Do you remember Shaun Cassidy?

Shaun is a versatile American singer, actor, movie producer and writer, who hit the scene in the 1970s in a big way, and became a popular teen idol whose face graced the covers of many teen magazines in particular.

As an actor Shaun is well known for his role in several television series, such as “The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries” from 1977 to 1979, “Breaking Away” from 1980 to 1981, and “General Hospital in 1987, as well as several TV movies including “Once Upon a Texas Train” and “Roots: The Gift” in 1988.

Shaun has followed his dreams and, by all accounts, created the life he desired. Here we’re going to delve into what he’s been doing since his teen years, and what he’s up to now.

Shaun Cassidy’s family and upbringing

Shaun Paul Cassidy was born on 27th September 1958, in Los Angeles, California into a family of high-profile artists. When Shaun achieved fame, his family were already famous and each a raging success in their own right. His Tony award-winning father was Jack Cassidy, an actor, singer and theater director, and his mother, Shirley Jones is a well-known singer and Oscar winning actress, who co-starred with Shaun’s half-brother, David Cassidy, an actor, songwriter and musician, in the famous 1970s musical sitcom, “The Partridge Family”. Shirley celebrated her 89th birthday on the 31st March 2023. Shaun also has another three half-brothers, Patrick, Ryan and Beau Cassidy.

Shaun was still in Beverley Hills High School when he signed up with Warner Bros. Records and released his first, self-titled solo album in 1977. The album “Born Late” featured the hit tracks “Hey Deanie” and “Do You Believe in Magic, and the albums “Under Wraps” followed in 1978 and then “Room Service”, which didn’t hit the charts.  He had a concert tour in 1979, after which Warner Bros. Records released a live album, “That’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Live” featuring tracks from the concert and his studio albums. His last album, “Wasp” was released in 1980, but didn’t have much of an impact.

Shaun’s father died in 1976 at the age of 49 in a tragic fire; it’s reported that Shaun had a difficult relationship with his father, who had suffered mental illness for many years. Shaun was devastated when David died in 2017 after a long struggle with alcoholism that ended in liver failure.

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Shaun Cassidy forges a new career path

At the age of 22, Shaun left his music career behind him and went into theater – he and his brother David acted alongside each other for a year in the Broadway musical show, “Blood Brothers”, then once again, whilst working as a theater performer, Shaun’s career took a new direction when he wrote his first script, “American Gothic”, which became a classic cult horror series. His newfound role and a dream he had had for years as writer/producer brought on the creation of the 400 AD Roman invasion fantasy series called “Roar” in the late ‘90s. That was followed by a string of TV movies and series in the early 2000s, including “Cold Case” and “The Agency”. In 2005 he created the science fiction TV series, “The Invasion of the Body Snatchers”, then “Blue Bloods” in 2011, and “Emerald City” in 2017.

Shaun wrote eight episodes from 2018 to 2022 for the medical drama series “New Amsterdam“, which was released on 25th September, 2018 and became a global success. It’s grand finale was screened at the end of Season 5 after 89 episodes on 17th January 2023. For those who didn’t get to see this highly popular series, it’s still available for viewing on Netflix, where it quickly rose to the top slot as the most watched TV show in the US. It has been nominated for several awards and won the CinEuphoria Award in 2022, two for The Hollywoood Critics Association TV Awards in 2021 for best broadcast network series, drama, and Media Access Award in 2019.

Shaun Cassidy’s loves, marriages and family

Being a teen heartthrob ensured that Shaun, at 5ft 11ins (180 cm) with light brown feathered hair and blue eyes, was surrounded by a bevy of adoring fans. One of his first flames was the well-known American actress Jamie Lee Curtis, whom he met on the set of “The HardyBoys/Nancy Drew Mysteries” and who had just starred in “Halloween”. Both were rising stars at the time, and Jamie went on to forge a great career in a long list of films such as “A Fish Called Wanda” and “True Lies”. They only dated a few months and broke up apparently because of their demanding work schedules, but still remain friends to this day.

This was fun.

The Case of the Dreamy Detectives: Shaun Cassidy and Parker Stevenson remember "The Hardy Boys" https://t.co/ZXC9rWTw28

— Shaun Cassidy (@Shaunpcassidy) March 16, 2023

In December 1979 Shaun married Ann Pennington, an American glamour model who already had a daughter, Jessica, born in 1970. Together Shaun and Ann had a daughter, Caitlin in 1981 and a son, Jake in 1985, but the marriage didn’t last, and they divorced in July 1993.

