Rick Lagina is the elder of the two brothers who host History Channel’s The Curse of Oak Island.
The pair have been obsessed with the island’s many myths and legends, particularly the tales of treasure in the infamous Money Pit.
Born in Kingsford, Michigan, Rick grew up in a world that could not have been further from the wooded isle far to the north that would come to dominate his life.
As an 11-year-old he read the January 1965 issue of Reader’s Digest and saw an article about the mysterious Oak Island and its legendary treasure.
He was instantly hooked and both he and his brother Marty would imagine hunting for the treasure, reenacting the various tales of lost loot.
The pair grew up reading the Hardy Boys so it is no surprise they ended up seeking adventure like the book’s fictional brothers Frank an Joe — only Rick and Marty had to wait nearly 50 years to fully realise their own one.
It was in the 1990s that the pair first made the trip to Nova Scotia, where they met a rather reluctant Dan Blankenship.
He’d been working on the island’s treasure for years and could have done with their help, but he was not ready at that point.
It was a decade later that part of the island was up for sale and Marty stumped up the cash for part of Oak Island.
Since then they’ve expanded their share and eventually wind of their exploits came to TV producers who decided to make a reality show about the brothers and their quest.
Rick is perhaps the brother than believes the most in the tales of treasure and loot hidden beneath Oak Island.
If Marty provides the technical knowledge then Rick is the inspiration, but the thing that unites them is a search for the truth about the island.
Rick has long retired from being a postal worker and now serves as an executive producer on the show and helps run Oak Island Tours Inc.