Leonard Filgate was born August 26, 1947, in San Francisco, California. His professional art career began at 16 when he sold his first painting. After high school, his art career was put on hold for five years while he served in the United States Merchant Marine. In 1970, Filgate returned to his self-study of art and embarked on a lifelong career as an artist and illustrator. Since 1970, he has created commissioned works for private individuals, several projects for the US Navy, reproductions of Japanese screens, props for a Warner Bros. Television series, theatrical backdrops, and storyboards. In 1997 he began work on the creation of illustrations for the Rip Squeak project and continued developing and painting in that theme, until 2007, at which time he chose to explore other avenues with his art and illustration. His originals and prints (over 40 editions) have been sold in numerous US art galleries and can be found in private and public collections throughout the world, including the Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington, Delaware and the Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose, California.