Next up came Susan Diol, an American actress who is known for the science fiction series “Quantum Leap”. They married on 7th May 1995, and had a daughter, Juliet in 1998, but their marriage didn’t make seven years and they divorced on 1st March 2003.

On 28th August 2004, Shaun married American producer Tracey Lynne Turner, after they’d been dating for a couple of years. They tied the knot in a private ceremony in Santa Barbara, and they have four children, sons Caleb born in 2005 and Roan in 2006, and daughters Lila born in 2008 and Mairin in 2011.

Tracey was born on 13th March 1975 and is an attractive brown-eyed blonde. She produced “The Oprah Winfrey Show” in 1986, and “Cover Me: Based on the True Life of an FBI Family” in 2000.

One could say Shaun was third time lucky, and the couple will be celebrating 19 years together this year. As a dad with eight children and a busy work schedule to boot, Shaun puts his family first. He declared in an interview with Oprah Winfrey, “They are the realization of my dream. My family’s my dream.”

What’s Shaun Cassidy doing now?

Shaun and his family have been living in the Santa Barbara area for the last 10 years. Being in the heart of wine country has inspired Shaun to create wines – his friend Steve Clifton collaborates with him to produce fine wines labelled “My First Crush”. During the Covid-19 pandemic, they partnered with “No Kid Hungry”, for which $2 from each bottle sold is donated to the charity to assist children, families and communities. Cheers to that!

After abstaining from performing for decades, the music, bright lights and live audience drew him in again even though he never thought he’d return to the stage.  Shaun stated in an interview with the Honolulu Star Advertiser, ‘It’s a strange career trajectory I’ve had, but it’s a good one’ and that he doesn’t know too many people who stopped doing one job at 21 and then picked it up again at 60. Yet he started missing that connection with an audience, and so his new show, “The Magic of a Midnight Sky” was born. Not only does he sing in the show, but he also recounts stories of his interesting life experiences. An example can be seen in the YouTube video clip of his show in December 2021 at Bensalem, Pennsylvania.

To Shaun’s surprise, five New York shows scheduled for June 2023 are already sold out, and has announced that he plans on setting up more shows before then. So on 10th and 11th March this year, Shaun performed at the Blue Note Hawaii, which was a great success. He took his family along, and on 12th March they celebrated Tracey’s birthday on the idyllic island.

That was quite a nostalgic and momentous event, as he’d come full circle since he performed at the Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu in 1978. On that occasion he was flown in by helicopter, and his screaming fans on Waikiki Beach spelt out his name with their bodies on the sand.

Shaun’s career isn’t likely to end there. At 64 years of age now, he has another goal and that is to write a Broadway musical. With his drive, passion and optimism, it could easily become a reality.

Shaun Cassidy’s popularity and net worth

Kudos to Shaun for maintaining his fame and success since his teen years, through different career trajectories from singer to actor to writer/producer and then back to being a singer/storyteller. All of this was achieved notwithstanding the demands of a large family. Shaun is active on social media and has a great following: 144,000 on Facebook, over 102,000 on Twitter and almost 50,000 on Instagram. As a result of his popularity and hard work, according to authoritative sources, Shaun’s net worth is estimated at a well-deserved $20 million.

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It has been said that Shaun has a positive attitude which has seen him through life’s trials, and inspires others. He once said, ‘…do me a favor and do that thing you’ve always dreamt of, whatever it might be. You might even start practicing for the Dodgers. If it can’t be me on third base, it might as well be you.’

Being called a car guru is an honor not easily gained by anyone, but Shawn Pilot is merited enough to be called so. Since debuting in “Car Masters: Rust To Riches”, Shawn has gained the audience’s hearts with his vast knowledge about car restoration and customization, on top of his great sense of humor and skillful ways of entertaining viewers.

There’s no doubt that Shawn awakens a sense of curiosity in the audience and fans alike, turning him into a fan favorite in no time, and gaining him enough fame to start his own independent projects.

So do you want to know more about Shawn Pilot? Stay here to discover all the often little-known facts about him, from his personal life, passing to the less-known side of his career on TV, to his best well-kept automotive-related secrets!

Shawn’s Debut

Although Shawn Pilot has become widely known for his appearances in “Car Masters: Rust To Riches”, what many don’t know is that he debuted in the entertainment industry long before this show premiered in 2018.

