Today, we are going to be talking about Unpolished’s Big Mike and his net worth.
People often become famous because of something that they did. It could be controversial or not. But they have an impact to a lot of people. I am not saying that person that I am writing about did anything controversial. It’s just that a specific moment could sometimes lead to somebody’s infamy.
What I mean to say is that sometimes people become attached to the person that they are watching on television or on film. Especially when there’s something that enamored you to them. A good performance goes a long way sometimes. But that’s only for the actors.
Sometimes people who are on reality shows become well-known among those who watch them. Personally, I am not really a fan of reality shows. But when it’s on TV, I’ll take some time to watch. I get why people enjoy unscripted programming. There is something about the format that just works.
But even though reality shows are under the umbrella of unscripted programing, the way that they edit episodes often weaves a story. Sometimes they do edits for dramatic effect. It elicits a reaction from the audience for better or worse.
I am always surprised to see the most random people having their own reality show. Like, producers somehow find these people. And they agree to having a chunk of their lives taped for the world to see? A lot of people seem to enjoy the attention. So who am I to judge?
Big Mike: Quick Details
- Full Name: Michael Martone
- Occupation: owner of a plumbing company in Long Island
- Relatives: Jennifer Martone (wife); Bria Martone (daughter); Lexi Martone (daughter)
- Claim to fame: appearing in the TLC series “Unpolished”
- Net worth: $6 million
What Is Unpolished?
Unpolished is this reality series on TLC that focuses on a family-run nail salon in Long Island. The series focuses mainly on sisters Bria and Lexi Martone along with their mother Jennifer. Like a lot of these types of reality series, the show goes through a day in the life of the Martones.
It seems weird to be explaining to you what a reality show is. But maybe there are people who haven’t seen a reality show? If not, where have you guys been living? Or maybe you just aren’t interested in it?
So, yeah. The format of the show basically goes through different parts of the day for the Martones. I personally have never seen an episode of the show before. So it’s hard for me to explain the dynamics of the people that are part of Unpolished.
I have managed to find a 13-minute clip of the show on YouTube—geographic restrictions notwithstanding—that basically shows you what the vibe of the show is like. In the clip, the Martones decided to reopen Salon Martone after closing up shop due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Bria, Lexi and Jennifer have put a lot of safety measures in order to operate while also observing the mask and social distancing protocols. Jennifer mentions early on in the clip that when they did the grand opening for the salon, they threw a huge party to celebrate it.
Where Does Big Mike Fit In All Of This?
So back to the clip. The show jumps between two perspectives. They usually start with just a camera crew recording every thing that is happening at the salon. There probably multiple camera operators walking around the salon trying to record as much footage as they can.
In between those scenes, there is often a sit-down segment with either Jennifer, Bria or Lexi. Those sit-downs are often recorded at their home. Each of them seem to have locations assigned to them. Jennifer is sitting in this chair with a long back in the living room. Lexi is in her walk-in closet. There wasn’t any clips with Bria though.
You may notice that the subject of this article, Big Mike, is nowhere to be seen in the clip that I included. That’s because, at the time that the show was into production for the second season, Big Mike had passed away due to some non-Covid-related complications.
Big Mike had appeared on the show during its first season. I could find any clips of him that didn’t involve them talking about him passing away. But I assume that he was a fairly regular presence throughout the first season.
A Different Revenue Stream
Because there aren’t really any information that I could find about Big Mike, it’s hard write about him outside of the context of the show. What I was able to find is that he owned a plumbing company in Long Island. I guess his company did well for them live a very lavish lifestyle.
If you have seen the clip that I included, you can tell that the Martone family were fairly well-off. They have this huge house with a sprawling backyard. I mean, the chair that Jennifer sat on during the sit-down segments make it obvious they had money.
That’s pretty much the extent of the information that I could get from clips of the show. No one who hasn’t seen an episode of the series would know who he is. If it weren’t for Unpolished, I don’t think anybody outside Long Island or the greater New York area would know who Big Mike is.
A Bit More About Unpolished
I think one of the arcs during the first season of the show involved Bria getting married to Matt Mancuso. If you have ever planned a wedding, you will know how stressful it is. That kind of tension lends itself well to a hour of reality television.
I still have no idea how producers for these types of shows are able to find people that they can make a show out of. But I guess having very big personalities in real life could lead you to get a show like that. Though it probably means they had scour every inch of the United States to find those people.
The Martones were busy with the wedding preparations along with running the salon. There were probably scenes where a camera crew was recording intimate conversations with Bria and Matt. It’s amazing that people consent to them being recorded for hours on end and broadcasting it to millions of people.
I guess tension just arise from everyday situations. The structure for an episode is sort of loose, in a way. Different camera crews follow each of the Martone women around. The episode jumps back and forth between them. Of course, they also do the sitdown interviews where the producers ask them to recap what is currently happening in the episode.
It’s in how they edit the episode that they can weave in a story for that week. They shoot the show for a few months every season. You just kind of have to get as much coverage as you can to be able to work with something.
A lot of people enjoy watching reality shows because they can see themselves in the people on-screen. The people on-screen are just normal people.. But these people have an entire production crew following them every day for a few months.
So What Is Big Mike’s Net Worth
I’m not really sure if the Martone family is still involved with Big Mike’s plumbing business. It seems that Big Mike did own the plumbing company. But since he passed away, there’s really no indication of whether or not the company is still active. Prior to passing away, Big Mike had an estimated net worth of $6 million.
Jennifer did mention in another clip from the show that the Covid-19 pandemic affected Big Mike’s business. Aside from the fact that Big Mike also had to stay home because of health complications, not a lot of people were looking for those services. It could be possible that other people in staff are handling the company at that point. The real question is whether the company is still in service.
One of the arcs in the second season of Unpolished is them coping with their loss. Big Mike was the one who handled all the finances of the family. But all of that responsibility now falls on Jennifer’s shoulders. It’s hard to be given responsibility without having a strong sense of how to handle it.
While Instagram posts don’t really show the full picture, weirdly enough, it seems that Bria and Lexi have organized parties in the last couple of months. And they all seem to be doing fine.
There hasn’t been any news whether Unpolished is coming back for another season. But the salon is still operational by the time I am writing this. The Martone family had recently celebrate a few milestones including Lexi’s birthday and the christening of Bria’s daughter Bella.
The television show definitely helped the salon’s popularity in some way. While it is obvious that they had already built a customer base in Long Island, there are probably fans coming in to have their nails done. Any kind of publicity has effects on a business. A lot of people are probably excited to see the women of the Martone family in person.