The OfficialPublication of theFresh WaterFishing Hallof Fame

VOL. 33NO. 1Winter 2009

Inside:• Awards

CommitteeIntroducesNew Category,page 2

• 2009 Enshrineesand InducteesAnnounced,page 3

• Ol’ TackleTalk, page 9

• RecordsUpdate,pages 10-11

Rainy RiverLake Sturgeon

THE

SPLASH

Roger Remaley, Lake Sturgeon, Catch & Release, Division #1,20 lb. line class, 70 inches long, Rainy River, Minnesota, USA,

caught 10/18/08.

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Awards CommitteeAnnounces New CategoryAt their mid-August 2008 selection meeting, the Hall’s

Awards Committee felt it was time to begin recognizingartists with their own category. The general feeling beingthat artists (in all their different forms) “encourage andinspire the enjoyment of fresh water sportfishing.”

We are very excited about this new category. We encour-age the nomination of worthwhile candidates.

The criteria for “Legendary Artist” is:• Recognizes those artists and photographers, etc.,

whose works are characterized by scenes, sculpturesand creations which depict fresh water fishes, freshwater sportfishing, fishing tackle and equipment.

• Creations which introduce, encourage or inspire theenjoyment of fresh water sportfishing.

• Creations which reflect traditional rewards enjoyedthrough the sport of fresh water fishing.

• Creations which reflect the art, function and/or form offresh water sportfishing.

• Creations which reflect the natural beauty and encour-age the preservation and protection of fresh watersportfishing.

The 2009 inaugural class of Legendary Artists appearson pages 5 and 6. Please go to our website www.freshwater-fishing.org for further details on how to nominate someonefor enshrinement or induction. The process is simple and canbe done on-line in about 10 minutes!

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2009 Enshrinees and Inductees AnnouncedOn August, 18th and 19th, 2008

our Awards Committee met in Hay-ward, Wisconsin.

They consist of a very talentedand devoted cross section of ourfresh water sportfishing leaders.They are: Bill Gautsche (Wiscon-sin); Larry Colombo (Alabama);Clem Dippel (Wisconsin); MikeDombeck (Wisconsin); Elmer Guer-ri (Indiana); Tim Lesmeister (Min-nesota); Gil Radonski (North Car-olina); Vin Sparano (New Jersey);Burt Steinberg (Missouri); WendyWilliamson (Wisconsin); ForrestWood (Arkansas); Bruce Holt(Washington) and Gregg Wollner(Minnesota).

Many candidates were consid-ered, but only a few were selectedfor this prestigious honor. Theresults are as follows:

Elected for2009 Enshrinement

Considered are persons whohave made a lasting National orWorld impact to the benefit of freshwater sportfishing.

Lennart Borgstrom – SwedenLen has for many years been a

driving force in the sportfishingindustry and, of course, at ABUGarcia. Mr. Borgstrom was instru-mental in bringing the ABU line tothe United States at a price mostAmericans could afford. He wasinstrumental in forging the rela-tionship between ABU and Zebco.Len was, at one time, both the pres-ident of ABU and Garcia. He evenwrote and published a waltz, aptlytitled, “The ABU Waltz.”

Phil Jensen - OregonPhil Jensen is president and

now sole-owner of the family ownedbusiness, Luhr Jensen. Phil is thethird son of the founder, LuhrJensen, Sr.

Phil has taken an active role inindustry matters and has served onthe board of the American Sport-fishing Association (ASA), as wellas being past chairman of the Envi-

ronmental Quality Committee andthe Governmental Affairs Commit-tee of that organization. Phil is afounding member and has servedon the board of the Oregon WildlifeHeritage Foundation, a member ofTrout Unlimited, the Izaak WaltonLeague, the Northwest Associationof Steelheaders, the Pacific RiversCouncil and the Northwest Sport-fishing Industry Association.

Forrest & Nina Wood - ArkansasForrest Lee Wood is known

worldwide for his success in thesport fishing industry. In, 1968, hefounded Ranger Boats, now thelargest manufacturer of bass boatsin the nation. Wood has thusbecome known as an “outdoor leg-end and the father of the modernbass boat.”

In 1968, he began building lakeboats, setting up shop in the back ofa filling station. He made six boatsthat year and Forrest’s Rangerboats, named after the ArmyRangers and the Texas Rangers,began to attract attention. On Jan-uary 1, 1969, Wood and his employ-ees moved into an old nightclub andmade 600 boats. By 1970, sales hadtopped 1200.On May 4, 1971, the boat factorywas destroyed by fire, though Woodmanaged to salvage sixty boatorders from his desk in the burningbuilding. Remarkably, RangerBoats was back in business withinforty days. That year, Wood quali-fied for the first Bassmaster Clas-sic, and the following year, Rangerwas named, “the Official Bassmas-ter Classic boat.” It remained sothrough 2000.

Even after selling RangerBoats in 1987, Wood remained alegend in the sport fishing industry.In 1996, Operation Bass, a tourna-ment organization, was renamedusing Forrest’s initials, FLW. TheFLW tournament circuits havebeen a major factor in boosting thepopularity of sport fishing. Theyhave been broadcast in some twen-ty-five countries around the world,

appearing on ESPN, Fox SportsNetwork, Matchroom Sport and theArmed Forces Network.

