vincent p. norris
February 16th, 2004, 02:45 PM
I just stumbled onto this, on the net:
Bob Nastasi died today--Feb. 8, 2004
10:25 AM 2/9/2004
Bob Nastasi, one of the most respected fly fishing
personalities of our time, died today. After a courageous six year
battle with kidney failure and lung cancer, he died at 1:30 A.M. this
morning at his home on Barnegat Bay.
Bob Nastasi grew up in the rough Bedford Stuyvesant
section of Brooklyn back in the 40's and 50's. He lived in a tenement
building with two older brothers and two younger sisters.
Thanks to his dad, Joseph, a New York City cab driver,
he spent his childhood summers in Adonia, New York, where he developed
a close association with the outdoors through his aunt and cousins.
When Bob was a teenager, he spent weekends fishing with his Uncle Pete
on board the "Two Brothers" out of Howard Beach. Using "live and cut
baits", they fished the wrecks off of Manhattan and Long Island,
regardless of the weather.
Bob began a career in the advertising business in New
York City as a graphic artist and specialized in the movie industry
where he shared boardroom sessions with such greats as Mel Brooks. He
married Roseanne in the mid 60's and moved to Wayne, New Jersey where
they raised a family of three boys.
Bob met Al Caucci in 1970 through a mutual friend at
Al's vacation home in the Poconos. He came to check out Al's house,
but when Bob saw Al's fly tying and 'bug' aquarium setup, he never
stopped asking questions. They talked all day and into the night
about bugs, and flies, and trout, and a life long friendship was born.
Al says that Bob Nastasi's curiosity, artistic talent, and powers of
observation are a rarity that he has always admired. "I have always
felt privileged with our close association and friendship, we were
like brothers We will all suffer a great loss without him," said Al.
In 1970, Al and Bob formed "Comparahatch Limited", a
corporation for their published works, fly tying materials, and trout
flies. It was also the namesake of their first book, COMPARAHATCH and
their ground breaking trout flies; Comparadun, Compara-nymph,
Compara-spinner, etc., encompassing hundreds of patterns that
knowledgeable anglers use to this day.
Bob Nastasi has a long and distinguished career in the
world of fly fishing. He co-authored the following books with Al
Caucci:
COMPARAHATCH - 1973
HATCHES - 1975
FLY TYER'S COLOR GUIDE - 1978
INSTANT MAYFLY IDENTIFICATION GUIDE - 1983
HATCHES II - 1986
HATCHES II is still considered "the" defining book on
angling entomology in the fly fishing world and remains in hardcover
and has ever been printed in paperback. After 70,000 copies sold, it
is still considered the #1 book on the subject introducing incredible
photos of insects and revolutionary fly patterns that changed the way
people trout fish to this day. Al Caucci and Bob Nastasi fly patterns
include the famous Comparadun, compara-caddis, and a raft of patterns
that include imitations for every mayfly species and the subsequent
stages of each, which includes hundreds of modern day fly patterns.
Bob and Al started the Caucci/Nastasi Fly Fishing School for
trout and bonefish in 1984, which became a nationally famous fly
fishing school and is still in operation today. Bob resigned from the
fly fishing business in 1990, with the understanding that both Bob and
Al would team up again to write more books in the future. Bob's health
problems started in 1997 put a hold on their plans for new books.
Bob Nastasi is survived by his wife, Roseanne (63),
three sons; Robert (40), his daughter, Erica; Christopher (38), his
wife Lisa and two daughters, Camille and Louise; Matthew (37); as well
as siblings Frank of Wapinger, NY, Joseph of North Carolina and
Lorraine of West Virginia.
Bob Nastasi died today--Feb. 8, 2004
10:25 AM 2/9/2004
Bob Nastasi, one of the most respected fly fishing
personalities of our time, died today. After a courageous six year
battle with kidney failure and lung cancer, he died at 1:30 A.M. this
morning at his home on Barnegat Bay.
Bob Nastasi grew up in the rough Bedford Stuyvesant
section of Brooklyn back in the 40's and 50's. He lived in a tenement
building with two older brothers and two younger sisters.
Thanks to his dad, Joseph, a New York City cab driver,
he spent his childhood summers in Adonia, New York, where he developed
a close association with the outdoors through his aunt and cousins.
When Bob was a teenager, he spent weekends fishing with his Uncle Pete
on board the "Two Brothers" out of Howard Beach. Using "live and cut
baits", they fished the wrecks off of Manhattan and Long Island,
regardless of the weather.
Bob began a career in the advertising business in New
York City as a graphic artist and specialized in the movie industry
where he shared boardroom sessions with such greats as Mel Brooks. He
married Roseanne in the mid 60's and moved to Wayne, New Jersey where
they raised a family of three boys.
Bob met Al Caucci in 1970 through a mutual friend at
Al's vacation home in the Poconos. He came to check out Al's house,
but when Bob saw Al's fly tying and 'bug' aquarium setup, he never
stopped asking questions. They talked all day and into the night
about bugs, and flies, and trout, and a life long friendship was born.
Al says that Bob Nastasi's curiosity, artistic talent, and powers of
observation are a rarity that he has always admired. "I have always
felt privileged with our close association and friendship, we were
like brothers We will all suffer a great loss without him," said Al.
In 1970, Al and Bob formed "Comparahatch Limited", a
corporation for their published works, fly tying materials, and trout
flies. It was also the namesake of their first book, COMPARAHATCH and
their ground breaking trout flies; Comparadun, Compara-nymph,
Compara-spinner, etc., encompassing hundreds of patterns that
knowledgeable anglers use to this day.
Bob Nastasi has a long and distinguished career in the
world of fly fishing. He co-authored the following books with Al
Caucci:
COMPARAHATCH - 1973
HATCHES - 1975
FLY TYER'S COLOR GUIDE - 1978
INSTANT MAYFLY IDENTIFICATION GUIDE - 1983
HATCHES II - 1986
HATCHES II is still considered "the" defining book on
angling entomology in the fly fishing world and remains in hardcover
and has ever been printed in paperback. After 70,000 copies sold, it
is still considered the #1 book on the subject introducing incredible
photos of insects and revolutionary fly patterns that changed the way
people trout fish to this day. Al Caucci and Bob Nastasi fly patterns
include the famous Comparadun, compara-caddis, and a raft of patterns
that include imitations for every mayfly species and the subsequent
stages of each, which includes hundreds of modern day fly patterns.
Bob and Al started the Caucci/Nastasi Fly Fishing School for
trout and bonefish in 1984, which became a nationally famous fly
fishing school and is still in operation today. Bob resigned from the
fly fishing business in 1990, with the understanding that both Bob and
Al would team up again to write more books in the future. Bob's health
problems started in 1997 put a hold on their plans for new books.
Bob Nastasi is survived by his wife, Roseanne (63),
three sons; Robert (40), his daughter, Erica; Christopher (38), his
wife Lisa and two daughters, Camille and Louise; Matthew (37); as well
as siblings Frank of Wapinger, NY, Joseph of North Carolina and
Lorraine of West Virginia.