• Posted on 03/10 at 07:25 AM
On top of painting signs for local resorts and businesses, Schaadt did a wealth of sketches for his closest friends. Schaadt drew this Christmas card in 1962 for Charlie Napoli and his family (see the “Shad” insignia on the lower right). Each year Schaadt drew a handful of Christmas cards, it is unclear if it was a way for him to make a few extra bucks or if he just did it for fun. The accomplished artist loved to sketch.
As a boy Charlie Napoli befriended Bill and quickly became a consumed angler. Charlie was about as close as a young man could get to the reclusive angler. It was through Charlie that many other Russian River kids befriended Bill.
Later in life, Charlie and a companion were tragically killed while on a boat ride out of Bodega Bay. Charlie is fondly remembered by many of his now gray-haired Russian River boyhood friends.
Napoli Christmas Card
Posted by Justin on 03/10 at 07:25 AM in
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• Posted on 02/12 at 02:40 PM
During an eerie foggy morning along the southern Oregon coast, Joe Sugura slid his small 6 foot pram into the chilly waters of the Chetco River. The fishing had been memorable during the previous few days and he carried his Nikon camera on board to capture some of the action. As the morning light begin to creep over the coastal mountains Bill Schaadt hooked into a large King Salmon. Joe grabbed his camera and took a classic photo that has come to exemplify Schaadt to many of his closest friends. The photo titled “first light” is the background image for the Rivers of a Lost Coast website.
In the short clip below, Joe explains why he thinks the photo has become so special to so many people.
Posted by Justin on 02/12 at 02:40 PM in
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• Posted on 01/19 at 09:09 AM
14 years ago this past Saturday, William E. Schaadt passed away at Memorial hospital in Santa Rosa, CA. Bob Nauheim and Russell Chatham wrote corresponding pieces for California Fly Fisher and John Randolph composed printed a remembrance in Fly Fisherman Magazine.
The following few paragraphs were written by George Snyder and appeared in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat on January 23, 1995. Although George misinterpreted a few facts, the large majority of the piece is accurate.
“Memorial services will be held at 10 a.m. tomorrow at Calvary Catholic Cemetery in Santa Rosa for Bill Schaadt, perhaps one of the most widely known fly fishermen on the Pacific Coast.
“Mr. Schaadt, a native of San Francisco, died of cancer last Tuesday in Santa Rosa surrounded by his fishing friends and family. He was 71.
“Mr. Schaadt made his living as a sign painter along the Russian River after moving to Monte Rio as a young man. He was known locally as an excellent pen-and-ink artist, producing cartoon and drawings not only of his beloved fish but of other subjects as well.
“He was perhaps best known for his love of fly fishing, using the technique in the ‘50s and ‘60s along the Russian River and also on the Pacific Coast’s major salmon and steelhead streams, including the Smith River in the northern part of the state and the Chetco in Oregon.
“Mr. Schaadt is also credited with being among the first West Coast Fly Fishermen to successfully use flies to catch saltwater fish, including striped bass and rock fish.
“Despite his modest living circumstances, Mr. Schaadt managed to fish Costa Rica, in the Florida Keys for trophy tarpon and in British Columbia. Mr. Schaadt, who was a friend of the late author Ted Trueblood, a former fishing editor for Field & Stream magazine, was profiled in that magazine and also Sports Illustrated, Outdoor Life and other wildlife publications.
“In addition, Mr. Schaadt was featured in popular books including “Steelhead Fly Fishing,” by Trey Combs, and “The Angler’s Coast,” by Russell Chatham, the author and artist from Livingston, Mont.
Bob Nauheim, the owner of Santa Rosa’s Fishing International tour company, was among several friends who were with him at the end. “He never married - his fly rods were his children. Unofficially, Bill holds the record for the largest salmon ever caught on a fly, at 57 pounds on the Smith River in the 1960s, [since beaten several times]” said Nauheim. “He was a natural. I was in awe of him when I first met him. Only a few people are legends in their own time, . . . and he was one of them.”
“Betty King, who along with her husband, Grant for many years ran King’s News and Tackle in Guerneville, called Mr. Schaadt “a man’s man,” Who was had to hide from lesser fishermen attempting to follow him to his secret fishing holes.
“Mr. Schaadt is survived by brothers, Robert, of Santa Rosa; and Howard, of San Francisco; as well as numerous nieces and nephews.”
- George Snyder
Posted by Justin on 01/19 at 09:09 AM in
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• Posted on 01/07 at 09:09 AM
We heard about Charlie Marcum while talking to a bartender in Monte Rio. We were “fishing” (excuse the pun) for information about Bill Schaadt. Like most people the bartender laughed and shook his head while talking about Bill. He threw out a few names and told us Charlie Marcum had collected a couple boxes of Bill’s stuff in the days after his death. We’d already heard about the sadness and mayhem that occurred in those first weeks after Bill passed. Close friends and neighbors shifted through the masses of junk and discarded equipment Bill had become famous for collecting. Local school kids and teenagers ravaged the property when friends weren’t around. Eventually crews were called in to clear the property.
We met Charlie at his house in the back road hills of the Russian River. His collection of gear and memorabilia was spread across the living room when we arrived. Like a schoolboy at show and tell, he jumped from item and item giving bits and pieces of the stories of each photo, reel, drawing, and letter.
Around the side of his house Charlie had a collection of old wooden signs, Schaadt had painted back in the 40s and 50s; that at one point used to line the roads and resorts of the Russian River. The paint was peeling, mold veiled the wood but the artistry was beautiful.
We spent the better part of an afternoon with Charlie. One of our favorite finds was a handwritten letter from Ray Purcelli to Bill dated December 19th, 1955. In the letter, Ray thanks Bill for his generosity and assistance in rekindling his own lost passion for fly fishing. The words are sincere and indicative of the influence Bill had on countless steelhead and salmon anglers over the years.
The letter ends with Ray’s inquiry about “the great shad fishing on the Russian River”, a fishery that is now nearly completely defunct.
We encourage you to follow the link below to view the letter in its entirety.
View the letter here.
Posted by Justin on 01/07 at 09:09 AM in
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