Rockport lobstermen redefine ‘work clothes’ for Esquire shoot

The Maine lobster fleet is noted for its toughness, resilience and productivity. Maybe I missed it, but I never knew it was noted for clothing style while at work.

Not before I read the March issue of Esquire magazine.

There, on Page 164, are the Scott brothers. That would be Adam, Brad and Eric, Rockport lobstermen all.

Esquire editor David Granger tells us, “The fashion department and I decided to devote a single portion of this issue to an exploration of how Americans dress. The main event in this effort was sending Nick Sullivan and Wendell Brown all over the country to photograph men in their natural environment and in the clothes they wanted to wear.”

In the “United States of Style,” we have a professional surfer, a professional rodeo champion, an international lawyer, professional tennis player and a television weatherman.

It was quite a shock to see the Scott brothers at the Rockport public landing, decked out in what New York City people think lobstermen wear at work.

Like a $75 cotton sweater, a $175 cotton jacket, a $125 sweatshirt, a $100 Gant dress shirt and a $175 knitted hat by Mary Jane Mucklestone. There was no bait hanging from their Dockers after a day’s work.

Brad Scott said the grief from other fishermen started the midsummer day that the New York crew arrived and hasn’t stopped yet. And the magazine has just hit the market.

Brad confessed that he started it all. He knew the magazine photo editor through mutual friends. “She had been bugging me for years to do it, and I finally agreed. They wanted to come in the middle of the season, and I was afraid to lose a day of hauling.

“They set up at the end of the day, so it worked out all right. They had the lights and cameras all set up when we came in. That’s when the grief started. [The other fishermen] all started shaking their heads. Real Mainers didn’t like it,” he said.

Scott didn’t come to Maine until the second or third grade, so we all know he will never be a native, even if he lives here another 70 years.

The Scott brothers agreed to the shoot, but Brad’s sternman, Denny Devine of Lincolnville, wanted no part of it. He ran for the hills when the cameras started shooting.

“The clothes were not that bad. We tried to get them to give them to us, but they took them all back to New York. We didn’t get paid for the shoot and I gave them some lobsters, so I went in the hole for it,” he said.

Now that the Esquire edition has hit the streets, friends and foes from across the country are calling. “All kinds of people called, some to sell us things. One guy wanted to sell me a framed photo of the magazine spread. Like I want a framed photo. I didn’t want to do it in the first place,” he said.

“Overall, it was a good experience, but I would never do it again. It was a one-time deal. But I wouldn’t mind getting some e-mails from admiring women across the country,” he said, laughing. He hopes his wife will not read this newspaper.

While the Scott brothers’ 15 minutes of fame are over, there was a benefit from the shoot. The $175 Mucklestone hats are going like hotcakes.

They are hand-knitted by Eric Scott’s wife. “She is getting calls for them from all over the country,” Brad said.

Maybe the lobstermen will start wearing them to work.

Nah.

Send complaints and compliments to Emmet Meara at emmetmeara@msn.com.