'@@ -3,5 +3,17 @@ <!-- End of AfD message, feel free to edit beyond this point --> [[File:Little Cleo lure P5300030.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The Little Cleo]] -'''The Little Cleo''' is a small spoon lure made by the Acme Tackle Company which comes in nine sizes from ¹⁄₁₆ oz to 1&thinsp;¹⁄₄ oz, and in many different color combinations. Its wiggling action creates the illusion of an injured baitfish acting erratically, and often instigates reactionary strikes in predatory fish. The Little Cleo, which has been widely available since 1953, is one of the most popular lures in use today and according to ''[[Field & Stream]]'' is one of the 50 greatest lures of all time.<ref>[http://www.fieldandstream.com/fieldstream/photogallery/article/0,13355,1179845_17,00.html The 50 Greatest Lures of All Time - Little Cleo], [[Field & Stream Magazine]]. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060830164125/http://www.fieldandstream.com/fieldstream/photogallery/article/0,13355,1179845_17,00.html |date=2006-08-30 }}</ref> +The '''Little Cleo''' is a small [[spoon lure]] made by the Acme Tackle Company which comes in nine sizes from ¹⁄₁₆ oz to 1&thinsp;¹⁄₄ oz, and in different color combinations. Created in 1953 by the [[New York City]] songwriter C.V. "Charlie" Clark, Little Cleo according to ''[[Outdoor Life]]'' is one of the most popular lures in use today and is one of the 50 greatest lures of all time according to ''[[Field & Stream]]''. + +==History== +C.V. "Charlie" Clark, a songwriter and music publisher based in [[New York City]], founded Seneca Tackle Co. in 1951.<ref name="Godfrey2018-05-19">{{cite news |last=Godfrey |first=Ed |date=2018-05-19 |title=My Little Cleos: How a wiggling spoon became my favorite lure |url=https://www.oklahoman.com/article/5595145/my-little-cleos-how-a-wiggling-spoon-became-my-favorite-lure |newspaper=[[The Oklahoman]] |accessdate=2021-12-18 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20211219003602/https://www.oklahoman.com/article/5595145/my-little-cleos-how-a-wiggling-spoon-became-my-favorite-lure |archivedate=2021-12-18 }}</ref><ref name="Godfrey2005-01-16">{{cite news |last=Godfrey |first=Ed |date=2005-01-16 |title=Little Cleo: A spoon with sex appeal |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/107B95145EC72CB1&f=basic |newspaper=[[The Oklahoman]] |accessdate=2021-12-18 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/2021.12.19-003653/https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/107B95145EC72CB1&f=basic |archivedate=2021-12-18 }}</ref> Clark observed Little Cleo doing a [[hoochie coochie]] dance in the 1930s.<ref name="Merwin2003-04-16">{{cite news |last=Merwin |first=John |date=2003-04-16 |title=Classic Lures: Put 764 years of successful angling in your tackle box. |url=https://www.fieldandstream.com/articles/fishing/more-freshwater/2003/04/classic-lures/ |magazine=[[Field & Stream]] |accessdate=2021-12-18 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20211219003447/https://www.fieldandstream.com/articles/fishing/more-freshwater/2003/04/classic-lures/ |archivedate=2021-12-18 }}</ref> In 1953, he created a spoon lure that had a swaying motion, naming it Little Cleo after the dancer he had seen.<ref name="Merwin2003-04-16"/> His rationale was that the fish would be entraced by the bait similar to how he was captivated by Little Cleo the dancer.<ref name="Godfrey2018-05-19"/> + +Acme Tackle Company, which is based in [[Rhode Island]], purchased Seneca Tackle in 1980.<ref name="Godfrey2018-05-19"/> Between 1953 and 1996, the rear of Little Cleo was illustrated with an [[exotic dancer]] who was scantily dressed.<ref name="Godfrey2018-05-19"/> After a woman who worked at an influential retailer became upset by the image in 1996, the retailer demanded the elimination of the illustration.<ref name="Godfrey2018-05-19"/><ref name="Frazee2019-10-06">{{cite news |last=Frazee |first=Brent |date=2019-10-06 |title=Brent Frazee: Lures designed to get the fisherman first |url=https://www.joplinglobe.com/news/lifestyles/brent-frazee-lures-designed-to-get-the-fisherman-first/article_32ff5493-919f-54a4-bf94-9e7a8bc90c31.html |newspaper=[[The Joplin Globe]] |accessdate=2021-12-18 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20211219003555/https://www.joplinglobe.com/news/lifestyles/brent-frazee-lures-designed-to-get-the-fisherman-first/article_32ff5493-919f-54a4-bf94-9e7a8bc90c31.html |archivedate=2021-12-18 }}</ref> Acme Tackle stopped printing the illustration on Little Cleo that year to allay the retailer's concerns and maintain them as a buyer.<ref name="Godfrey2018-05-19"/> According to ''[[Field & Stream]]''{{'}}s John Merwin, the removal was "for the sake of newfound political correctness".<ref name="Merwin2003-04-16"/> Little Cleos adorned with the exotic dancer were sold as "collector's edition kit[s]".<ref name="Godfrey2005-01-16"/> The lures each have "a bucktail-dressed, single O'Shaugnessy hook" and are produced in the colors of gold; chrome; chrome and neon blue; and chrome and neon green.