From the March/April 2015 issue of Sporting Classics.
Huey Lewis and I were in the Bahamas shooting an episode of Buccaneers & Bones when he showed me a picture of Jimmy Kimmel standing in a swimming pool, wearing waders, and casting a fly. I knew right then I wanted Jimmy on the show.
“It’s true,” Jimmy admits. “Sometimes I’ll just put on my waders and get in the pool with my five-weight rod and practice casting. I didn’t even know it was funny until my wife took the picture. I mean, the pool’s eighty degrees and the waders are completely unnecessary.”
That’s the kind of fly fishing fanaticism we’re looking for on Buccaneers & Bones, a show that airs on the Outdoor Channel, is sponsored by Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, and produced by my company, Orion Entertainment. So Jimmy and I worked on scheduling and finally lined up a perfect date. Then fate intervened—almost.
“I had planned to fish with Chris during my show’s hiatus,” he says. “But wouldn’t you know it? My wife ended up getting pregnant.
Of course, I was very happy, but I have to admit, one of the first things that crossed my mind was, ‘Oh no, now I can’t go on that fishing trip.’ But she let me get away for a few days, and we had a blast.”
Indeed, we did as Jimmy joined Huey, Lefty Kreh, Jim Belushi, Tom McGuane, and Patagonia’s Yvon Chouinard and Bill Klyn for a multi-day fishing-and-taping adventure at Bair’s Lodge in the Bahamas. Predictably, Jimmy has some advice for future cast members.
“Your first bonefishing trip should not be videotaped—especially if your name is Jim Belushi. He and I flailed a lot out there, but we did some things right, too. I caught my first bonefish, and I’m told they have some beautiful video of it. But I’m not looking forward to seeing the shots of me wrapped in fly line. As a comedian, sometimes it’s more important to make people laugh than to look cool. But as a fly fisherman, well . . .”
Despite taking up fly fishing just a handful of years ago, Jimmy showed he has the chops of a veteran and the same passion as all the stars on the show.
“Fishing is one of the few things I take very seriously,” he says with a look on his face that actually does approximate seriousness. “I’m not fooling around when I’m out there. I’m focused on that fly, and my day just goes by. It’s hypnotic for me, but no matter where I go, the days are never long enough.”
And the guy responsible for Jimmy’s fly fishing addiction?
“Huey Lewis is my fly fishing Buddha,” he says without a hitch. “He’s a great fisherman and a whole lot of fun to fish with. He wakes us up with a duck call in the morning, and all we do is talk about fishing the whole time. Sometimes I wonder what the fish think of us—spending all that money, traveling all that way to catch these beautiful creatures—and then let them go.”
A big part of any fishing trip is the brotherhood that develops when good guys converge to enjoy their sport, support conservation, and just have a good time. And, as is often the occasion, some of the best action happens after hours. I’ll let Jimmy tell it.
“After a great day on the water, we headed into town because we heard there was a big tarpon living under the bridge. Sure enough, there it was, swimming back and forth. We tried everything, but he wasn’t going for any of it. But as luck would have it, there just happened to be a bar right next door. So we somehow found our way inside and wound up hanging out with the locals and having a great time.
“Somewhere along the way the local guys brought out some crabs and started a contest where we had to pick up these angry little creatures without getting pinched. Well, whenever I do anything adventurous on camera, I’m always worried, because I know the crew is hoping something bad will happen to me. But I managed to grab a crab without getting pinched. That was a huge relief.”
After adding the Bahamas bonefish to his list of fishing conquests—a list that already includes trout from many of America’s most-famous rivers, from Henrys Fork to the Rogue, Snake, Green and Bitterroot—Jimmy is always dreaming of the next tight line.
“My bucket list is filled with trout,” he says. “And I’d love to fish for salmon on the fly. I daydream about retiring so I can fish every single day. In the meantime, I have a little practice rod in my office with yarn attached and I cast it at my co-workers. They love that.”
For now, Jimmy’s spending the lion’s share of his life hosting my favorite late-night show, Jimmy Kimmel Live. And if the day should ever come when he can ride off into the sunset, Jimmy knows exactly what he will do.
“I want to be able to walk out the door of my house and just fish whenever I want to. That’s my fantasy. I want to be one of those guys who spends the whole day tying flies and wears his waders to bed.”
For now, I guess he’ll have to be content wearing them in his swimming pool. +++