DETAILS: Leatherman's Workbook, Volume III by Larry Townsend (Private Edition), LT Publishing, 1974. Measures 8 1/2" x 11" inches with 64 pages.
Lawrence Townsend (1930-2008) Was a prolific gay American author and civil rights leader. He lived in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, the center of the Los Angeles leather scene. He is considered by many to be the most influential writer of the gay leather scene. Starting in the late 1960's he began writing a self published zine which he circulated among friends and associates of the Los Angeles leather scene. They were comprised of his writings accompanied with comic art by Sean (nee. John Klamik) and reader submitted photos. The series has been described by many of his fans as the first gay graphic novels. His writings quickly gained an international following within the underground gay community and became a significant force in the Leathermen Movement of the 1970's.
John Klamik (1935-2005) Sean and Shawn were the pen-names of John Klamik, an American artist specializing in gay male erotica and comics. His homosexual-themed cartoons were among the first to appear in US publications, including a regular feature in the early years of The Advocate. He worked under two pen-names: Shawn for more mainstream gay publications such as In Touch, and Sean for niche publications such as Drummer. In the 1970s he did illustrations for novels and collections of short stories published by Larry Townsend, and his Leatherman’s Handbook. In the mid 1974 he created stand-alone wordless comics Biff and Biff Bound for San Francisco publisher Le Salon. During this time he produced eighteen 10-page comics stories for photo-story magazines published by Nova Studios, which were reprinted in Meatmen. In the 1980s he also did art direction for some of Nova's films and videos. In the late 1980s he produced "Up the Block", a humor comic strip set in a gay neighborhood. He is considered by many to be a pioneer in the gay civil rights movement.
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Established 1987
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