Richard Bulger is credited with coining the term "Bear" in 1985 as a description for heavy-set, often bearded and hairy gay men, eventually creating Bear Magazine in 1987. He was a pioneer in the publishing of erotic photography and stories for what grew into today's bear community.[1] He courted controversy in 1990 when, as owner of Bear Magazine, he sought to "gain ownership of the word “bear” as his company's trademark."[2]
Bulger, who was born in Rumford, Maine, now works as a program director of a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center in the San Francisco Bay Area.[3]