As it happens, Shawn’s earliest job in the industry dates back to 1999, when he appeared as a berm soldier in the movie “Three Kings”. While his role was small, having some type of acting experience is rather unexpected for a man who is nowadays known for his job in the very different industry of automotive customization.

As well, Shawn’s credit in the movie is somewhat impressive considering he shared the stage with the likes of George Clooney, Ice Cube and Mark Wahlberg. Other than that, it’s unknown if Shawn had other uncredited acting roles in movies or TV, but his experience in front of cameras is noticeable to anyone who has ever watched “Car Masters”.

He Was In Another Car Series

After debuting in a 1999 movie as an actor, Shawn Pilot’s first unscripted appearance on the small screen came in 2011, with the series “Inside West Coast Customs”. Centered on the California-based business West Coast Customs and its owner Ryan Friedlinghaus, the show introduced the audience to amazing car restorations, and the process behind them.

Shawn appeared in the episode “Will.I.Am of the Black Eyed Peas” from the second season, in which the staff restored and mixed a 1958 Corvette with a C6 for the famous hip-hop singer and producer. Given that Shawn’s specialty is Corvettes, he was of great help in the process of finding the right cars to conceptualize, and make Will.I.Am’s vision come alive.

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The ending result was the Willvette, a red-painted futuristic-looking car which perfectly combines the best parts of the older and modern Corvettes, both on the outside and inside. It was undeniably a great addition to Shawn’s job resume in the automotive world, and also proves that he’s been doing his thing in the automotive world for quite some time.

He’s Been To Great Car Shows

The car world is a big passion of Shawn Pilot, even when cameras aren’t rolling. As seen on his social media, he’s often present at some of the industry’s most coveted events, such as the Specialty Equipment Market Association, generally known as SEMA’s show.

While it’s unclear if Shawn attends these events to promote some of Gotham Garage’s customization works, or as a celebrity guest, that hasn’t stopped him from enjoying the experience no end. Fans also enjoy the thrill of meeting their favorite “Car Masters” dealer in person, as the several tagged photos of Shawn with fans on Instagram easily demonstrate.

He’s a Very Private Person

Though it’s usual for reality TV stars to exploit their public image for the sake of money and fame, that’s not the case with Shawn Pilot. Despite having accumulated several thousand followers on Instagram so far, Shawn’s posts to date aren’t numerous, and are posted at long intervals. The oldest photos on his account date back to 2018, which makes it impossible to trace his life prior to the show’s premiere.

On top of having no public Facebook account for fans, Shawn also remains inactive on his personal profile on the platform.

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While this choice for privacy is rarely noted in a TV star, Shawn has let us know some personal details about himself, such as his closeness with his mom Carol, who appeared in the fourth season of “Car Masters” as a guest, and wore matching race suits with her son. It’s also known that Shawn has a daughter and two grandchildren, but further information about his romantic life or partners – past or present -hasn’t been revealed.

He’s Popular & Quite Rich

Given how well-liked Shawn Pilot is by the “Car Masters” audience, it’s truly unsurprising that he’s quite an agreeable personality, and is easily liked by people everywhere. Besides the fact that his Instagram account has almost 30,000 followers, despite being rarely updated, Shawn has proved his knack for catching viewers’ attention with his original and very popular YouTube content.

After sharing his first video on the platform in March 2023, Shawn gained over 30,000 subscribers and hundreds of thousands of views in less than a month, a very impressive accomplishment, especially considering that his channel had remained inactive since he started it in 2013.

Regarding Shawn’s financial details, several online sources point to his net worth being a modest $500,000 as of April 2023. While he’s refrained from revealing whether this figure comes from his job on TV and as a car dealer, it’s safe to assume a huge part of it comes from his profitable hobby as a poker player.

As registered on some websites such as CardPlayer.com, Shawn has earned around $373,894 in tournaments since he debuted as a professional poker player in the late 2000s. His best winning night was in 2009, when he won $39,663 in one go, which is quite impressive.

He’s A Corvette Guy

Shawn Pilot’s love for Corvettes has been more than evident in his appearances in “Car Masters”, and it’s the same for his everyday life. As it happens, Shawn’s YouTube channel not only makes sure to showcase his love for Corvettes and good deals but is also part of his new project VetteRod, with which he plans to brand himself as a connoisseur of this car brand.

As read on VetteRod’s official website, Shawn considers himself a ‘genuine Corvette freak’ and is the proud owner of over 100 of them, including the black and red stripped-out Corvette Z51, which was introduced in the show as the Vette Kart., suggesting that these aren’t included in his estimated net worth.