In 1998, Governor Mike Huck-abee appointed Wood to theArkansas Game and Commission(AGFC), where he served a seven-year term, the last year as chair-man. The AGFC, in 2005, named itsnew nature center in Jonesboro(Craighead County) the Forrest L.Wood Crowley’s Ridge Nature Cen-ter.

Since 1951 Forrest and his wifeNina have rarely been separated.Forrest has always credited Nina asbeing his driving force and reasonfor their success. It is for this rea-son that Forrest and Nina are beingenshrined together.

Elected for2009 Legendary Angler

Considered are persons whohave had at least regional lastingimpact benefiting fresh watersportfishing.

Bob Mehsikomer - MinnesotaBob began fishing as a young-

ster and developed his fishingmethods to make him a successfulangler. Wishing to share his knowl-edge with others, he began to con-duct seminars and speakingengagements. He then initiated aTV show “Thunder on the Water,”an instructional, ground breakingand entertaining fishing show. Bobfurther promoted, “Please PracticeC.P.R. - “catch, photo and release,the future depends upon it.” Since1990 his show has been known as“Simply Fishing.” Bob is a holder ofseveral world record catches. Hehas produced at least 24 fishinginstructional videos.

Bill Siemantel - CaliforniaAs a youngster growing up in

southern California, Bill couldn’ttravel to the storied haunts of suchlegendary writers as Zane Grey orErnest Hemingway to reach hal-lowed ground, but he could dream.He could dream of catching the

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biggest fish that swim whereverthey called home.

His dedication to big baits,specifically tubes and swim baits,has reordered how fishermen think.In southern California, tournamentanglers quite literally had to battleSiemantel’s big bass theories on aweekly basis. For the most part,they lost. But, in a broader sense,they won something more valuable.They eventually realized that thenext seminal moment in bass fish-ing had arrived. The era of big bassfishing, of actually being able totarget bigger fish, on demand, wasat hand.

To this day, Bill’s incredibleproductivity continues unabated.While some struggle to find newideas, Siemantel never seems to belacking for inspiration. Instead ofsimply looking for the next bigthing, he looks for solutions. Whenhe finds them, he refines them andonly then does he start the processof bringing a lure to the public. Bythe time an average fisherman getsa hold of a Bill Siemantel lure, it isa proven commodity.

Stu Tinney - TennesseeStu Tinney is named one of the

100 Living Legends of AmericanSport Fishing and is regarded asone of the nation’s top authoritieson fresh water striped bass. A pro-fessional fishing guide, tackledesigner, and lecturer, he has beenfeatured in national outdoor maga-zines such as Field and Stream andOutdoor Life, as well as in newspa-pers coast-to-coast, television andradio shows and numerous outdoorfilms. He was the founder, editorand publisher of Striper Magazineand was the chief sponsor and orga-nizer of fishing tournaments thatnot only raised money for charities,but also provided scientific dataused today by all fisheries man-agers.

Stu Tinney is a pioneer in thefield of striped bass fishing. He is apromoter and educator of stripedbass angling and is an inspiration;tackle designer, writer, publisher,professional angler and fishingeducator. As a fishing guide on J.

Percy Priest Reservoir in Nashville,Tennessee, Stu recognized anopportunity further promoting thetremendous potential of the stripedbass as an economically valuableand dynamic game fish to the sportfishery for the benefit of anglersand state fishery programs nation-wide.

Stu’s efforts have benefitedmany state fisheries agenciesallowing them to utilize informa-tion provided through his “Striper”organization. The result of this isbetter fisheries management pro-grams affecting many differentspecies of fish. Stu Tinney contin-ues to design specialty tackle anddevise angling methods speciallysuited for catching striped bass tothe benefit of anglers of all ages.

Elected for2009 Legendary Guide

Considered are persons whohave gained by their expertise andprofessionalism, a status of credi-bility and immortality judged so bytheir customers, the region and/ortheir peers.

Tony Allbright - MissouriTony Allbright was born in St.

Louis and started fishing as ayoungster with his parents andgrandparents, plying the Meramec,Big and Bourbeuse Rivers as wellas many small lakes and pondsnear St. Louis.

By 1961, at age 20, he “discov-ered” Bull Shoals Lake on the Mis-souri-Arkansas border. He fished itas often as possible, studying boththe lake and the guides who ledanglers on it—especially the lateBill Rose, truly a master guide. Heexperimented and learned thenuances of the big water and itsvarious species of fish—everythingfrom black bass to crappie to catfishto even gar when it got too hot tocatch most anything else.

Tony shares his expertise andhis “celebrity” often. He has beenthe honorary chairman of the annu-al International Union of OperatingEngineers Charity Bass Tourna-ment on Truman Lake, traveling tothat sprawling impoundment at his

own expense to help draw anglers.The tournament benefits theLeukemia & Lymphoma SocietyTony Allbright truly is a legendaryguide in Missouri, Arkansas, Illi-nois and the surrounding states.Tony has done much to promotesportfishing and good sportsman-ship.

