Richard Alden Bean, 1941–2014, a contributing editor to California Fly Fisher and its warmwater columnist, passed away in late January at the age of 72. According to his wife, Barbara, he died of heart disease and other natural causes.
Rick’s byline has appeared regularly in this magazine for slightly more than two decades, which makes him, in essence, one of our founding writers. He brought an impressive breadth and depth of knowledge regarding Southern California waters, and what I especially appreciated was his no-nonsense, yet generous attitude. He saw his task, I’m sure, as simply providing sound advice that would enhance a reader’s angling experience. I never told Rick this, because it seemed like such a small thing, but one of the qualities I liked about his work was that the photographs he used often featured nondescript rods and out-of-favor reels, such as Pfluegers, rather than the “latest and greatest” in tackle. This was a refreshing approach, and it also revealed he was a conservative in the truest sense — if a piece of equipment or a fly pattern worked well, there was little reason to discard it for something else. (Every story of his on the Sierra seemed to recommend the Bivisible, which is as generic and “old-school” a fly pattern as one can find.)
As a writer, Rick was utterly professional. Early in his career he had been employed as an automotive magazine editor, so he understood the utility of query letters and the imperative of deadlines. His angling articles appeared in many magazines, including Field & Stream, Fly Fisherman, Outdoor Life, Black Bass Journal, Bassin’ Magazine, and California Game & Fish. Other interests that he wrote about included hunting, hot rods, and motorcycles. His first book, Fly Fishing Southern California’s Lakes & Streams, was published in 2002 under the Aguabonita Books imprint. In 2007, he self-published FlyFishing for Bass in the West. He and Barbara were the faces of California Fly Fisher at sports shows in Southern California.
The character of a magazine is necessarily defined by its writers. Rick embodied both a lack of pretension and an abiding curiosity that perhaps represent what is best about the fly-fishing community in our state. I miss his stories, his phone calls, and his wisdom.
Richard Anderson