Shawn’s love for ‘Vettes goes from finding them somewhere on the internet, to making a deal after assessing the car’s body and engine conditions, before finally taking them to his Los Angeles shop to fix them. Some of his Corvettes end up on sale, but others are added to his large collection. The couple of videos on Shawn’s YouTube channel also let us see that not only is he vastly knowledgeable when it comes to solving issues under a car’s hood, but has a great talent as a host.

All in all, Shawn’s off and on-screen career has been amazing so far. Going from the times he had a small role in a Hollywood film, then becoming a reality TV star, to finally creating his original online content, it’s clear that Shawn and his VetteRod have a bright future ahead.

The tough captain of the fishing vessel Northwestern, Captain Sig Hansen, became one of the most recognized reality television personalities through the hit series “Deadliest Catch.” His amazing exploits in the treacherous waters of the Bering Sea was well documented by Discovery Channel since the TV show was launched in 2005. His journey with the show had been smooth sailing until he faced a lawsuit filed by a former deckhand, citing inadequate and delayed medical treatment for his abdominal pain, which resulted in an emergency operation along with the discovery of a more serious medical condition.

Get to know Captain Sig Hansen

Sig Hansen was arguably the most popular crab fishing captain in the reality TV series “Deadliest Catch.” His success in the industry was primarily due to his family background.

Growing up years and family

Sigurd Jonny Hansen was born on 28 April 1966, in a Scandinavian fishing community in Seattle, Washington State. Initially, his parents, Sverre and Snefryd, debated on whose father would be their eldest child’s namesake. Eventually, his father won and he was named after his grandfather, Sigurd. To ensure that his other grandfather, Jakob, wouldn’t be left out, Sig was christened with a second name Jonny as a tribute to him. Apparently in Norway, if a person wasn’t chosen to be the baby’s namesake, it was considered an honor to choose one that began with the same letter of his name. However, Sig recalled that being given such a name, Sigurd Jonny meant getting into many fistfights growing up in 1970s America, as he was oftentimes teased by friends and classmates. The family moved out from to Shoreline, Washington State, to a bigger house with a yard. He has two younger brothers named Edgar and Norman.

He grew up surrounded by Norwegians, Swedes and Danes; most never really spoke English unless they needed to. There was a time when he was in elementary when Sig went home with a note from his teacher addressed to his parents telling them, ‘TEACH HIM ENGLISH. STOP SPEAKING NORWEGIAN.’ They didn’t attend PTA meetings as his father was out at sea nine months a year, and his mom only spoke English when paying bills or buying groceries.

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His family’s fishing legacy

Sig came from a long line of Norwegian fishermen, sailors, merchant marine workers, and captains. His father, Sverre, was also a captain of a fishing vessel just like his grandfather before him. When the fishing industry around Seattle declined back then, he and a few brave and adventurous fishermen went farther North to explore the Bering Sea. They couldn’t believe their luck when they found an immense treasure in the form of Red King crabs. Today, Sverre is widely acknowledged as one of the pioneers in the crab industry in Alaska. Dutch Harbor wasn’t as popular and successful as it had been in the last two decades; at that time, it was only a few Japanese and local trawlers who had been catching crabs, but when the Norwegians and Americans developed the boxlike steel traps, they amassed a fortune. It was from a bygone era when fishermen mostly relied on experience, gut instinct, and a whole lot of luck to make it home alive with huge hauls of crabs, without the assistance of technology. Some people in Sig’s family were swept overboard, and it didn’t matter if they did everything right, the Bering Sea was just brutal so even the most cautious men perished at sea.

What time is it Time to check out my bling! #grablife pic.twitter.com/rzvgDKVZ7b

— Sig Hansen (@northwesternsig) August 2, 2013

His fishing background

Captain Sig Hansen started fishing at the young age of 12, and was mainly taught by his father. He was already aware of how dangerous their profession was, as he grew up watching his grandfather walk around with crutches because of it, however, it didn’t deter him from dreaming of becoming just like them. His mother knew right from the beginning that he would continue the family legacy, as the young Sig would draw boats and crab pots instead of practicing how to write the alphabet. Initially, he had a terrible bout of seasickness, but he eventually became used to the rough waves. Aside from watching his father do his job aboard the family-owned fishing vessel called Northwestern, he also accompanied his uncle on fishing exploits. However, his first real fishing job was under his father’s friend who never hired greenhorns, but took him in as a favor. Sig’s father equipped him well with the best fishing gear and a piece of solid advice that he followed to the letter. ‘Keep your mouth shut, do what he tells you, and everything will be fine.’

