Indiana caviar fishermen were headed to reality TV until another river-based show tanked

Tim Evans, Indianapolis Star
Updated ·2 min read
A photo on Midwest Caviar LLC's website shows David M. Cox standing next to an American paddlefish.
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The relatively unknown exploits of colorful Indiana caviar entrepreneur David Cox and a handful of his commercial fishing counterparts just about made it to reality TV nearly a decade ago.

Cox and the others landed roles in video made to pitch a reality show to the History Channel. The working title was “Caviar Kings” and Cox was in line to be a central character, according to Steve Mellon, an independent producer behind the pitch. His credits include work on other shows like “The Amazing Race” and “Undercover Boss.”

Mellon, an Illinois native, said he and a partner started working on the project around 2015 after a friend told them they should check out "some guys in Indiana that were caviar fishing." The roe from paddlefish is used to make caviar.

After meeting Cox and a few other fishermen who pursued paddlefish in the Ohio River, Mellon was sold on the idea of a character-driven reality show in the vein of “Swamp People.”

The Caviar King is back: After felony conviction and 5-year fishing ban, the Caviar King returns to the Ohio River

The pitch was initially greenlighted, he said, but the project was canned after "Mississippi Men," another History Channel reality show with a river theme, tanked in it's first season. Mellon said he still believes "Caviar Kings" was a missed opportunity.

"It definitely had the best cast of characters I think I've ever had on a development project,” he said.

Mellon said Cox stood out from others because he is a captivating character with a colorful past. Cox also doesn’t hold back or suffer fools, saying what's on his mind for better or for worse, which the veteran producer said makes for good television.

“I think David would have easily been a central character because he was and still is infamous," Mellon explained. "You know, the other fishermen wanted to be him or beat him. And the cops wanted to catch him. It was like everybody was sort of gunning for David.”

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: History Channel passed on 'Caviar Kings' reality show with David Cox