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PunkTiger Lives!!
パンクタイガーは住んでいる!!

Up from the depths of Hell, he came...
(Hang on, that's not right...)

Up from the depths of Southpaw, he came...
(Better, but still a bit too melodramatic...)

Up from the depths of Mark Correia's demented mind, he came...
(Ah! Much better...but, perhaps, a more detailed explanation should be given instead...)

Well, if you're going to be picky...

As is readily apparent from the rest of this site, I've been a furry fan for a few years (starting officially around 1993, I guess). After going to many science fiction and furry conventions, I'd developed an interest in the people parading around in "mascot" costumes. A varied collection of wolves, tigers, birds, dragons and other creatures cutting up and having fun. For many of these "fursuiters", it's a labour of love. I mean, who in their right mind would put on a full-body fur suit and a head that cuts down your range of sight and motion... in the middle of summer? The insulating quality of the fur, coupled with the lack of ventilation in many of these headpieces is a prefect mix for heat stroke, dehydration and other kinds of personal injury. But who cares?? These furry critters put a smile on many fan's (and average people's) faces wherever they go!

But me... Why would I want to do something like this? I knew I would probably last 5 minutes in a fursuit before the paramedics arrive. After AnthroCon '99, the fursuit bug hit me hard. But, I didn't have any clue on how to put one together. I looked at several of the fursuiting sites for tips, but I wasn't brave enough to purchase hundreds of dollars in fake fur and other materials just so I can try to make a wolf that would probably end up looking more like a diseased aardvark with a gland problem.

After speaking with my friend, Changa, he put me in touch with the good people at Northwest Furry Productions. I browsed their site and decided that I would indeed commission a fursuit from them. I chose their "partial fursuit" design -- arms/hands, legs/feet and a head. That way, I can wear normal clothes and I wouldn't heat up so much.

But, what character to portray? Who else -- PunkTiger!

So began the months of planning, measuring, describing, sketching, colouring and communicating all the necessary information to the wizards of NFP to breathe life into my favoured alter-ego. Sadly, Punk was one of the last few costumes created by Northwest Furry Productions before they closed the business. Fortunately, ScribbleFox (the person who designed the suit) is continuing the business. His site is at http://www.onefurall.com/

Below is the result. I was exhilarated when I finally got the suit in the mail! I couldn't wait to try him on and see how he felt.

Here are some pictures of Punk at Anthrocon 2001!

Click on the pictures below for the full image. Special thanx go to Sensei Joe Rebelo and the fabulous Kristi for their photographic help! And a special no-thanx to my old crappy digital camera for the dark and distorted shots. My new Kodak DC3400 does a much better job.

Full body shot of Punk in his glory Strike the Pose!
"What are you lookin' at?" PunkPose 2
He's just a big poser! Vogue!
"Scratch my back and I'll scratch yours." Claws!
Dancing the night away... Dance dance dance!
The whole is greater... Parts 1
...than the sum of his parts. Parts 2

Back to PunkTiger's Page o' Miscellany!

PunkTiger fursuit designed and constructed by Northwest Furry Productions and Mark Correia. All images ©2000 Mark Correia and Southpaw Artwerx. PunkTiger ©1996-2001 Mark Correia. Southpaw Artwerx is a service mark of Mark Correia. I really don't think I need all these "©" boilerplates down here, but you can never tell...