Dave 'Blood' Schulthise, former Dead Milkmen bassist
March 11, 2004, Associated Press
 PHILADELPHIA
— Dave Schulthise, known as Dave Blood during his career as the bassist for
Philadelphia punk icons the Dead Milkmen, died Wednesday. He was 47.
Schulthise died at the home of friends in Westchester,
N.Y., said his brother, Joe Schulthise. His sister, Kathy, wrote on the
band's Web site
that he committed suicide.
"He left a note that said ... he just could not stand to
go on any longer," Kathy Schulthise wrote.
In 1983, Schulthise formed the band with singer Rodney
Klingerman, known as Rodney Anonymous; guitarist Joe Genaro, known as Joe
Jack Talcum; and drummer Dean Sabatino, known as Dean Clean.
Known for their silly lyrics and fast playing, the Milkmen toured
incessantly, driving to all-ages shows around the country in a converted
ambulance. Their releases include "Big Lizard in My Backyard" (1985), "Beelzebubba"
(1988), and "Metaphysical Graffiti" (1990). Their hits included "Punk Rock
Girl," whose Philadelphia-shot video was in heavy rotation on MTV.
"'Big Lizard' was a rite of passage for a lot of kids
because the Milkmen were clever, and never too serious," said Howard Kramer,
curator at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Before becoming a musician, Schulthise went to Temple
University and Purdue University, where he was a Ph.D. candidate in
economics.
He also had studied Serbo-Croatian culture at Indiana
University and moved to Serbia in 1998 to teach English, but returned home
to live with his parents in suburban Ridley Park during the NATO bombing of the former Yugoslavia.
Schulthise had been depressed since his mother, Margi,
died of cancer in January, his friend Sheila Sullivan said.
A CD of the Milkmen's early work, "Now We Are 20," and a
video compilation, "Philadelphia in Love," were released last year.
Schulthise is survived by his father, David; brothers Joe
and Kurt; and sister Kathy.
CREAM
OF THE CROP
The Best of the Dead Milkmen Album (BMG Special Products, 1998) (order
from Amazon)
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