Thomas Lawrence "Larry" Tuohy II

1948 - 2024

Larry Tuohy (Thomas Lawrence Tuohy II), whose scorn of euphemism often got him in trouble, is dead. Larry - nicknamed the Brass Fish (he was never sure why) - died Feb. 2, 2024. He was 75. Larry was one of the world's great storytellers. But dementia robbed him first of occasional words, then of stories, and finally of nearly all his words. One story he kept almost until the end and loved to tell doctors was about being hit by a land mine. (He often left out the fact that he and others were working to locate mines around his base in Vietnam so it could expand.) Someone squatted near Larry's head and said, "This man is dead." Larry said, "The hell I am!" Larry was born in Little Rock on Dec. 13, 1948, to Dr. John and Ellen Bell Tuohy. He leaves Janet McConnaughey, his partner for 41 years; his sister, Marion Wolfe (Vince); brothers John (Mary), Justin and Albert; nephew John (Kaye Stoopman) and niece Katherine Tuohy, their children, nieces Laura and Jessica Wolfe, and many cousins. The Tuohys moved from Arkansas to New York, then to Bethesda, Md., where Larry grew up next door to his Uncle Les Bell, his Aunt Cay and their nine children. He was passionate about military history and painted multitudinous armies of miniature figures for tabletop war games, despite a tendency toward poor die rolls. He also loved alligators and a succession of cats. Larry left college after his freshman year and was drafted. He reenlisted twice ("The Army was the only place where I felt myself") and served two tours in Vietnam, including time after recovery from losing half his colon and bits of his small intestine to the mine. Back in Maryland, he worked for a detective agency which, among other things, tested store security. Larry said he once left a hardware store with a coworker and enough legally stolen goods to stuff his VW Beetle, with lawnmower handles sticking out of a window. He moved from that job to the Washington Bureau of The Associated Press, where he started as a copyboy and soon was promoted to administrative assistant for the Chief of Communications. That also was where he and Janet became friendly acquaintances. They remained so until Janet, then in New Orleans, offered him her sofa for Mardi Gras 1983. Larry had returned to school and graduated from the University of Maryland in 1985 with a bachelor's degree in history, concentrating on military history. His favorite professor encouraged him to get a doctorate and become a professor; Larry said the biggest mistake of his life was not doing so. He moved to New Orleans about two years later. His jobs there ranged from editor at an archaeological research firm to information technology at the Tulane University School of Business and then at Gulf Coast Bank & Trust Co. He also was the self-taught alligator expert at the Barataria Unit of the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve, where he volunteered for 13 years. One of his proudest possessions was a presidential medal for 700 volunteer hours in one year. Services are pending. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Barataria Unit.