Tom Neustrom - MinnesotaTom grew up in Chicago, close

to the Lake Michigan waterfront,but that really wasn’t where thispassion for fishing began. TheNorthern Illinois Chain of Lakes,located near the town of Antiochwas kind of a breeding ground forTom. As a very young boy, Tom andhis family would drive nearly everyweekend to Channel Lake and fishfrom dawn until dark. His Dad wasinstrumental in Tom’s fishingdevelopment and its continuedgrowth.

During the summer, the entirefamily would drive 450 miles toNorthern Wisconsin for fishingadventures that truly paved thegroundwork for Tom’s future. Thefamily would head north to Wiscon-sin every year to the Eau ClaireChain of Lakes, north of Hayward.At 12, he was on the water everyday and was a student of fishingand as Tom put it “school was ineveryday.” He learned how to jigfish early on and is still consideredone of the best in the country by hispeers. Tom is considered the ulti-mate educator by his peers and hisclients.

Elected for 2009Legendary CommunicatorConsidered are persons who

have developed a unique communi-cation means or avenue, which wasinstrumental in introducing fishingto the public or in maintaining pub-lic interest or awareness.

Don Wallace - OklahomaAll totaled, Don has had a 40

year career in broadcasting, both inradio and Television. Radio first,then he started the “WallaceWildlife Show” in 1965 on WKY-TVin Oklahoma City, while he was

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still working full time on radio sta-tion WKY. After six years of doingboth radio and TV (15 minuteweekend show), plus promotionalassignments from both entities, hebegan full-time on the WallaceWildlife Show as a weekly 30 min-utes prime-time or prime-timeaccess show on Channel 4 in Okla-homa City. The show lasted another17 years until his retirement in1989. His show ran for a total of 23years and was syndicated in partsof five states.

Don wore many hats; he wouldfilm, edit, produce, sell, host andsyndicate for the show. He produced40 new shows a year for a total of929 shows and shot 800,000 feet offilm in 23 years, having started outwith an old (heavily used) Bell andHowell wind-up 16MM camerawith one lens. His first camera costhim $25.00. In retrospect, Don says“It was the hardest job I everloved.”

Don won several writingawards from the OWAA in the“Television Communications” cate-gory. They were:*1974 - Deep Woods Award, 2ndplace*1976 - Deep Woods Award, 1stplace*1977 - Deep Woods Award, 1stplace

In addition, Don won a 1stplace award from the Sooner Out-door Writers Association in 1974 forOutdoor Broadcasting.

In 1980 Don received the “Gov-ernor’s Cup” award from the Okla-homa Broadcasters Association forhis efforts in promoting Tourism inOklahoma.

Elected for2009 Legendary Artist

Considered are persons who’screations introduce, encourage orinspire the enjoyment of freshwater fishing on a local, regional ornational level.

Eldridge Hardie - TexasTexas born Eldridge Hardie is

well known to collectors of finesporting art. His paintings anddrawings enhance numerous books

about shot gunning and angling.The have appeared in Sports Afield,Field and Stream, NationalWildlife, Gray’s Sporting Journal,Sporting Classics, Double GunJournal, Shooting Sportsman, FlyFishing in Saltwaters, as well asother sporting magazines. Hisdesigns were chosen for two TexasQuail Stamps and a Texas TurkeyStamp. He was the inaugural TroutUnlimited Artist of the Year and anAtlantic Salmon Federation Artistof the Year.

The paintings of EldridgeHardie - Art of a Life in Sport, abook spanning four decades of theartist’s career was published in2002.

Hardie was honored with thefirst ever one-man retrospectiveexhibit at The National Bird DogMuseum. He has exhibited atArtists of America, Great AmericanArtists, the National Museum ofWildlife Art, the Gilcrease Muse-um, The C.M. Russell Museum andthe American Museum of Flyfish-ing. He sums up his long career bysaying, “I was born to hunt, fish andmake art about these passions.”

Mark Hopkins - ColoradoMark Hopkins is considered

one of the premier sculptors in theUnited States today. From tabletopsculpture to monuments, his workis displayed in homes, offices, andpublic settings around the world.

Mark Hopkin’s work is in everyway, a reflection of its creator. Itreveals Mark’s total fascinationwith nearly every conceivableaspect of life: from history, children,sports, music and religion towildlife of the land, sea and air.With a style so flowing and alive ithas been called “bronze in motion,”the work is as passionate andexpressive as the artist himself.

In addition to his skill as anartist, Mark made himself a techni-cal expert in the art of bronze cast-ing. At his sculpture foundry, Markmonitors the casting process, insur-ing that the integrity of his work ismaintained throughout its creationin bronze. With the help of manytalented craftsmen, Mark endeav-

ors to establish an enduring legacyof high-quality bronze sculpture.

Mark Hopkins constantly chal-lenges himself to translate the rich-ness of life and nobility of thehuman soul into enduring sculptur-al form. In his words, “I strive toexpress beyond the image, to catchspirit, to reveal deeper, emotions,and to share joy.” As he continues torise to that challenge, his work isattaining an honored place in thehistory of art.

Mark Hopkin’s sculptures areknown the world over for theirbeautifully natural and flowingmotion. While his work portrays aspontaneous moment in the life ofits subject, it also portrays a spon-taneous moment in the life of itssubject, it also portrays the deepinner “spirit” of the human or ani-mal being portrayed.

