Seems this here "Fritz" was a traveling hardware salesman. He was born in Germany on June 6, 1893. And nine years before George Washington Perry landed his 22-pound, 4-ounce official world-record largemouth from Montgomery Lake in Georgia, Friebel landed a 20-pound, 2-ounce largemouth (see big fish on Friebel's stringer in above photo), reportedly from Moody Lake in Pasco County, Fla. Perry didn't catch his bass until June 2, 1932, while "Fritz" caught his on an uncertain date in May 1923.
The exact date of the catch is lost to memory and history. Some accounts had it as May 19, 1923, which fell on a Saturday. But the Oct. 12, 1952 edition of the Tampa Tribune, contained this quote from Friebel: "It was a Sunday morning, when I should have been in church, and I had to call a grocer to open his store to get the fish weighed."
Because Friebel said he caught the bass on a Sunday in May, it would have had to be the 6th, 13th, 20th, or 27th--not the 19th. An avid angler, "Fritz" carried his tackle with him as he traveled the Sunshine State, selling hardware.
It should be noted here that Friebel's brother, Walter, always doubted his story. Years later, he told outdoor writer Bill Baab that "Fritz" likely had made up the story about catching his fish from Moody Lake in Pasco County, Fla., "just to throw other fishermen off the track." He went on to suggest that "Fritz" more likely caught his bass from nearby (and aptly named) Big Fish Lake.
The catalog article continued, "Gentlemen anglers all! Please leap to your feet and throw your hats in the air. Rah! Rah! for Mr. Friebel and his black bass!"
Then, in Field & Stream's Great National Fishing Contests, came an article proclaiming "the world's record is smashed into flinders. Mr. Fritz J. Friebel, of Tampa, Fla., is the world-record crasher with rod and reel and a mighty largemouth black bass."
That particular article went on to note that when Friebel was weighing the big bass, an onlooker accused him of filling the fish with lead sinkers. Friebel reportedly pulled out his pocketknife, slit the fish's belly open, and suggested that the accuser reach inside to find out for himself.
There are several similarities between Friebel's catch and Perry's bass nine years later. For one, both anglers weighed their catches a considerable time after landing the fish; the live weights could have been decidedly greater in both cases.
For another, both Perry and Friebel were no-nonsense anglers, not finely dressed dandies out for a little sport. Perry and his fishing partner on his record-setting day had one rod and reel and a single store-bought lure between them. The few surviving photographs of Friebel show him dressed in ragged clothes. As his daughter explained, "Daddy didn't own a boat. He wore the worst-looking clothes because he often waded into water up to his armpits while fishing."
Finally, both men's fish met similar fates--on the dinner table. Though Perry's catch was made in the midst of the Great Depression and Friebel's came during more prosperous "Roaring '20s," both anglers treated their families to fine fish dinners.
The "official" Florida record largemouth weighed 17.27 pounds and was pulled from a small lake in Polk County, Fla. in 1986 by Billy O'Berry. He caught it on a yellow and green Strike King Spinnerbait, using what he described as a "moderate retrieve."
In conclusion, it should be noted that "Fritz" Friebel died in 1965, at the age of 72 (as best I can determine). His family subsequently had the marker pictured at left made and shipped to San Antonio, Fla., for placement in the city's downtown park in his memory (click anywhere on this photo for a readable version).
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