For Immediate Release:

MR. & MS. PHILADELPHIA LEATHER 2008 NAMED DURING PHILADELPHIA LEATHER WEEKEND

This year Philadelphia Leather Weekend celebrated the 25th Anniversary of the Mr. Philadelphia Leather contest and the 15th Anniversary of the Ms. Philadelphia Leather contest. There were four contestants in the mens contest but sadly no contestants in the womens contest.

The winner of the Mr. Philadelphia Leather contest was ScottDaddy, who is a long time member of GMSMA. First runner up was Andy Liu, a member of the NJ Eagles MC.

Judges were Mr. Philadelphia Leather 2007 John Loesch, Mr. New Jersey Leather 2007 Chuck Nankivell, Ms. New Jersey Leather 2007 boy robi, Mr. NYC Eagle 2007 Rick Weber, and Mr. Eagle DC 2007 Joe Hurchick. The producers continued the tradition of the “Mystery Judge” by selecting a random ticket stub and inviting that member of the community up to the judges table where their scores carried the same weight as those of all the other judges. The lucky ticket holder this year was CJ, Mr. Woods Leather 2005.

Tally Masters were Mr. East Coast Rubber 2007 John Weis and Mr. East Coast Rubber 2004 Larry Ianotti. Judges boy was MidAtlantic Leatherboy 2006 Justin Costello, and ASL interpreting services for the weekend were provided by Meredith Peruzzi, Debbie Jones, and Mike Viola. The contest was hosted for the fifth year in a row by the incomparable team of Ryan Goldner and Carlota Ttendant.
 
In a surprise move just before the winners were revealed, Carlota Ttendant was named the honorary Ms. Philadelphia Leather 2008 in recognition of her tireless work and unflagging support for the leather community. The crowd exploded into thunderous applause at the announcement and rewarded Carlota with a long and heartfelt standing ovation as she, in her own words, found herself for the first time in her life speechless while holding a microphone.

When asked why the honorary title was awarded to Carlota, co-producer Jim Kiley-Zufelt said, “The last time we awarded the title of Ms. Philadelphia Leather was in February 2005. We have an amazing legacy of women titleholders in Philly, including two women who went on to win national level titles.

“Carlota has shown undying support and devotion to the Philadelphia gay community, particularly to the leather community," he continued. "She’s raised over 1.1 million dollars for HIV/AIDS services as hostess of Gay Bingo. She hosts incredible events for both gay and straight audiences, including an annual Halloween performance by the Philadelphia Orchestra. There’s no one more deserving of this honor, and it helps insure that the Ms. Philadelphia Leather title will live on.”

Philadelphia Leather Weekend was presented by the Bike Stop and recon.com.  Co-sponsors for the weekend were Tavern on Camac, LeatherWerks of Fort Lauderdale, Passional Boutique, Flying Fish Brewery, Smirnoff, and HotOlderMale.com.  Prizes were generously donated by Passional Boutique, Infinite Body Piercing, JT’s Stockroom, 12th Street Gym, and Modern Eye.