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Persistence works in Hemingway look-alike game
(Agencies)
Updated: 2004-07-28 09:03
A North Carolina real estate agent beat out a teetotalling short story writer
from Kazakhstan and nearly 140 other snowy-haired, bearded men from around the
world in this year's Ernest Hemingway Look-Alike Contest.
John Stubbings, center, is surrounded by past
winners of the "Papa" Ernest Hemingway Look-Alike Contest on
Saturday. | John Stubbings, 65, attributed his
victory to persistence -- this was the eighth time he'd entered the contest in
Key West, Florida.
"You've got to pay your dues," Stubbings said after a spirited celebration on
Saturday night.
The 24th Hemingway Days festival celebrated the July 21 birthday of the
storied U.S. writer, born 105 years ago.
Look-alike hopefuls from Hungary, Ireland, Kazakhstan and the United States
descended on the tip of Florida over the weekend for the celebration.
In a memorable tribute, first-time contestant Vladimir Malikov -- a pensioner
from Almaty, Kazakhstan -- presented Stubbings with a gold-trimmed emerald green
hat and a symbolic donkey representing good luck.
An avid Hemingway fan and short story writer, Malikov, 65, sold his
possessions and collected donations to fulfill his dream of attending the event.
One of 25 finalists, he told a cheering crowd that he will present a white
T-shirt signed by Hemingway contestants and past winners to the National Museum
of Kazakhstan.
"This is a big honor in my life. I love you all, my brothers, and every year
I will make a toast to you," said Malikov, who abstains from alcohol.
Arriving in Key West without a credit card and with little cash, Malikov was
unable to book a hotel room.
John Klausing, general manager emeritus of Sloppy Joe's, the renowned
Hemingway watering hole where the famed author met third wife Martha Gellhorn in
1936, helped Malikov find accommodations at a youth hostel.
Hemingway, who lived in Key West during the 1930s, used the town as the
setting for his novel "To Have and Have Not." Royalty checks and original
manuscripts of that novel were found at Sloppy Joe's after Hemingway's 1961
suicide in Ketchum, Idaho.
"This is probably our best year because of the international flavor with
three new contestants," said Rick Kirvan, president of the 175-member Hemingway
Look-Alike Society. "We're bringing this out for the rest of the world."
The Hemingway Days celebration included literary events, including a short
story competition directed by Hemingway's granddaughter, Lorian Hemingway.
On Saturday, huffing Hemingway Days participants also jogged around a block
in a "Running of the Bulls" salute to the rowdy sporting challenge in Pamplona,
Spain. An arm-wrestling competition on Sunday concluded the
event.
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