Ogden Pleissner - New YorkOgden Pleissner is best known

for his paintings of the outdoorsand gentlemen sports.

Pleissner began studying atManhattan’s Art Students League,under Frank DuMond and Freder-ick J. Boston. In 1932 the Metropol-itan Museum of Art purchased anoil painting done by Pleissner, mak-ing him the youngest artist in themuseum at the age of 27.

After returning from World WarII, Pleissner specialized in sportart. He had a gift for capturing theexcitement of sport, whether it washunting for grouse or fishing forsalmon.

Throughout his career, Pleiss-ner believed “A fine painting is notjust the subject. It is the feelingconveyed of form, bulk, space,dimension, and sensitivity. Themood of the picture is most impor-tant.” Pleissner demonstrates hisbelief through his obsession withexact composition and realisticdepictions of human activity andanatomy.

Chet Reneson - ConnecticutChet Reneson, watercolor artist

for over 30 years, features huntingand fishing scenes in all seasons ofthe year. Those enjoying these

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activities are included in almost allhis watercolors.

Following art school, Renesonworked commercially for a numberof years before selling his firstpainting in 1966. Among his heroesare Homer, Cezanne, Wyeth, Hop-per and Van Gogh.

Chet has the rare distinction ofbeing named Artist of the Year byDuck Unlimited, Trout Unlimitedand the Atlantic Salmon Federa-tion.

When pursuing atlantic salmonChet says, “I like those rough Cana-dian rivers, like the George and theWhale. The fish are rough, toughand ready, and when I paint therivers I make ‘em just as powerfuland rugged, and mean and nasty asI can.”

His watercolors of wildfowlhunting and salmon angling are sodeft and dramatic he sells them asfast as he paints them. They showbrooding skies, perky retrievers,raised shotguns, curling back casts,white explosions of water; the blaz-ing foliage and dank marshes ofautumn and winds and snowsqualls you can almost feel hittingyour cheeks.

Brett James Smith - LouisianaIf ever there was ever an artist

who has captured today’s sportingexperience with yesterday’s senseof adventure, it is Brett Smith.Born in New Orleans, Louisiana,Brett is now considered to beamong the best in his field.

In his early years, Brett wasintroduced to the sporting life byhis grandfather who exposed him tothe gentlemen’s sport of quail hunt-ing in the longleaf pine country ofeast Texas.

His early introduction to sport-ing art came from his father whoworked professionally as an illus-trator and moonlighting as a fineartist contributing paintings forcovers of the early outdoor andwestern magazines. In college as afine art major, he realized that thecontemporary art curriculum wouldnot equip him with the backgroundneeded to pursue the area thatinterested him most-commercial

illustration.It was at that time that he

enrolled in the Famous ArtistSchool that stressed painting anddrawing of the human figure anddesigning pictures that tell stories.

Brett’s preferred medium istransparent watercolor or oil pants.The subject usually dictates themedium used. He uses oils for largecomplex scenes. Watercolors areused when more spontaneousresults are desired.

Brett’s paintings hang in someof the most prestigious collectionsthroughout the country. His workhas been featured in such publica-tion’s as Gray’s Sporting Journal,Ducks Unlimited magazine, Sport-ing Classics, Shooting Sportsman,and Double Gun Journal.

Bob White - MinnesotaBob White is an artist whose

work is an expression of a misspentyouth. He paints in the classic styleof those who illustrated the sport-ing books and magazines he wasreading when he should have beendoing his homework. A professionalguide and artist for two decades, hehas spent countless hours research-ing sportsmen and women inaction; from the wilderness of Alas-ka and his rural Minnesota home tothe wide-reaching expanses ofArgentina.

Bob has been influenced bysuch masters as Homer, Sargentand Fournier, and by more recentartist such as Pleissner, Jacquesand Sloane. He works watercolors,oils, pencil and ink, grasping theessence of a scene in a brief sketch.His ability to capture a fleetingmoment through the eyes of thesportsman has won him worldwideacclaim. His work hangs in the pri-vate and corporate collections ofsportsmen on six continents.

Bob was awarded Guide of theYear in 1988 by Fly Rod & ReelMagazine. As the 1994 Artist of theYear for the Alaska State ParksFoundation, Bob produced anddonated the artwork for the firstAlaska State Parks Foundationprint. His work has been presentedtwice in Fly Rod & Reel Magazine’s

Gallery. Bob has been featured as aguide and artist on ESPN’s “FlyFishing the World” and “Fly FishingAmerica,” as well as on RonSchara’s “Minnesota Bound.”

2009 Organizational/Governmental Award

Considered are organizationsor governmental entities, whichhave demonstrated and/or per-formed a valuable service or act tobenefit fresh water sportfishingwithin its jurisdiction or the bound-aries of its organization whetherlocal, regional or national.

Ohio Division of Wildlife –Fish Ohio Program

The Ohio Division of Wildlifecreated the “Fish Ohio Program” in1980. They have awarded thou-sands of Fish Ohio pins each yearfor outstanding catches. This pro-gram has promoted a great deal ofinterest and participation in fishingin the state of Ohio. This programhas probably become the bestmeans for promoting the sport offishing in Ohio.

