The Curse Is Broken! Rick Lagina FINALLY Gets Paid from Oak Island!
The Curse Is Broken! Rick Lagina FINALLY Gets Paid from Oak Island!
After years of mystery, danger, and relentless digging, the tides have finally turned on Oak Island. For over a decade, Rick Lagginina has poured his heart, soul, and fortune into uncovering the island’s hidden secrets. But it looks like the curse is finally broken.
In an unbelievable twist, Rick has finally received a major payday from the Oak Island Project. So, what changed? How did this long-awaited breakthrough happen? And what does it mean for the future of the treasure hunt?
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Machines, law, and business. Marty Lagginina’s life revolves around these three things. Before becoming involved in the mystery of Oak Island, he studied engineering hard and then started an energy company, Terra Energy, which he later sold for about $60 million. This was a major turning point in his career.
Marty has always been inclined towards science and technology. He got a degree in mechanical engineering from Michigan Technological University and after that he also studied law. He is also a member of the state bar. It was here in college that he became friends with Craig Tester, who is now the co-producer and business partner of his show.
Today, Marty is the CEO of a large energy company called Heritage Sustainable Energy, with Craig holding the position of vice president. The average annual salary of CEOs of such companies is up to $6 million.
Apart from this, Marty has also started a wine business in Michigan called Mari Vineyards, from where people can order wine directly through the website. Though Marty is a little more practical and doesn’t readily believe stories of treasure, he’s not ready to give up on his childhood dream, which is why he continues to work with his brother Rick to solve the mysteries of Oak Island.
Making money from a TV show is nothing new these days. But the earnings of a long-running show like The Curse of Oak Island are worth paying attention to. Rick and Marty Lagginina are not just the faces of the show, but also its executive producers, meaning they get paid not just for acting, but for producing as well.
According to some reports, the brothers earn up to $100,000 per episode. There are about 25 episodes in a season, so simply their earnings from one season can be around $2.5 million or about 20 crore rupees. So far, more than 160 episodes of the show have been aired, making their total earnings run into crores.
Apart from this, Rick and Marty also go to public speaking events where their fees start at a minimum of $5,000. Books and merchandise—t-shirts, caps, keychains, etc.—in their name are also sold on the History Channel website. And if you want to visit Oak Island, there is also a tour company called Salty Dog Sea Tours, which is often booked.
Apart from all this, Marty has other sources of income. He has never revealed them, but it is estimated that his total net worth can be between $90 and $100 million.
Now, let’s talk about Craig Tester, who is Marty Lagginina’s old friend and business partner. He started Terra Energy with Marty and is considered an expert in drilling and scanning the land. Whenever there is any excavation on Oak Island, Craig plays an important role in its technical investigation and often helps in deciding where the right opportunity is to dig.
Craig Tester is best known for his time on the show The Curse of Oak Island. But his work is more than just in front of the camera. He comes from a sound technical background and has extensive experience in land drilling, the energy sector, and engineering. He studied mechanical engineering at Michigan Technological University.
Craig co-founded Terra Energy, an energy company with Marty Lagginina, that was later sold for millions of dollars. He also serves as vice president and manager of Heritage Sustainable Energy, a turbine company that typically earns an average of $250,000 annually. Craig is also the manager of Rock Management Group and a partner in several companies including Terra Energy, Mari Vineyards, and Oak Island Tours.
He also appeared on the show Beyond Oak Island, where he and Marty invested in a number of other treasure hunting projects. It’s clear they’re not afraid to take risks, even though the investment returns have never been made public. Craig has appeared in more than 100 episodes of The Curse of Oak Island. Considering his deep involvement and hard work, it’s safe to say his net worth likely falls between $80 and $90 million, right in line with Marty Lagginina.
When it comes to the Oak Island treasure hunt, it’s clear that these guys have poured a lot of their own money into the project, although the exact amount has never been made public.
