Catfish Woman - Transcript

[Mary Ethel Emanuel] "Maybe it's nature. I was born smack dab in a landlocked state far away from any major bodies of water.

"Maybe it's nurture. I grew up reading books about sea creatures and the Loch Ness Monster.

"But I learned early on to avoid bodies of water that I couldn't see to the bottom of.

"This distrust of dark water was inadvertently reinforced by a movie I saw about 20 years ago.

(Theme music from Jaws.)

"My fears were vindicated!

"This aversion to dark and scary water was cemented when I came face-to-face with her!

"She was a cold-eyed and cold-blooded monster pulled from the murky waters of the Missouri River. This was way too close to home!

"Her new home is at Ak-Sar-Ben aquarium in Schramm Park, half way between Lincoln and Omaha.

"And lucky for me, this fish with no name is safely ensconsed behind glass. I could stare at her with fascinated horror while she hovered, menacingly, inches away from my face.

"Then the horror melted, but the fascination remained. I started to feel a little bit of a kinship with this great big fish. Actually, we were both Midwestern girls with quite a lot in common!"

[Darrell Feit] "Many large fish regardless of the species will be a female.

"Some of the interesting things about this fish is I think the most interesting thing is it's got a 34-inch waist."

[Emanuel] "We do share the same waist size and we might share the same taste in clothing. But I do have a little bit of a fashion bone to pick with her -- those whiskers have to go! And I do happen to know the name of someone who does hair removal treatments.

"Another similarity that the catfish and I have is our notoriously bad eyesight."

[Feit] "We do have the distinction of it is the largest blue catfish on display at this time in the United States."

[Emanuel] "The catfish is between 30-40 years of age. And I am oh, a little older. But being ladies we will not divulge our age."

[Feit] "I think a good comparison we can make with this fish is that it would be very similar to taking care of my grandmother that would be over 100 years old. And so, that's kind of how this fish is treated here -- we take good care of her."

[Emanuel] "The catfish is fed only once a week which would not suit me but I like the way she's fed -- people throw in food and she eats it. Sort of like fast food for catfish."

[Feit] "They're like we are. They want they're life to be as easy as possible and we're the same way."

[Emanuel] "So when you're feeling a little stressed and your life feels like you're fighting your way upstream, just think about my new fish buddy and things will go swimmingly."