Al's Goldfish

For almost 60 years and counting, Al’s Goldfish and trout fishing have gone together like biscuits and gravy. But the Goldfish is not only an effective trout taker, it is a versatile lure that consistently catches a wide variety of freshwater game fish. This fact – as well as some savvy, early television marketing – helped the Goldfish to become one of the bestselling lures in North America.

Al’s Goldfish Company is owned and operated by John L. Occhialini, who in 1999 acquired the company from the daughter of the founder, Al Stuart. “I had done several different things in my career, and I had sold a previous company,” Occhialini explained. “So I was looking for another business. Being a life-long fisherman, when I saw that Al’s Goldfish was for sale, I was immediately attracted to it. I remembered it. Like I hear on almost a daily basis, I had the lure in my tackle box when I was a kid.”

Al’s Goldfish Company was founded by Al Stuart of Indian Orchard, Massachusetts, a small town in western part of the state near the city of Springfield. In the aftermath of World War II, Al returned home from military duty and started up a local sporting goods store. Soon thereafter, Al’s Goldfish appeared on the American fishing landscape.

“It was a little cloudy whether he purchased the Al’s Goldfish from somebody or if he actually invented it himself,” said Occhialini. “But he was the one that developed it for sure. He started producing it in the basement of the sporting goods store. It was popular locally and it grew to the point where in 1954 he incorporated Al’s Goldfish Company.” Stuart started out by stamping the lure out of brass. Over time he refined and enhanced the finish using 22 karat gold. “He was actually ahead of his time in manufacturing production methods for the early 1950s,” said Occhialini. “He stamped out everything himself, did the plating and so forth.”

In addition to his business ventures, Stuart was also a devoted world traveler. In his travels he came up with many new ideas for his lures and he discovered ways to save money on manufacturing costs by purchasing hooks and materials overseas. Stuart was also ahead of his time as a savvy marketer and businessman. He cozied up to local media and sought out sports writers throughout the country, thus keeping Al’s Goldfish Company in the public’s eyes and ears.

“The big jump for the Al’s Goldfish was when he teamed up with Gadabout Gaddis in the early 1960s,” said Occhialini. “That’s when Al’s Goldfish really took off and really was one of the largest selling lures at that time.” For those too young to remember, Gadabout Gaddis (Roscoe Vernon) is widely known as the pioneer of outdoor and fishing television. He inspired millions of Americans to venture out and enjoy the outdoors, to take up fishing and the cause of conservation. “Gadabout Gaddis actually sold a kit on his TV shows that was produced by Al’s Goldfish Company,” Occhialini explained. “And it included the Al’s Goldfish in it of course. As part of that arrangement, Gadabout Gaddis mentioned it on his TV show many times, and that’s when it really became a national seller. They were doing extremely well at that time.”

Gaddis pitched the lure offer himself, which ran during one of the commercial breaks. The kit consisted of six lures that viewers could purchase by mail order for the modest sum of $1. These lures were actually sold at cost in order to promote the show, as well as to help determine how many people watched the show and in what geographical areas. With that kind of influential backing, the Goldfish soon became one of the bestselling fishing lures in the country from the late 1950s through the 1970s.
“In the United States I’ve been told it was like one of the three biggest sellers back in the 60s,” said Occhialini. “I do know in talking with the old owners they were shipping out tractor trailer loads of them, but unfortunately,” he laughed, “I haven’t gotten back to that point yet.”

After Al Stuart passed away, his daughter inherited the business. Together with her husband, she continued to run the company for a number of years. In that time, the operation was downsized considerably, and many cost-conscious changes were made to the lures and the manufacturing processes. This unfortunately had a negative effect on the quality of the product and the prosperity of the company itself. By 1999, the advancing age of the owners and waning interest in continuing to run the company led to their decision to retire and sell Al’s Goldfish Company.

Upon acquiring the company, Occhialini found that he had some considerable work to do to revive the products and the company itself. He began by eliminating some of the cheaper, poor-selling plastic lures and concentrated on boosting the classic lineup of metal lures he now had on his hands, some of which had a veritable cult following among veteran freshwater anglers—most notably the Helgy, the 49er, and of course Al’s Goldfish. One of the first things Occhialini did was to bring back the genuine 22 karat gold plating, which had been substituted with a cheaper alternative (“gold tone”) under the previous owners.
“When I brought it back in 2000, gold was three-hundred dollars an ounce,” Occhialini said with a sigh. “The last year or so has been kind of a killer doing that,” he laughed, “but I’m sticking with it for sure.” Other changes he made included using durable VMC hooks on the lures and updating the packaging to help make the classic lures look more attractive to the dealers and on the shelves.

Al’s Goldfish is available in 4 sizes, ranging from 3/16 ounce to ¾ ounce. It comes in 22 colors and combinations. Stamped and cast in marine brass, the lure is as durable today as it was over 50 years ago. “We are still using the same dies that Al Stuart used,” professed Occhialini. “So there hasn’t been a whole lot of change in fifty years. We maintain the dies. The imprint on the die will break down over time, so you have to have that redone and fixed and stuff. But it’s actually the same dies.” Once it’s cast, the Goldfish is plated in shiny metallic finishes that include genuine gold, nickel, copper, reflective prism, color-painted finishes, ‘candy color’ metallic, and glow-in-the-dark. In addition to the Goldfish, Al’s Goldfish Company manufactures a variety of freshwater and saltwater metal spoons, hard-plastic swimming lures, poppers, trolling rigs, accessories and more.

Al’s Goldfish is effective under a variety of conditions for many freshwater (and saltwater) gamefish, including trout, bass, walleye, salmon, bluefish, striped bass, perch, pike, crappie and more. “It’s the design,” declared Occhialini. “It’s been proven for 57 years that it catches trout. It catches everything. I know for a fact because I use it. It catches bass, it catches perch, you know, it catches everything. Just about any fish will go for a wobbling action with a flash.” Al’s Goldfish is also an above-average casting lure, even in the face of a stiff breeze. Effective techniques for using the Goldfish include casting and retrieving, a slow-rolling retrieve, bottom bouncing, vertical jigging, and trolling. “It’s a very easy lure to use,” Occhialini stated. “It’s easy to cast, or you can use it trolling. It doesn’t take any kind of real special skill to use it,” he laughed. “It lasts a long time and it catches fish.”

One of the great things about classic lures are the fond memories they impart, bringing many of us back to simple, happy times. What makes a lure timeless is its ability to endure in our memories alongside those people who were most special to us – the parents, grandparents, and great grandparents of yesterday.

“The one thing I always hear,” reflected Occhialini, “is that, ‘oh, there was one in my father’s box. And my grandfather’s tackle box had an Al’s Goldfish in it.’ It seems like everyone had one at one time. I’ve got people that call me and email me, like constantly,” he laughs. “And I hear all kinds of Al’s Goldfish stories. But it’s more testimonials to what they catch and how they used them and the fish they caught, and all of this. It’s very gratifying.”