If there’s one person from today’s younger generation who has earned a special place on The Curse of Oak Island through sheer intelligence and dedication, it’s Alex Lagginina, Marty Lagginina’s son and Rick Lagginina’s nephew. Just like his father, Alex holds a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Michigan.
After completing his studies, he became an active part of his father’s wine and energy ventures and also stepped into real estate investment. Fans love Alex because, aside from his strong technical background, he isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty working on site. So far, he has appeared in 95 episodes of The Curse of Oak Island, 10 episodes of The Curse of Civil War Gold, and one episode of Beyond Oak Island.
If we consider an average pay of around $100,000 per episode, his total earnings have easily reached several crores. Various sources estimate his net worth to be roughly $50 million.
Now, let’s talk about Jack Begley, Craig Tester’s stepson who lives in Michigan. Jack is among the most hardworking and passionate members of the team. Whether it’s digging or handling technical tasks, he’s often spotted working alongside Craig Tester. In his free time, he loves going metal detecting with Gary Drayton.
Jack also serves as one of the show’s producers and has featured in over 100 episodes to date. His persistence and dedication have made him one of the most relatable and respected faces on the show. Although you often see him busy digging on The Curse of Oak Island, his efforts go far beyond television.
Jack runs his own business called Remote Energy Solutions and is also a certified drone pilot, a profession that can bring in nearly $1 million a year. His company reportedly earns a 7-figure annual income, meaning millions of dollars every year. So Jack’s wealth doesn’t just come from the show; it’s also the result of his business ventures and technical expertise. Though considered a secondary character on the series, his estimated net worth of around $10 million truly reflects his commitment and hard work across different fields.
Next up is Gary Drayton, the metal detecting expert from England. Gary mastered this skill on his own before joining the Oak Island team. Today, he’s recognized as one of the show’s most trusted treasure hunting experts, especially when it comes to uncovering buried coins, jewelry, and ancient metal artifacts.
Gary has also appeared in Beyond Oak Island and featured in over 150 episodes overall. One of his most talked-about finds is a special lead cross believed to have links to the legendary Knights Templar, which added a fascinating historical twist to the show.
Besides his TV appearances, Gary has authored two books and unearthed several valuable items through his solo metal detecting adventures, including an emerald ring, rare coins, and even a Roman perfume bottle. Though he may not be the main face of the show, Gary’s wealth, estimated at around $15 million, clearly mirrors his years of experience and remarkable discoveries.
Rick Lagginina, on the other hand, has always lived a humble and grounded life. Before joining the show, he worked for years as a mailman, learning the true value of hard work and honesty while living in Michigan. Those same principles continue to drive him in his pursuit of solving the centuries-old Oak Island mystery.
A postal worker typically earns between $62,000 and $100,000 per year—enough for a stable life, but not nearly sufficient to fund a massive treasure hunting expedition like Oak Island. However, after Rick became a part of The Curse of Oak Island, his income saw an incredible rise. Today, his total net worth is estimated to be around $20 million.
Now, the big question is, what is it about Oak Island that makes people invest millions in it? The truth is, Oak Island has been wrapped in mystery and legends for over 200 years. Originally, the island was covered with red oak trees that stood out from the surrounding landscape, but by the 1800s, black ants wiped most of them out. Today, the island is mostly filled with spruce trees and shrubs.
But make no mistake, this island is no ordinary place. It carries a story of its own. Many believe that something hidden and untold lies beneath it, and that’s why excavations have continued for centuries. Oak Island’s history is as ancient as it is puzzling.
It’s not very big—just about a mile long and less than half a mile wide—but the legends buried within it are as vast as those of any great city. Back in the 1700s, the land was divided into 4-acre plots, and from that time, curiosity about the rumored treasure began to grow.
During the early excavations, a stone was discovered about 90 ft deep with strange markings on it. A translator interpreted the message as: “10 ft below, 2 million are buried.” From that moment, Oak Island became even more mysterious.