2009 SpecialRecognition Award

Recognizes individuals, groupsor organizations for their programsbenefiting fresh water anglingwhich clearly are not covered byother recognition categories.

Irwin Jacobs - MinnesotaMr. Jacobs is Chairman of Gen-

mar Holdings, Inc. Today, with 14premier boat brands, approximate-ly 4,500 employees and 8 manufac-turing centers in the United Statesand Canada, Genmar is one of theworld’s largest builders of recre-ational boats and the industry’stechnological leader.

Among his personal accom-plishments, Mr. Jacobs underwroteand served as Chairman of the1991 International Summer Spe-cial Olympic Games, which wereheld in Minneapolis/St. Paul.Jacobs has personally funded thebuildings, furnishings and overalloperations of Dells Place, a grouphome for developmentally chal-

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lenged individuals. He is a majorsupporter of the Pacer Center, alocal non-profit organization dedi-cated to the rehabilitation andtraining of developmentally chal-lenged individuals; FunctionalIndustries, an occupational work-shop for physical and mentally dis-able individuals and The Art Cen-ter of Minnesota.

Billy Chapman, Jr. - TexasFew men have had a greater

impact on the world of bass fishingthan Billy Chapman, Jr.

Today thousands of bass fisher-men have had the good fortune tosample the tremendous bass fish-ing now available in Mexico. Mostknow that Chapman is theowner/operator of Anglers InnLodges on Lake El Salto and LakeMateos.

What many fail to realize isthat Chapman is also the man wholed the way in providing the won-drous bass fishing now available inthese and other Mexican lakes.

It was Billy’s father—BillyChapman, Sr.—who first intro-duced Florida strain largemouthbass to Mexican waters. Once hewas reunited with his dad it wasn’tlong before Chapman started work-ing as a guide. That was his firststep. The second was to begin workas a booking agent. This energeticyoung man did his guiding in thewintertime and his booking for thefollowing season in the warmmonths of the summer.

Mexican bass fishing is just oneof the doors Chapman has openedfor the world’s anglers. He was stillin his 20’s when he expanded hisbookings to include fishing for thefantastic peacock bass and otherfresh water species of the AmazonRiver and its tributaries inVenezuela. Within his first fiveyears in the jungle he supervisedthe construction of the first twobass lodges in that area of the Ama-zon.

Capt. Sam Romano - IllinoisSam was a pioneer in the suc-

cess story of salmon fishing in theGreat Lakes, particularly Lake

Michigan. His interest and energywere the catalyst in forming thefirst charter fishing organization inIllinois. He was co-founder of theChicago Sport fishing Association.Initially he served as secretary,then vice president from 1978-84and then as president from 1984until 1994. In addition he was theco-founder of the National Associa-tion of Charter Boat Operators andserved as a director from 1993 until1996. Captain Romano also servedas the Illinois director to the GreatLakes Sport fishing Council a basinwide organization to promote thehealth and welfare of the GreatLakes.

In Sam’s 30 years as a chartercaptain he introduced thousands tosport fishing. Not only was hisinterest in Lake Michigan, but hehad a real passion for getting youthinvolved in the outdoors, especiallyin the world of fishing. To thisextent, he prevailed on the ChicagoPark District to hold an annualyouth fishing derby, which ran theentire summer. He involved tacklemanufacturers, so the kids wouldhave tackle available for them touse. This fishing derby continues tothis day and is one of the most suc-cessful programs in the park dis-trict.

He has also played the role ofeducator, conducting many semi-nars around the city of Chicago theadjoining suburbs.

Sadly, Sam suffered a fatalheart attack after rescuing his wifeand son from a house fire in theyear 2000.

Edward (Ed) Makauskas - IllinoisIn the mid-1970’s Ed served a

2-year term as President of SalmonUnlimited, a Lake Michigan sportfishing/conservation organizationof over 2,000 members. During thistime the recently created Salmonidfishery was blossoming and therewere many hurdles to clear to prop-erly manage this resource. Ed’sleadership and council helped thegovernment agencies responsiblefor developing this fishery, clearmany of those hurdles.

Following his term as Salmon

Unlimited President, Ed served asthe club’s representative on the Illi-nois Conservation Congress,attending numerous meetings andhelping to find solutions to prob-lems vexing the Illinois and Michi-gan fishery.

Ed also served on the IllinoisHatchery Advisory Commission.This commission’s efforts eventual-ly led to the building of the JakeWolf Fish Hatchery, which producesall the salmon and trout annuallystocked in Illinois waters, as well asmany cool and warm water species.As notable as all these importantaccomplishments have been, per-haps Ed’s most important workcame after he was appointed, in1980, by the Governor of Illinois tothe Federal Great Lakes FisheryCommission, (G.L.F.C.), where hecontinues to serve as a sport fishingadvisor to the Commissioner.

We’ll Miss YouIt was with great sadness

that we learned of the passingof Anthony F. Portincaso onOctober 28, 2008.

Tony was a teacher to hisvery core. Whether teachinghow to solve a math equationor how to catch a bass, Tonywas equally comfortable andadept at both.

