Gerald Hubert (‘Gerry’) Leatherman was described by Dame Margaret Seward as ‘The father of world dentistry’. Born in London on 18 February 1903, the son of Harry Leatherman and Beatrice Leatherman née Freedman, at the age of seven he went to South Africa. He was educated at King Edward VII School in Johannesburg and then studied chemistry and physics at the University of the Witwatersrand. In 1920 Gerry enrolled at Harvard Dental School and graduated in 1924. He then studied at Guy’s Dental School in London, and, by December 1924, he had satisfied the requirements and passed the examinations for the LDS RCS. By 1926, he was established in Devonshire Place, W1, where he combined oral hygiene and prevention with high quality restorative dentistry. His first contact with the Fédération Dentaire Internationale (FDI) was minimal. At the 1931 International Dental Congress in Paris he showed little interest in the FDI: after visiting the exhibition he played golf. The organisation was badly hit by the Second World War and in 1947 Leatherman became an assistant secretary. The old guard had run the FDI with their own money, but it now needed proper financial controls. With colleagues, Gerry balanced the books and negotiated a contract with Cassell to produce an *International Dental Journal*. In 1950 Gerry became secretary of a committee chaired by Sir Wilfred Fish to ‘drag the FDI kicking and screaming … into the second half of the 20th century’. He chaired the organising committee for the 1952 11th International Congress held in London under Fish’s presidency. It was highly successful: 3,940 people attended from 67 countries, with simultaneous translation of sessions into five languages and a daily four-page *Congress Courier* reporting news. The science programme was opened by Fish’s friend, Sir Alexander Fleming. The general assembly elected Gerry as secretary general. Many people saw that Congress as beginning the modern FDI, much due to Leatherman and Harold Hillenbrand, executive director of the American Dental Association. Hillenbrand said Gerry had the courage and essential nastiness to get the job done. They changed the FDI from gatherings of prominent individuals interested in international dentistry to one of meetings of delegates from national associations – a world parliament. Gerry ran it from Devonshire Place with four staff. He developed strong links with the World Health Organization. In 1951 he issued a stencilled newsletter with 1,000 copies in English and French. By 1960 there were 6,000 copies in English, French, Spanish, German and Italian. He served until 1975, by which time there were 73 full member associations and 10,000 individual members. During his LDS viva at Guy’s, Sir William Kelsey Fry asked Gerry the most important thing he had learned in America. He answered: ‘the value of good oral hygiene’. Gerry had experience of working with dental hygienists, then illegal in the UK, and realised their potential. He played a major role in promoting the use of hygienists in preventive care and raising their profile. Early in the Second World War the RAF had a serious oral health problem in all ranks, including flight crews. Acute necrotising gingivitis was a major issue, with loss of operational flying hours. With insufficient dentists, it was essential to do something. Kelsey Fry, a consultant to the RAF, suggested hygienists could help to alleviate the problem of neglected mouths: much gross disease could be prevented through education. A trial scheme was established at the Medical Training Establishment at Sidmouth. Dental clerks and orderlies underwent 16 weeks of training to scale and polish teeth and educate patients. Responsible for implementing the programme were Squadron Leader James Smith and Flight Lieutenant Leatherman. Gerry brought to the scheme his American knowledge. The Dental Board reminded the RAF that hygienists were not legal; the Force said there was a war on and ‘needs must’. These activities taught Gerry much about dental politics, discovering many dentists were bitterly anti-hygienists, but some had experienced their benefits in the RAF. With time, there was increasing interest in hygienists. The Ministry of Health sponsored a scheme at the Eastman Dental Hospital, but it closed in five years. Later other hospitals trained hygienists to work in practice to a dentist’s prescription. They formed the British Dental Hygienists’ Association. Gerry supported them enormously as president (from 1949 to 1957) and as the honorary president until he died. A Dr Gerald Leatherman Award was established in 1994 to honour his name. Gerry served on the board of the Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England for 14 years. He was president of the Metropolitan branch of the British Dental Association in 1954. In 1948 Gerry discussed with others the possibility of a society for people interested in gum and bone disease. It went ahead as the British Society of Periodontology, with Sir Wilfred Fish as president. Gerry published countless papers, gave innumerable lectures and was recognised throughout the world for his contributions to the profession. He was elected to fellowships of the Faculties of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, Edinburgh and Ireland, of the American College of Dentists, the International College of Dentists, the Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons, the Royal College of Dentists of Canada, the Harriet Newell Lowell Society for Dental Research of Harvard University’s dental school, the odontology section of the Royal Society of Medicine and the Royal Society of Health. He was awarded honorary doctorates by Temple and Turku universities and elected to 37 honorary memberships, including of the American, British, Canadian and Australian Dental Associations and the American Dental Society of Europe. The New York State Dental Association bestowed its Jarvie-Burkhart Award in 1979. The Pierre Fauchard Academy recognised the late Gerald H Leatherman as the 14th recipient into its International Hall of Fame of Dentistry in 2001. Gerry had two daughters with his first wife Constance (née Freeman). He divorced and in 1949 he married Margaret Miller Cloutman (or Brown), who died tragically in 1979. Gerald Leatherman enjoyed all aspects of his life. He ran a very successful private practice for nearly 50 years. His involvement in dental politics was extensive, and he was highly regarded by his peers worldwide. He studied racehorse form and enjoyed frequent bets. An obituary pointed out that on the day he died from cancer on 11 December 1991 all racing was stopped – but because of frost rather than his death. Stanley Gelbier