Local folklore adds to the intrigue. Speaking of ghosts, eerie lights, and a chilling curse that claims the real treasure will only be found after seven people have died searching for it. So far, six have lost their lives, which makes the ongoing quest even more intense.
Many companies have attempted to dig on the island since the early 1800s. In 1909, the Old Gold Salvage and Wrecking Company started excavations, which caught the attention of a young American politician, Franklin D. Roosevelt. Long before becoming president, he invested in the company and even visited Oak Island himself.
Fueled by these tales, unsolved mysteries, and the dreams of countless explorers, Rick and Marty Lagginina decided to take on the challenge of uncovering the truth. Their passion gave birth to the hit show The Curse of Oak Island, which now connects millions of viewers across the world to this timeless enigma.
In today’s digital world, where most people prefer streaming content online, The Curse of Oak Island is one show that continues to hold viewers spellbound week after week. So, what is it about this small Canadian island that has fascinated audiences for so long?
The series follows the Lagginina brothers and their dedicated team as they search for hidden treasure and ancient clues on Oak Island, located near Nova Scotia. Though no major treasure has yet been unearthed, several fascinating artifacts have been found over time:
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A Spanish copper coin from the 1600s
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A medieval-style metal cross dated between 1200 and 1600
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A garnet brooch nearly 500 years old
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A piece of cloth resembling a page from an old manuscript
Other discoveries include a fragment of sheepskin parchment, an iron latch, a carved stone tablet, old ox shoes, and several metal fragments of various kinds. There’s even speculation about a possible Roman shipwreck near the island, though it is yet to be officially confirmed.
Some skeptics believe the show is just for entertainment and that the treasure either never existed or was removed long ago. But regardless of what people think, the fascination around Oak Island remains as powerful today as it was two centuries ago.
Of course, Oak Island isn’t the only place in the world that keeps treasure hunters dreaming. Across the globe, many mysterious sites continue to lure explorers in search of ancient riches.
One such place is the German island of Rügen, located along the Baltic Sea. It may look peaceful today, but its small surrounding islands hold secrets that still intrigue people. One of these is the tiny island of Toll, said to be the final resting place of the infamous German pirate Klaus Sturbecker.
Historical records say Sturbecker was executed in Hamburg in 1401, but folklore paints a different picture. According to legend, his restless spirit haunted the city after death. So his remains were taken to the deserted Toll Island to bring him peace. Many believe his body was buried in a coffin made of gold, bound by a golden chain. Some locals even claim that chain can occasionally be seen glimmering beneath the sea’s surface.
Yet the existence of this mysterious grave has never been proven. According to an old belief, in every generation, there’s one person, usually a local fisherman, who knows the exact location of the tomb. But no one has ever revealed who that person might be. And so the mystery continues, keeping treasure hunters and explorers fascinated to this day.
The ultimate question remains: Will the hidden treasure ever be found? Or will it remain just another legend lost to time?
Gardener Island is a tiny island off the east end of New York. It still bears the name of the Gardener family who inherited the land from the British in the 1600s. But the island’s true identity is tied to the legend of a pirate, Captain William Kidd.
In 1699, while Kidd was on his way to Boston to defend himself from charges of piracy, he stopped at Gardener Island and hid a treasure there. Legend has it that he buried the treasure in a ditch after getting permission from the then-owner, Mrs. Gardener. In return, he was given a gold-embroidered cloth as a reward and a warning: if the treasure was not found, he or his son would die.
The hidden treasure included gold dust, silver bars, Spanish coins, gems, and other valuables. Mr. Gardener gifted one of the diamonds to his daughter. There’s still a plaque at the site, but the area is private property and off-limits to the public.
He started out as a legal privateer for the British East India Company. When that didn’t turn a profit, he became a real pirate. He later seized a British ship, which led to more trouble. When he returned to New York, he was arrested and sent to England, where he was hanged.