“His goal in life was alwaysto teach,” said Sandy, his wifeof 44 years.

“He loved teaching peoplehow to do something and thenwatching them learn how tolove it.”

Tony was a math teacher atYork Community High Schoolin Elmhurst, Illinois for 31years. He made numerousappearances on local andnational radio and television.Tony was also an early fishingeditor for Fishing Facts maga-zine.

Tony will be sadly missed.

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OntarioNon-ResidentOutdoors Card(Source: Burton McClelland, Marketing &Client Services for Ontario NaturalResources News)

Effective January 1, 2009, allanglers and hunters from outsideOntario who want to hunt and fishin the province will need to obtainan Outdoors Card. The card will berequired in order to purchase anOntario fishing or hunting license,except for a one-day fishinglicense. The cost will be $9 for a 3-year period.

The introduction of a non-resi-dent Outdoors Card is part of themodernization of Ontario’s licens-ing system. Initially, non-residentanglers and hunters will be able topur chase the Outdoors Card byfill ing out an application at anySer vice Ontario counter or On tar -io fishing and hunting license is -suer. There are over 1,800 licenseis suers located across the prov -ince. The paper application servesas a temporary Outdoors Carduntil the permanent card isreceived in the mail.

A fully integrated automatedlicensing system is scheduled to beimplemented in 2010. The auto-mated system requires all anglersand hunters to have a uniqueidentification number. To meetthis requirement, the ministry isextending the obligation to havean Outdoors Card to non-residentanglers and hunters. With the

We have been in the deepfreeze up here in the North woodsfor about the last two months!Except for a brief respite aroundChristmas, I don't think we havebeen above freezing since Decem-ber 1st. We're at the point now,when it doesn't go to double digitbelow zero temperatures at night,we look at it as a warming trend.Snow fall has been good, but notoverwhelming. The snowmobilers,and the businesses that cater tothem, seem to be happy.

As for me, I'm ready for spring!Fishing Report. I have not

seen one ice fishing record applica-tion yet this season. I suppose thecolder than normal temperaturesin the upper Midwest and North-east are keeping a few off the ice.This is, however, a bit curious. The

Outdoors Card, non-residents willbe able to purchase Ontario fish-ing and some hunting licensesfrom home, either by the min-istry’s website or the toll-freeautomated telephone service.These options will not be availableuntil closer to the implementationdate.

This new system will providemany other benefits, including:

• Greater convenience as mostlicense issuers will be able to carrythe full range of hunting and fish-ing licenses.

• Easier replacement of losthunting or fishing licenses.

• Hunters will only have topresent their hunting accredita-tion once to obtain their initialhunting Outdoors Card, which will

then act as proof of accreditation.• The option to purchase

three-year fishing and small gamehunting licenses.

days of sitting on a bucket (back tothe wind) around an eight or teninch hole is, for the most part,over. Ice fishing has, with ouradvanced portable shelters, elec-tronics and heaters of today,become quite comfortable. Ice fish-ing is great fun and I highly rec-ommend it.

January, February and Marchis the boat and sport show season.My suggestion is we all put downour fishing rods long enough toattend a few of our local shows.The tackle and boat manufactur-ers need our support now, morethan ever. Besides providing thetools we use to enjoy our passionfor sportfishing, these companiesprovide an extremely valuableben efit to our economy and to ourre source. Not just in terms of jobs,but fishing tackle sales providesrevenue to care for our fisheries.As most of you probably know, apercentage of all fishing tacklesold is channeled directly back tothe resource.

Please support the boat andfishing tackle industry to the ex -tent your budget will allow. Thenext bass you catch may thankyou for it.

Until next time,

Emmett A. Brown, Jr.

by EmmettBrown

From theDirector’s Desk

Courtesy of the Plano Molding Co.Courtesy of the Plano Molding Co.

– by Chris Slusar

Can you ID?John and Sandie Chiapusio of

Waukesha, Wisconsin offer the follow-ing for evaluation:

Thanks, John and Sandie. You’vegot a Halik Frog, manufactured inMoose Lake, Minnesota during thelate 1940’s and early 1950’s. TheHalik was made in at least three sizesand you have the junior version,thought to be the most common. Thelure is valued at $10-$20 alone and$30-$40 in the box.

Please do forward your questionsor requests for identification toslusar@krlynk.com. Alternatively,send your queries to Chris Slusar incare of the Fresh Water Fishing Hall ofFame.

Until next time, enjoy an old lure!

Hackie That DrivesFish Wacky

The independent or small pro-duction lure manufacturer has con-tributed many interesting and origi-nal designs to the history of col-lectible fishing tackle. While not aswell-known as their better fundedcompetition, these entrepreneursoften pushed design boundaries aswell as the limits of their personalresources. Some were successful,many more were not, but all haveinteresting stories to tell.

The production of the HackieMinnow clearly falls into the smallscale category. The Hackie is a neat1950’s wooden lure with an appeal-ing ad slogan.

Charles Klima invented thislure, and in partnership with hiscousin, Frank Pickart, manufac-tured the Hackie in 1948 and 1949.The business was largely operatedout of Charles’ basement in Fond duLac, Wisconsin.

