THIBODEAUX, La. (The Houma Courier)- Thibodaux police are investigating a morning suicide at Thibodaux Regional Medical Center that claimed the life of a local TV personality and businessman.
According to Chief Bryan Zeringue, Tony Fontenot, 59, of Schriever shot himself to death shortly before 7:30 a.m. with a small-caliber weapon in one of the hospital’s public bathrooms, the Houma Courier reported.
“Basically he went to the hospital and walked into the restroom near the emergency room area and shot himself,” Zeringue said. “It’s unfortunate, but people commit suicide around this time of the year for a number of reasons.”
Fontenot was the host of the fishing show “Castin’ Cajun” and was the owner of Cajun Home Improvements in Schriever.
Born March 18, 1958, in Ville Platte, Fontenot co-hosted “Sportsman’s Paradise” on HTV-10 for more than 20 years and later found success with his own show, which featured 26 episodes per year on various channels throughout the region.
Each show featured a fishing segment — normally freshwater, saltwater or offshore — a cooking segment and a Cajun joke segment when the credits rolled.
In a 2014 interview, Fontenot said the goal of the show was to help promote the area, give back to the community and have fun in the process.
“We mix in fishing, food and entertainment, and we try and get people down here so they can spend money and experience our lifestyle,” Fontenot said. “The show is really growing. Our Facebook page has almost 19,000 fans, and we have people from all over the United States who comment. We are also considering expanding to Canada and Europe.”