NC Banker Crowned This Year's "Papa"

KEY WEST (CBSMiami/AP) – An investment banker from North Carolina has been crowned this year's "Papa" at Key West's annual Ernest Hemingway look-alike contest.

Greg Fawcett, 64, bested 139 other "Papa" Hemingway Look-Alike contestants during his 10th attempt Saturday. It also marked the 113th anniversary of the late author's birth.

Competitors in sportsman's attire competed at one of Hemingway's favorite bars, Sloppy Joe's. A panel of former winners judged the contest.

Fawcett credited his win to dedication, timing his haircuts carefully and paying attention to the length of his beard. As well as appearance, he said he shares other traits with Hemingway.

"I fish every day," said Fawcett. "Unfortunately I'm not a very good writer, but I can drink."

The annual Hemingway Days festivities salute the literary giant who lived and wrote in Key West throughout the 1930s.

Entrants were judged by past winners at Sloppy Joe's Bar, a watering hole frequented by the late author. Crowds of spectators roared applause for their favorites as they paraded onstage and took turns speaking. Some even sang song paradies pleading for victory.

Semi-finalists included Michael Groover of Savannah, Ga., who was cheered by his wife, television food personality Paula Deen.

Deen praised her husband's "Papa" Hemingway looks, but said he had other equally important qualities in common with the author.

"He has got the Hemingway soul," Deen said. "He's all man, honey."

During his Key West years, Ernest Hemingway wrote classics including "For Whom the Bell Tolls" and "To Have and Have Not."

Hemingway Days events included an offbeat "Running of the Bulls," literary readings, a marlin tournament and a short story competition.

The Florida Keys News Bureau contributed to this report.