Sig Hansen and his journey in “Deadliest Catch”

Captain Sig Hansen often considered the Bering Sea as the major league of the fishing industry and Dutch Harbor as Yankee Stadium. He was used to playing in the biggest game, competing with the biggest boats, and making the biggest paychecks in a place with the biggest egos. However, he never thought that his job would have him working under the beaming lights of Hollywood, as he became part of the original cast of a reality TV show. He often wondered how it would be if his father was still around when it all happened.

What was “Deadliest Catch” all about?

Hunting for the Alaskan king crabs was not for the faint of heart. Crab fishing wasn’t only challenging but quite unpredictable as well. Most of the time, the weather didn’t co-operate, and the crabs would forever play hide and seek, which made it great for TV. A documentary about this profession was turned into a fully-fledged reality show called “Deadliest Catch.” The TV show presented the fearless fishermen who would battle it out with the raging waves of the cold Bering Sea as they navigated their way to the fishing spots where crab populations continued to shift, depending on several factors including climate change. The series premiered on 12 April 2005, and has been on the air for 19 seasons and counting, produced by Original Productions for Discovery Channel.

Captain Sig’s crew of the F/V Northwestern

The F/V Northwestern had been under Captain Sig’s helm for the past three decades. It wouldn’t be as successful as it had been for many years if not for the support of his fishing family and his dedicated crew that worked alongside him. It had been one of the original fishing boats featured in “Deadliest Catch,” and throughout the years, viewers became familiar with his crew. Some had been with him from the start, but due to the nature of the job, there had been changes over time. Both of the Captain’s younger brothers were part of the Northwestern crew. Edgar worked as the ship’s deck boss and engineer while Norman would alternate as the cook and deckhand, or take responsibility for whatever was needed to be done in the boat. A few seasoned deckhands such as Matt Bradley and Nick Mavar Jr. were the notable ones, but they left the boat for different reasons in 2020. Nick’s nephew, Jake Anderson was also part of the crew for a time, but went on to be the captain of another fishing vessel later on. In recent seasons, the captain’s other family members came in to contribute their skills and expertise to catching crabs including his wife June and his adopted daughter, Maddy, whom he was grooming to be his successor when he hired her back in 2009.

Notable accidents at sea

In every fishing vessel, it was expected that aside from the captain and deckhands, there would be mechanics and welders who could practically fix just about anything, so any incidents that would occur due to the force of nature or overworked machines could be immediately corrected. For instance, a fire broke out in the 9^th episode of the 12^th season of “Deadliest Catch.” The boat lost its power without any warning, but Captain Sig told everyone to stay calm as his crew put out the fire, and the engineer assessed the problem. Their priority was to isolate the damaged breakers so that they could still use enough power to get the crab pots from the sea before returning to port. During the same season, a part of the boat’s bow cracked as they were hit by a 35-foot rogue wave. He said, ‘I hope we have something in our gear, man, that’s all I can say.’ The F/V Northwestern was lucky enough that for all the years it was at sea, it only had one collision with another boat, in March 2019 as it was nearing Dutch Harbor. The other fishing vessel was cruising out of control and crashed straight into Captain Sig’s boat. While neither boas sustained overwhelming damage, it was a clear reminder that accidents do happen even with a calmer sea and in good weather.

Captain Sig Hansen’s health struggles at sea

Health challenges also occurred at sea, mostly because of extreme exhaustion due to long hours of hard work and an unhealthy lifestyle. Captain Sig Hansen had a severe head injury in the 1990s, when a metal block struck him on his head.  While it didn’t result in a serious long-term effect on him, it was a painful lesson to learn to be extra cautious while on deck. He suffered a heart attack in March 2016, captured in “Deadliest Catch” along with the medical evacuation so he could be rushed to a hospital in Anchorage. The tests revealed that he needed emergency surgery since an artery had burst. His doctor said that he was lucky because what he had was what they called the “widow maker.” However, after eight months, he was back at sea. There was also a time when the deckhands noticed that he became incoherent, so a producer fetched his brother Edgar from the engineering bay to check on him, but he couldn’t be convinced to call it a day. Edgar then called Sig’s wife back home and that was only the time he agreed to rest in his cabin.

