PORT ARTHUR —   Have you noticed the alligator garfish has become a media darling?

   Once “River Monsters” Jeremy Wade made a trek to the Trinity River and caught a big one on international television, anglers from around the world started looking at the alligator gar as not only respectable but downright cool.

    In my opinion, that is long overdue.

    Catching garfish has been important to my family for generations and it was the species we pursued most when I was growing up in Orange County.

   This got me to thinking about other so-called “trash” fish that could use a media makeover.

    Do other less-than-desirable species have the potential to be the next breakout star of the fishing world?

    Let us start with the freshwater drum (gaspergou, gou).

    There are only a handful of anglers that pursue these fish and most of them live in Louisiana.

    “Gou” are hard fighting and will occasionally hit lures so there is some fun factor to be had catching them.

     In the size and looks department however they are lacking. Gou can grow to impressive weights but not impressive enough override their dull looks and lack of flash.

    Other than the drumming noise they make, they do not have any “it” factor like the gar’s creepy teeth.

    The grinnel (bowfin, choupique) is perhaps a better candidate for a makeover.

    If a major television program were done detailing these fish, it could very well move them up the ladder of respect.

    They strike lures regularly, fight extremely hard, live in cool looking swamps and can even live outside the water for a long period of time. Another think they have going for them is they look a lot like the snakehead which is a currently media favorite.

    I could see a show called “America’s Original Snakehead” or some other semi misleading title that would draw in viewers.

    Grinnel have potential.

    The gafftopsail catfish is one that has many positive attributes but is overlooked.

    They are hard fighters, have an impressive look with the big sail fin and are another fish that will hit lures.

    They have one huge hang-up: slime.

    Gafftops are bar none the slimiest fish swimming southern waters and are in fact so slimy, they have made me retire from eating them. Well, that and the consumption warning from the health department took them off my list.

    Fish that ooze are not popular television fare so we will say the gafftop is a no-go.

    Do you have an affinity for a particular “trash” fish?

    What about sheepshead? Freshwater eel? Buffalo?

    Send me your favorites and the reason you like them and I will include them in a future column.

    After all, one man’s trash is another’s treasure.

   That means the big ling you just never could get to cooperate last summer might be hanging around that very same buoy or rig you saw it at last year.

(To contact Chester Moore, e-mail him at cmooreoutdoors@yahoo.com. You can hear him on "Moore Outdoors" Fridays from 6-7 p.m. on Newstalk AM 560 KLVI. you can find him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/extremewildlife.)