The treasure was officially recovered, but many still believe the full amount of the treasure was never found. And so the stories about the excavations on Gardener Island continue to abound.
In Central America, near Costa Rica and Panama, a name is often taken in the world of treasure: Cocos Island. But very few people know that there are two islands with this name. On one of these, the treasure of the church, whose search is still incomplete, may be hidden.
In 1820, the treasure of the church was being sent from the city of Lima in Peru to Mexico. This responsibility was given to Captain William Thompson, who was the captain of a ship named the Merry Deer. But seeing so much gold and diamonds, greed took over. Thompson killed all the people accompanying him and set out with his trusted crew toward Cocos Island, where he hid the treasure.
It is said that Thompson died in Canada in 1844. But before dying, he told a person, Mr. Keiting, about the location of the treasure. Since then, hundreds of people have gone to search for treasure on Cocos Island, the one in Costa Rica.
The most well-known name is that of German treasure hunter August Gistler, who lived on the island from 1889 to 1908 but found nothing. When a private company, Vlatty Private Islands, was looking to sell Cocos Island in Panama in the 1990s, a local historian warned them that the island could not be worth just a few hundred thousand. If the treasure was really hidden there, it would be worth no less than $60 million.
The company then sought the help of renowned treasure expert William S. Krooker, the same Krooker who had also researched Oak Island. He traveled to Panama and studied Cocos Island and its maps in detail and found that the Panamanian island could be the real place where the treasure is hidden. But so far, no solid excavation has been done on Cocos Island in Panama.
So, the real question remains: is the treasure in Costa Rica or buried under that quiet and untouched island in Panama?
Whenever someone talks about a treasure island, the first thing that comes to mind is a map, a red cross on it, a talking parrot, a pirate, and lots of gold and silver. But have you ever wondered where all these imaginations came from?
The biggest credit for this goes to Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous book, Treasure Island, published in 1883. This single novel awakened stories related to treasure in the imagination of the whole world. Stevenson started this story by making a map for his stepson during a vacation in the highlands of Scotland.
That map had a mysterious island surrounded by a bay, forest, ruins, and a small island, Skeleton Island. Later, this map became the inspiration for the whole story. It is said that while writing the story, he also took some ideas from writers like Daniel Defoe, Edgar Allan Poe, and Washington Irving.
But the interesting thing is that the original map he drew was lost before it was printed. The map that appears in the book today was actually a recreation he made later based on details in the story. Treasure Island was the first big success of Stevenson’s career. His many travel books before this had not been very successful, but this novel made him a household name, and the book has transported people into a world of adventure and mystery ever since.
Even today, this story inspires dreams of treasure hunting in children and adults alike, and that is its greatest strength.
Off the western coast of Scotland, not far from Glasgow, lies a solitary island rising dramatically from the sea: Elsa Craig. It looks like an enormous rock thrust straight up from the water, standing nearly 1,110 ft tall. Even from a distance, its unique shape and structure capture the imagination.
For centuries, this mysterious island has been surrounded by legends and folklore. According to old tales, a hidden treasure once lay buried here. But the island’s harsh cliffs, steep slopes, and relentless waves have always made it nearly impossible to reach. Its rugged terrain is so challenging that if treasure really does exist, it has managed to remain untouched through all these years.
Though no one has discovered any treasure so far, the island itself has become so valuable today that even a chest of gold would seem insignificant compared to Elsa Craig’s worth. The island is home to a historic lighthouse and a few ancient stone structures. The lighthouse, built in the 19th century, was designed by Thomas and David Stevenson, with Thomas being the father of the famous author Robert Louis Stevenson, who later penned the legendary adventure novel Treasure Island.
Even now, Elsa Craig continues to draw those who are enchanted by its stories of mystery and hidden fortune. But the question that has lingered for generations still remains: Will anyone ever uncover the treasure? Or will it forever remain part of Scotland’s timeless legend?
