his wife, Vivian, the books, and sons Gary and Carl III learning the business. But it wasn’t all work with Carl Jr. In fact, he was such a good angler that he became famous as one of the few people who could catch swordfish on a rod and reel. Carl Jr. practiced and practiced, and during one season he boated an unheard of number of swordfish, 11, and losing many, many more. Word of Carl’s prowess with the swordfish spread quickly, and he soon had more people than he could ever want begging to learn his secrets. Meanwhile, things were going well with the marina business under Vivian’s management. They changed the name to the Montauk Marine Basin, and it grew to include a tackle store, 150 slips, two haulout slips, and an extensive parts inventory, which both commercial and recreational anglers relied on for last-minute fixes.
His father gave Carl the boat, and she was soon commissioned as a full-time charter boat.
An early conservationist of sorts, Carl recognized that a healthy ocean equated good business for him, and in 1970 he started the first shark tournament in Montauk. The Marine Basin Tournament was one of the first to donate the sharks caught and weighed to local food pantries, instead of having them end up in a landfill. Carl Jr. passed away on December 29, 2009, the result of a variety of health issues, but even when he was confined to a wheelchair, he would often be driven down to the Marine Basin by his nurse, where he would sit and hold court on the dock, telling stories and giving advice to both young and old about boats, fishing and Montauk. Carl Jr. will always be remembered as a true individualist. He loved Montauk and was proud of being a part of making it not only a success but also bringing about the awareness about its incredible fishing, which helped galvanize it as one of the world’s premier fishing destinations.
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CAPTAIN’S SEASIDE GUIDE 2013
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