreds of events and clubs across the country. Peter was San Francisco Leather Daddy XXI in 2003. His community service includes Board Member (1999–2003) & President (2000) of the Aids Emergency Fund and Co-Founder of the Breast Cancer Emergency Fund. Peter was a SF Pride Board member from 2002 to 2004 & was awarded the Heritage of Pride Award in 2005 for long term service of over 15 years to the SF LGBT community. He has long been a strong advocate for acceptance and inclusion of transgender men & women in the Leather & SM community. Now retired in Palm Springs, Fiske is still an activist and educator.

MSC Hamburg e. V. (Founded 1974)

The MSC Hamburg was officially founded in 1974 after the first official Hamburg Leather meeting the year before. After this big success with around 300 visiting leathermen from various European countries, the MSC decided to host the second leather meeting in August 1974 where they showed a fist fuck movie at the event: the first time ever such a movie had been shown to the German public. This began the club’s influence on European leather. The annual MSC Hamburg leather meeting became the №1 leather event in Europe — including wild parties on the famous MS Cap San Diego ship. The MSC party posters created by Martin S. Cool (aka Günter Henzler) are legendary. Along with producing the annual leather meeting, the club and its members are active in Hamburg LGBT organizations, and produce the Mr. Hamburg contest.

The Leather Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Brunch will be held during CLAW 17. Complementary and reduced price tickets are available. We invite all leather people to join us to learn about , celebrate and honor the lives and accomplishments of these inspirational inductees. Find out more, and order your tickets now at www.clawinfo.org.

LHoF Nominations can be made by anyone. A Board of community scholars, organizers and leaders select three inductees each year. To learn about the Leather Hall of Fame’s previous inductees, or to make a nomination, please visit www.leatherhalloffame.com.

CLAW is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation and has donated over $700,000 to community charities.

Edited December 12, 2016

Contact Bob Miller for more info: 269–588–9100; bob@clawinfo.org