Manufacturing the Hackie wasan elaborate exercise. The body wasformed by joining two woodenpieces, each lathe-turned byCharles. Following sanding, thepieces were spray painted in thefamily’s garage. After inserting dyeddeer hair between the front and rearportion, the two were press fittedand glued into position, forming thebody and creating the hackle behindthe head. A pressed and glued plugwas employed to hold the bucktail atthe rear hook. After assembly, the

completed piece was packed in aplain white box, marked simply,“HACKIE.”

The Hackie was nationallyadvertised in the Spring of 1949,pitching the catchy ad slogan;HACKIE THAT DRIVES FISHWACKY, clearly a reference to theattractive hackle adorning the head.

The intensive and costly natureof manufacture, along with margin-al sales, led to a brief life for theHackie. After filling open orders, theoperation folded during the Summerof 1949, with the remaining piecesstored in the Charles’ basement.

While gathering information onthe Hackie, I had the good fortune ofmeeting Peter Klima, one of Charles’sons. After noticing that severalHackie boxes included dime-sizedholes, I asked the obvious, what hap-pened? Peter shared that he and histwo brothers periodically practicedwith bow and arrow in the basementof the family home while growing upin the 1950’s….and, you guessed it!It seems that the Hackie storageboxes provided a nice cushionedback stop when the arrows missedtheir intended target….talk aboutcollector shock!

Today, collectors will find spar-ingly few of the boxed Hackie’s. And,occasionally, will run across a lureand box marred with a concentrichole (now you know the story!).

All three sizes of the Hackie; from top tobottom: Muskie, Bass and Flyrod. Thesmallest size is considered the most diffi-cult to find.

The first Hackie Minnow, likely complet-ed in 1948 when Charles was employed asa bookkeeper.

The only known advertisement for theHackie, published in the April and May1949 issues of Hunting and Fishing Mag-azine. Note that the Fairfax Manufactur-ing Company name was used to furtherthe notion of a larger business.

9

10

Paul Zoch, Yellow Bass,1-1, Lake Waubesa, WI,USA, 10-13-08.

Hall memberships make great gifts!

FRESH WATER FISHING HALL OF FAME

World Angling RecordsGranted

1st QUARTER - 2009 UPDATENOTE: World angling records are updated quarterly and the ulti-mate synthesis is published annually in book form each April, dis-tributed free to members, media, manufacturers and world fish-eries as a public service.

NOTICE TO REPRINT©COPYRIGHT 2009 FRESH WATER FISHING HALL OF FAME. Ex cerpts orwhole may be reprinted without written permission as public informationonly, but not for commercial profit purpose. The source of this informationmust be credited to the Fishing Hall of Fame in a type size readably noticeableor as the contents of the companion text.

“KEPT FISH” WORLD RECORDS–DIVISION #1 - ROD/REEL–

Line Lbs. WhereFish Class Ozs. Angler Caught Date

BASS/ 14 lb. 1-1 Paul A. Lake Waubesa, 10/13/08Yellow Zoch Wisconsin, USA

–DIVISION #2 - FLY FISHING–Line Lbs. Where

Fish Class Ozs. Angler Caught Date

SALMON/ 25 lb. 23-8 Robert Oak Orchard Creek, 10/4/08Chinook, tippet Warne New York, USA(King) (Inland)

A Brief History of the CiscoKid/Wallsten Tackle CompanyBy Emmett A. Brown, Jr.

Like many returning veterans of World War II, ArtWallsten dabbled in several professions after “the War.”However, Art’s first love was fishing. Art Wallsten startedhis tackle business out of his home in Kenilworth, Illinoisin 1948. It was called the Wallsten Tackle Company. Hemoved the business to 5405 W. Diversey, Chicago, Illinois in1951. In 1955, he moved just down the block to 5343 W.Diversey. In 1965, Art moved the business again. This timeit was to 2630 N.W. 1st Avenue, Boca Raton, Florida. Aboutthis same time, Art changed the name of his company toCisco Kid Tackle. In 1976, he put Inc. on his company’sname. A full line of baits were manufactured for, at least,the next twelve (12) years. Cisco Kid Tackle, Inc. was out ofproduction for about five (5) years prior to its February,1993 sale to the Suick Tackle Company of Antigo, Wiscon-sin.

In 1957 the company boasted “11 enticing colors.” By1965 Cisco Kid had 25 colors. Three non-3-D colors camewith glitter. They were Red Head (03), Black Chub (05) andFlashy Silver (06). Glitter was never put on 3-D finishes.Sadly, by 1978 the company had only 10 colors. By then,they had eliminated the once very popular color standardsof black chub, pike, orange and others. About the time Artmoved the company to Florida, he introduced the “3-DFlash Finishes.” Many models were available in both fin-ishes.

In 1965 the standard colors were: Shiner* (01); Pike(02); Red Head (03); Yellow (04); Black Chub (05); FlashySilver (06); Orange (07); Shad (08); Blue Mullet (09); Perch(10); Gold Shiner* (11); Coach Dog (12); Red Head Silver*(13); Red Head Gold* (14); Burgundy Silver* (15); Bur-gundy Gold* (16); Brown Gold* (17); Blue Silver* (18);Green Gold* (19); Black Silver* (21); Coachman Gold* (22);Red Silver* (23); Red Gold* (24); Shad Silver* (25) andTiger Stripe* (no # assigned). * Denotes available is 3-DFlash finishes.Special ordercol ors and Ti -ger Stripewere designat-ed (00).

