Tom himself served as a Lieutenant in the Finnish Army during World War II. He was a fire control officer in the anti-aircraft troops, and his bravery earned him Vapaudenristi (Cross of Freedom) decoration. His drawing style has been claimed to be the inspiration of Freddie Mercury's performance style.
A documentary about his life and works called Daddy And The Muscle Academy was released in 1991, and a biopic called Tom Of Finland was released in 2017.
Tom of Finland's work provides examples of:
- Bigger Is Better in Bed: Tom liked 'em big. Might be Gag Penis to some.
- Follow the Leader: His gay pornographic art inspired many other artists in this field. His art is considered a major contributor in leather-clad bikers and sailors having developed into gay symbols.
- Hello, Sailor!: The artist loved men in uniform and drew a lot of sailors.
- Hot Men at Work: Construction workers are a recurring theme.
- Leather Man: He drew a lot of leather-clad bikers.
- Manly Gay: All the men he drew were strong, muscular men.
- Mr. Fanservice: All the men he drew are essentially gay fan service.
- Raging Stiffie: The men in his work often have rather bulbous underpants.
- Referenced by...:
- "Vive Le Rock" from Vive Le Rock by Adam Ant name drops him:
Well, I've been where I was goingAnd it's not Tom of Finland- Turbonegro bassist and songwriter Thomas Seltzer has occasionally gone by the stage name "Tom of Norway".
