From KCCR News: Tony Dean passes away.
From KCCR News:
Tony Dean dies
Tony Dean, the nationally known outdoors enthusiast who promoted South Dakota through his radio and television shows, died Sunday morning at his Pierre home. He was 67.
Dean earlier this month had been hospitalized after suffering complications from having his appendix removed. He was moved back to Pierre last week.
Dean was a strong booster of the outdoors and conservation efforts, not only for the state, but also the nation. He was host and producer of “Tony Dean Outdoors”, a regional television show that airs across the Upper Midwest. His radio show “Dakota Backroads” is heard across the region, including on KCCR Radio.
Dean’s TV and radio shows have won more than 160 regional and national programming awards. He is a member of the North Dakota and National Freshwater Fishing Halls of Fame and has received numerous conservation awards at the local, state, regional and national levels.
This summer, Dean attended the National Democratic Convention to promote conservation issues. He also served as a press secretary for former South Dakota Governor Frank Farrar.
Funeral services are pending with the Isburg Funeral Chapel in Pierre.
I’d known this was coming, but it wasn’t the type of thing that you want to splash all over a website. I’d gotten a call mid-morning that Tony passed away at about 3am this morning, after returning to Pierre mid-last week under hospice care.
I don’t know if it’s ironic, or befitting that he passed away during opening non-resident pheasant season. Because few, if any, had done as much to promote the bounty that our state has to offer the world. In our state’s popular culture, there was no one like the man, and he leaves a huge void with his passing.
Whether you agreed with him or not, Tony was a committed and tireless advocate for conservation, which often put him at odds with others in his party. As I’d heard him mention many times, his Republican party was the party of Teddy Roosevelt, who created our national parks, to ensure that our natural treasures would be enjoyed for all perpetuity.
Our hearts and our prayers go out for his wife Darlene, as well as his family, which includes a grandchild less than 2 weeks old.
We’re truly diminished by the loss, but greater for having shared his life.
Rest in Peace.
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Comments
PP:
Well said about a wonderful man. Most South Dakotan men of a certain age all seemed to want to be Tony, out hunting and fishing in our beautiful state. A tireless conservationist, he knew that if we are to keep our bounty for future generations, we need to act to preserve our environment.
Last November, I had the opportunity to go on the Mt. Blogmore Pheasant hunt with Tony. What a thrill! He was funny, knowledgeable, and a great companion. It was like playing guitar with Eric Clapton or playing catch with Brett Favre. You’re out there with someone who is expert in their field yet doesn’t make you feel like you’re a complete idiot (which I am about hunting). He was gracious to all of us from our various political viewpoints.
Tony was a man’s man, in all the good things that means–honest, brave, accomplished at the manly arts, and a helluva great guy.
May his family and friends find comfort in Tony’s life well lived.
Todd Epp
SD Watch http://www.southdakotawatch.net
When I was maybe 8 or 9, forty-odd years ago, Tony was working on something with my dad and invited us fishing one afternoon. He took us down to a stock dam on the Fort Pierre National Grasslands where we caught bluegill after bluegill after bluegill. He truly loved the rolling prairie of the grasslands even then and went on to do countless stories and tv segments extolling its wonders. I was lucky enough to have had shared it with him first hand and know his spirit will always roam there.
My heart goes out to Tony’s family and all of you who knew and loved him. Like Todd, I had the distinct privilege of meeting Tony at Nemeck’s last autumn and was looking forward to another round of fun this year. The worlds of SD sports and literature won’t be the same without him.
God rest his soul.
…no wait, I bet instead of resting, he’ll be teaching the fishermen up there how to really do it.
Yeah, that would be Tony’s heaven, come to think of it.
This is a very sad day for all of us who knew, liked and respected Tony.
He was a tireless advocate for South Dakota and our state’s innumberable outdoor attractions, but also the type of life possible in South Dakota.
Best wishes to his family.
I ran into Tony one Sunday afternoon a few years back while fishing Valva, ND Sportsman’s pond. He was on his way back from Canada having taped a “Trout fishing the Parkland” show. He had stopped a few hours to wet a line and get out from behind the driving wheel. Great Outing / Memory.
Tony Dean, the Jagermeister (German for Master Hunter)!
Tony and I didn’t always agree on policy but it doesn’t change the reality of the man and his legacy. South Dakota wouldn’t be as well known as the hunting and fishing mecca it is without the unabashed championing of our state’s natural resources by Tony.
But his legacy is greater than that to me. Living in Pierre made you learn that policy disagreements could never be taken personally or given personally. Your political “enemy” might be the parent of your kid’s best friend, your neighbor, or a member of your church. And you learned that you had more in common than that in which you disagreed.
Tony as a member of Pierre was a cheerleader for young people. When he saw a young hunter/fisher, he asked how you have been doing. But, when he stood in line at DakotaMart with a footballer or balley dancer, he could talk to you about that.
Alot of boys from Pierre can tell you similar stories as MHS. And the reason that MHS remembers it as Tony made all who he met feel important and Tony was sincere. You were important to Tony. I could tell similar stories about a conversation about my football exploits at Riggs or the time I ran into him on the dock at the marina, or on a gravel road north of town where I was hunting geese from a ditch.
Our nation and state are better places because of Tony. But to me, his greatest legacy was being a member of the Pierre community. His passion for the outdoors was also expressed in everything Tony did.
P.S. Tony, resist your urge to shoot down the angels. They are not a heavenly breed of geese. 
Tony was a true conservationist, and a down to earth man. I will especially miss his dakota backroads segments, and will always remember the way he captured the true outdoors in the Dakotas in film. He was a friend to many, and will truely be missed.
Having grown up listening to Tony and then having the good fortune to work with Tony on issues both with the GF&P and now with the USFWS he will be a voice missed by many and myself personally. Tony’s strongest suit was the time he would take to understand the in’s and outs of an issue, whether offer coffee in the AM or a beer in the PM at the Ramkota, and of course hot wings at Jakes, Tony would be there with plenty of time. While we mourn his loss like many other great conservationist before, we all must continue to Expand Upon the Legacy of Tony Dean.
And so Tony with a toast to you each time I hit the water, the field or another Missouri River meeting…
May the prairies grow greener, the morels much bigger, the grouse hold tight and the walleyes always be on the be on the bite.
I have been hearing dean’s blurb about oboma’s support of 2nd amendment rights! What a bunch of crap! Look at oboma’s voting record; he is as anti-gun as most of the left wing. I wonder what God has asked him about the blurb on Kolo radio here in Nevada.
Regards,
Al Bivings
Godspeed, TD.