A n o t h e rin teresting de -v e l o p m e n twhich oc -curred duringthe transitionfrom Illinois toFlorida, wasthe change of

KEPT FISH

Robert Warne,Chinook Salmon(Inland), 23-8, OakOrchard Creek,NY, USA, 10-4-08.

Representative assortment of the 700 stan-dard model Cisco Kid Topper. Circa 1960'sand 1970's.

11

CATCH & RELEASE FISH

Donald R. Crawford,Coho Salmon (Sea-Run),30”, Cowlitz River, WA,USA, 10-1-08.

the name of the Musky Cisco Kid. This bait (600 series - 7”,1 1/3 oz.) was available in both a shallow and a deep divermodel. Shortly after the move to Florida, Art changed thename of this bait to the Husky Cisco Kid. Distinguishingbetween the two is simple. The Musky Cisco Kid has thewords “Musky Cisco Kid” in raised lettering on its bellynear the head of the lure. The Husky Cisco Kid does nothave any lettering on its belly. Another difference is theMusky Cisco Kid has bell hardware on its tail hook. TheHusky Cisco Kid has a simple screw eye tail hook rig.

The 700 series (1 oz. Topper) had three (3) differentmodels. The standard model had a propeller fore and aft.The PT model had a propeller in the front and a flap-tail(no treble hook) in the rear. The F model had only an eye-hook in the front and a flap-tail (no treble hook) in the rear.The flap-tail systemwas very innovative,in that it was affixedby a very smoothoperating swivel.

By 1978, allCisco Kid modelswere available onlyin 3-D. Packagingnever varied toomuch. During theKenilworth and veryearly Chicago days,all baits came in atwo-piece cardboardbox. Colors variedfrom light green, grayto yellow. Soon after the move to Chicago, Art transitionedinto the very popular two-piece green and yellow card-board/plastic top box. Shortly before the Cisco Kid linewent out of production (late 1980’s), many baits were pack-aged in green and yellow blister packs. Pricing, like every-thing else, rose through the years. In 1957, a model 700 (1oz.) retailed for $2.25. In 1976, that same model sold for$5.25. Today Suick sells the model 700 for about $13.

Art Wallsten died about 1992. Suick still makes a fewCisco Kid models. They are the 200 (plastic lip only), 600,700 (Topper) and 1800 models. They are marketed as the“Original Cisco Kid.” “Cisco Kids” truly were groundbreak-ing in their day and among the forerunners of the baits werefer to today as “crank baits.”

CATCH & RELEASE–DIVISION #1 - ROD/REEL–

Line WhereFish Class Lgth. Angler Caught Date

CATFISH/ 30 lb. 54” Kathryn Lake Moultrie, 12/02/08Blue Maroun South Carolina, USA

SALMON/ 16 lb. 30” Donald R. Cowlitz River, 10/01/08Coho, Sea-Run Crawford Washington, USA

SALMON/ 8 lb. 50” Chuck Twelve Mile Creek, 10/30/08Chinook, King,(Inland) Booker New York, USA

STURGEON/ 20 lb. 70” Roger Rainy River, 10/18/08Lake Remaley Minnesota, USA

30 lb. 54” Sara St. Clair River, 10/23/08Rymar Michigan, USA

TROUT/ 12 lb. 32” Gaylon Salmon River, 11/24/08Rainbow (Steelhead) Newbold Idaho, USA(Sea-Run)

–DIVISION #2 - FLY FISHING–Line Where

Fish Class Lgth. Angler Caught Date

MUSKELLUNGE 14 lb. 40” Bill Chippewa River, 11/13/08Natural tippet Flader Wisconsin, USA

“ 36 lb. 51” Brad Chippewa River, 10/16/08tippet Bohen Wisconsin, USA

FOREIGN CAUGHT–DIVISION #1 - ROD/REEL–

Line WhereFish Class Lgth. Angler Caught Date

TIGERFISH/ All- 32” Leonard J. Rhudgi River, 11/12/08African Tackle Kouba Tanzania, Africa

(only)

Brad Bohen, Natural Muskellunge, 51”, Chippewa

River, WI, USA, 10-16-08.

Bill Flader, Natural Muskellunge, 40”, Chippewa

River, WI, USA, 11-13-08.Sara Rymar, Lake Sturgeon, 54”,St. Clair River, MI, USA, 10-23-08.

Leonard J. Kouba, AfricanTigerfish, 32”, Rhudgi River,

Africa, 11-12-08.

Chuck Booker, ChinookSalmon (Inland), 50”,

12 Mile Creek, NY, USA,10-30-08.

Gaylon Newbold, SteelheadTrout (Sea-Run), 32”, SalmonRiver, ID, USA, 11-24-08.

Representative assortment of the700PT and the 700F Cisco Kid Topper.Circa 1960's and 1970's. The F modelsare the 3 lower right.

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