<ref name="Taylor2000-06-30">{{cite news |last=Taylor |first=Mark |date=2000-06-30 |title=Saltwater Cleo set to splash in mid-Atlantic |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EAEA0478A74E829&f=basic |newspaper=[[The Roanoke Times]] |accessdate=2021-12-18 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/2021.12.19-061649/https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EAEA0478A74E829&f=basic |archivedate=2021-12-18 }}</ref> + +Little Cleo comes in nine sizes, ranging between ¹⁄₁₆ oz and 1&thinsp;¹⁄₄ oz.<ref name="Merwin2003-04-16"/><ref>{{cite web |date=2011 |title=Little Cleo Fishing Lure |url=https://www.acmetackle.com/littlecleo-fishing-lure.html |publisher=Acme Tackle |accessdate=2021-12-18 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120313111621/https://www.acmetackle.com/littlecleo-fishing-lure.html |archivedate=2012-03-13 }}</ref> Little Cleo can be stuck somewhat far down as relative to their surface area, they are dense.<ref name="Merwin2003-04-16"/> As a result, they are commonly used to fish for trout though can also be used for ensnaring [[panfish]], [[striped bass]], and [[sand bass]].<ref name="Godfrey2018-05-19"/><ref name="Merwin2003-04-16"/> Little Cleo spoons are not built for use in [[salt water]].<ref name="Godfrey2005-01-16"/> A saltwater edition was released in 2000.<ref name="Taylor2000-06-30"/> + +==Reception== +John Merwin of ''[[Field & Stream]]'' listed the Little Cleo among the "50 best fishing lures of all time".<ref name="Godfrey2018-05-19"/><ref name="Merwin2006-04-01">{{cite news |last=Merwin |first=John |date=2006-04-01 |title=John Merwin Picks the 50 Best Lures of All Time |url=https://www.fieldandstream.com/articles/fishing/saltwater/where-fish/2006/03/john-merwin-picks-50-best-lures-all-time/ |magazine=[[Field & Stream]] |accessdate=2021-12-18 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20211219003518/https://www.fieldandstream.com/articles/fishing/saltwater/where-fish/2006/03/john-merwin-picks-50-best-lures-all-time/ |archivedate=2021-12-18 }}</ref> He called it "a great all-around spoon" that is "a deadly secret for deep-dwelling brook trout in early summer".<ref name="Merwin2006-04-01"/> In the ''[[Outdoor Life]]'', James Hall called Little Cleo "one of the most popular choices" and said, "Although the paint will become chipped and the hook will need to be replaced from time to time, this bait is basically indestructible."<ref name="Hall2014">{{cite news |last=Hall |first=James |date=February 2014 |title=The Super Six |url=https://content.ebscohost.com/ContentServer.asp?T=P&P=AN&K=94426153&S=R&D=f6h&EbscoContent=dGJyMNHr7ESep7c4wtvhOLCmsEmeprRSsqq4TLCWxWXS&ContentCustomer=dGJyMOzpsE2xqbNRuePfgeyx43zx |magazine=[[Outdoor Life]] |via=[[EBSCO Information Services]] |volume=221 |issue=2 |page=42 |accessdate=2021-12-18 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20211219064813/https://content.ebscohost.com/ContentServer.asp?T=P&P=AN&K=94426153&S=R&D=f6h&EbscoContent=dGJyMNHr7ESep7c4wtvhOLCmsEmeprRSsqq4TLCWxWXS&ContentCustomer=dGJyMOzpsE2xqbNRuePfgeyx43zx |archivedate=2021-12-18 }}</ref> + +The author Steven A. Griffin wrote, "Acme's Little Cleo quickly became a favorite when salmon fishing ignited in the Great Lakes almost 30 years ago, and it remains a favorite of many trout and salmon fans there. Its hump-back shape makes it wiggle through the water like a fat bait fish—a meal big fish just can't resist."<ref name="Griffin1996">{{cite book |last=Griffin |first=Steven A. |date=1996 |title=The Fishing Sourcebook: Your One-Stop Resource for Everything You Need to Feed Your Fishing Habit |url=https://archive.org/details/fishingsourceboo00grif/page/50/ |location=Old Saybrook, Connecticut |publisher=[[Globe Pequot Press]] |via=[[Internet Archive]] |page=50 |isbn=1-56440-752-7 |accessdate=2021-12-18 }}</ref> Rich Giessuebel said in the book ''Great Fishing in Lake Ontario & Tributaries'' that the Little Cleo was among the "most popular" lures in the region, writing, "As for the Little Cleos, you will see them fished where anglers have a large concentration of salmon swimming around in a pocket of water in a non-snatching section (such as beneath the power plant in the Oswego River). Here, fishermen cast Cleos with rather low expectations of a salmon actually chasing and striking the lure."<ref name="Giessuebel 1989">{{cite book |last=Giessuebel |first=Rich |orig-year=1986 |date=1989 |title=Great Fishing in Lake Ontario & Tributaries |url=https://archive.org/details/greatfishinginla0000gies/ |location=Harrisburg, Pennsylvania |publisher=[[Stackpole Books]] |via=[[Internet Archive]] |pages=[https://archive.org/details/greatfishinginla0000gies/page/198/ 198], [https://archive.org/details/greatfishinginla0000gies/page/200/ 200] |isbn=0-942990-08-0 |accessdate=2021-12-18 }}</ref> == References == @@ -9,7 +21,5 @@ == External links == -*[http://www.acmetackle.com/ Acme Tackle Company website] -*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071202085815/http://www.eangler.com/product/478727902msk.htm Little Cleo at eAngler.com] -*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071027151716/http://www.boatersworld.com/product/478727902msk.htm Little Cleo at Boatersworld.com] +*[https://www.acmetackle.com/products/little-cleo Little Cleo] at the Acme Tackle Company website {{fishing rod topics}} @@ -17,5 +27,3 @@ [[Category:Fishing equipment]] - - -{{fishing-stub}} +[[Category:Products introduced in 1953]] '