Legend may not always be the appropriate word used to describe a good fisherman; even a great one.
But when it comes to Capt. Bob Pisano, “legend” is not only appropriate, but by all accounts, it’s the only word that fits.
The ‘legendary’ tuna fisherman from Neptune revolutionized the giant bluefin fishery in the 1970’s and 1980’s along the Jersey Shore while ultimately leading a new generation of ‘wicked’ tuna fishermen into the 21st Century. Pisano passed away on New Year’s Eve at the age of 83.
“Bob was one of the best of all time, both in fishing and at telling the same fishing stories over and over, however just as funny the 100th time and we had but no choice to listen,” Capt. Dave Carraro of F/V Tuna.com posted this weekend. “He always told me when he passed he was going to come back as a giant tuna and that I would never be able to catch him. At least now I know when we have that endless mark that eventually fades away that he’s still with us standing by his word.”
Pisano was born in Jersey City and grew up in North Bergen. He was a transmission specialist before becoming service manager of Regal Oldsmobile in Union City. He began a successful fishing charter business in Belmar in the 1960’s with his Ol’ Salty II and expanded with the addition of Ol Salty focusing on canyon and tuna fishing.
“An outstanding tuna fishermen, taught most of the guys that are out doing it today,” said Capt. Nick Caruso who runs the Ol’ Salty II out of Belmar today. “I’ve got the honor of carrying the name of the Ol’ Salty II, and I have to say he was one hell of a fisherman,” Caruso said.
“He was never afraid to share, he never cared about being out-competed,” said Jim Donofrio, executive director of the Recreational Fishing Alliance and one of Pisano’s tuna disciples of the late 70’s and early 80’s. “One of the things about Bob is that he never looked down at any other fisherman or his abilities. If you were a newbie or someone who wanted to know something, Bob would open his arms and readily share his knowledge, all you had to do is ask. And you’d be friends forever.”
“We didn’t call him Bob, we called him Pisano,” Donofrio said, using a long ‘i’ sound as in ‘paisano’ (Italian colloquialism for brother) rather than the short ‘i’ pronunciation of Pisano.
“I fished with Bob during Garcia bluefish charters when I worked for them, before joining him on many tuna trips including the one when I fought my 1022-pound state record, before he beat it by just 7 pounds the next year,” said noted angler and author, Al Ristori. “There was never anyone more dedicated to the pursuit of giants or better at it.”
That standing state record bluefin of 1,030 pounds was caught by the late Royal Parsons while fishing with Capt. Pisano on September 15, 1981. "I watched six guys on the Arundo fighting fish that day,” Pisano told the Asbury Park Press in 2014, just after Parsons’ himself had passed away. “We were the only one who boated one," the longtime captain of the Ol’ Salty told Press reporter Dan Radel at the time.
After establishing his reputation as a tuna and canyon pioneer, Capt. Bob began building boats for Runaway Marine in Point Pleasant in the late 70’s until early 80’s, and built his own "Tuna Hunter" which he fished with his longtime fishing partner Gary Cannell.
In addition to Tuna Hunter’s Cannell, Pisano’s crew in the 70s and 80s during that incredible giant bluefin run along the Jersey Coast also featured future Canyon Runner skipper Capt. Phil Dulanie, though regulars who helped land monster fish aboard the Ol’ Salty or on Marv Gutshmit’s 36-foot Runaway that Capt. Pisano ran for years also included notables like Ristori, Parsons, Mike Fornicella and Jack Cashman.
In Radel’s 2014 interview, Pisano noted that Cashman himself muscled in over 300 of Pisano’s estimated 800 giant bluefin caught over a 60-year career (including an 1,100-pounder weighed in at Montauk.) From 1979 through 1981, Pisano’s crew would break the state record four times, all starting with Fornicella’s 955-pounder in October of 1979 at the Mud Hole.
“Many credit him with putting the Bacardi wreck on the map for giants,” Radel noted.
“His true legacy isn’t what he caught or didn’t, it’s the people he taught and inspired by example. He made us all better fishermen,” said Folsom Corporation’s Nick Cicero. “He was always looking for another spot, another technique and he forced us all fish harder and stay longer.”
Like noted bluefin fishermen Cannell, Carraro, Donofrio and Dulanie, Cicero also cut his teeth fishing with Pisano in the 70’s and 80’s and built a fairly significant landings log in the years that followed. “Look at the talent that came out of a few docks in Belmar and Brielle, Bob was instrumental in building that competitive spirit among captains and crews,” Cicero said.
“The list of people that caught their first giant tuna because of Bob’s pioneering efforts would include many of the best big game captains in the world today,” Cicero added. “All got their start because Bob shared what he knew and inspired everyone within earshot with his stories of both victory and defeat while pursuing his life’s passion – giant bluefin.”
“Bigger than life, tougher than nails, a heart of gold,” said Donofrio. “A man’s man and a legend.”
Pisano is survived by his wife of 32 years, Candi Coursen Pisano whom he met in 1976.
Visitation will be on Saturday, January 9, 2016 from 2 p.m. until the time of the Memorial Service at 4 p.m. at the O’Brien Funeral Home, 2028 Hwy. 35 at New Bedford Rd., Wall. In lieu of flowers, a donation to Rose’s Fund for Animals, 109 S. Station Ave, Avon, NJ in Bob’s name would be appreciated. Envelopes will be provided at the Funeral Home on Saturday.