Success in catching crabs

Due to his extensive experience in crab fishing, Captain Sig would often come home with a huge haul of crabs. During the second season of the reality TV show, his crew was ecstatic that they returned with crabs worth over $1 million. When his tanks were full, he immediately put the boat at top speed because the price of his haul would drop the next day if he couldn’t deliver them to the processing plant in time. In 2019, with his adopted daughter Mandy as relief captain, the F/V Northwestern recorded a staggering catch, and the crew went home with more crabs than they anticipated. The Captain then knew that he could retire anytime he wanted to, because the business was in safe hands. However, the problem was that he didn’t want to stop working. He said in an interview, ‘I can’t stop, that’s the problem. All of us are egomaniacs. You want to stop, but the ego portion won’t let me stop.’

Captain Sig Hansen’s controversial lawsuits

The more Captain Sig Hansen became popular, the more he was embroiled in several rumors and possible controversies. Most of them were unfounded, but a few of them became much-talked about especially on social media platforms due to the scandalous nature of the issue.

Abuse allegations by a daughter from a previous marriage

“Deadliest Catch” fans were surprised when reports circulated on blog sites that Captain Sig Hansen’s biological estranged daughter named Melissa Eckstrom from his previous marriage made allegations that her father sexually abused her when she was about two years old; it was during the time when her parents were in the process of divorcing in 1990. The adult Melissa said that she went into depression, had suicidal tendencies and eating disorders during her childhood because of the incident. She said that the memory of his abuse was still prevalent in her memory. Based on court records, the prosecutor back then didn’t file a case as they knew they couldn’t prove the allegations, even if they believed Melissa was sexually abused. The F/V Northwestern captain denied the accusations and claimed, ‘This is nothing more than an old-fashioned shakedown.’ Sig said that the lawsuit was some sort of blackmail, and reiterated that it was full of lies concocted by his ex-wife when she took their daughter away from him. It was also used in her attempts to get money from him. Apparently, after the divorce, the captain relinquished all his parental rights, as he thought it would be the best decision for his daughter.

In 2010, Melissa reached out to Sig to ask for help to pay her law school fees, and Sig assigned a mediator to ensure everything was properly documented. However, it didn’t push through as his daughter and ex-wife wanted Sig to pay $300,000 or else they would go to the press. He then filed a police report of what he believed was extortion. When the police intervened, his ex-wife said that he abused their daughter, and that he never paid the support money worth $50,000 as agreed upon during the divorce, which Sig vehemently denied. His lawyers said that they paid for it, and that the case should be dismissed since it was already proven in the past that he didn’t abuse his daughter – it would be a case of double jeopardy. Later, during an interview, Melissa said that she wasn’t after his father’s money, but was asking for justice for what he did to her. A $1.5 million settlement was supposed to close all the issues in 2016, but the mediation fell apart because Sig’s lawyers insisted that if any word from the agreement was leaked to the public, Melissa would lose her lawyer’s license, insisting on that to protect Sig and his family. The case was still in the hands of the Court of Appeals, as they would decide if there was any new evidence to reopen the case.

Former deckhand sued F/V Northwestern’s Captain in 2023

Before 2022 ended, and just a few months after the Captain and his daughter headlined their own spin-off series called “Deadliest Catch: The Viking Returns,” they were greeted by a lawsuit. Nick Mavar Jr., a former deckhand on the F/V Northwestern, filed a lawsuit against Sig Hansen and other owners of the boat, demanding $1 million in damages for failure to provide medical help during the Covid-19 pandemic. He also cited that the delay in an adequate examination of his abdominal pain onboard the fishing vessel led to his appendix rupturing and the late discovery of a tumor, which proved to be cancerous. Nick suffered many illnesses including infections that led to more complications and surgeries.

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Captain Sig and the other owners of the boat denied liability in Nick’s personal injury lawsuit. They shifted the blame to Original Productions, the production company of “Deadliest Catch,” and Trifecta Solutions LLC, the subcontractor that they hired to provide medical support for the crew of the boat. Apparently, when Nick complained of abdominal pain, the company’s medics checked on him multiple times but failed to act on it with urgency. Captain Sig and other Northwestern’s owners, through their lawyers LeGros Buchanan and Paul, sought for damages associated to what happened to Nick’s medical care. Despite the ongoing lawsuits, Captain Sig and his daughter Maddy were seen in the 19^th season of the reality TV show, which started to air in April 2023.