Key West is set to celebrate the enduring legacy of Ernest Hemingway with a festival running from Tuesday, July 21, to Sunday, July 26. The event aims to honor the Nobel Prize-winning author, who called the island home during the 1930s and famously depicted it in his novel “To Have and Have Not.”

Literary Honors and Film

The festival kicks off on Tuesday, July 21, marking the 127th anniversary of Hemingway’s birth. The opening day features the announcement and reading of the winning entry from the Lorian Hemingway Short Story Competition. This literary challenge, overseen by Hemingway’s granddaughter Lorian, awards $2,500 annually to promising writers. The reading is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Williams Hall, 729 Fleming St., followed by a screening of “The Beard Also Rises.” This short film by Cassidy Rast and Odin Wadleigh pays tribute to the annual Hemingway Look-Alike Contest and its participants. A preview of the duo’s upcoming film, “Beards Go to Cuba,” will also be shown, highlighting the Look-Alikes’ charitable work supporting the Cuban people. Later that evening, at 8:15 p.m., Williams Hall will screen the 1958 film adaptation of Hemingway’s novella, “The Old Man and the Sea,” starring Spencer Tracy as the determined Cuban fisherman Santiago.

Angling, Conservation, and Storytelling

Cultural events continue on Thursday, July 23, with a focus on Hemingway’s passion for Florida Keys fishing and his less-publicized efforts in fisheries conservation. Cori Convertito, curator for the Key West Art Historical Society, will present “Following the Fish: Hemingway in Key West” as part of her “Happy Hour with the Historian” series. The presentation is scheduled from 5 to 6 p.m. at Comedy Key West, 218 Whitehead St. On Sunday, July 26, from 1 to 4 p.m., the festival will celebrate Hemingway’s storytelling prowess with the “Papa’s Tales” Storytelling Competition. Hosted at the Hemingway Distillery’s Hemingway Social Club, 201 Simonton St., the competition invites entrants to deliver spoken-word tales of three minutes or less. Judges will evaluate submissions based on style, delivery, and originality. Participation is free, and the grand prize includes the Barrel Head Trophy.

Museum Exhibits and Contests

The festival’s cultural schedule is bookended by “Hemingway Collection” museum days at the Key West Museum of Art and History at the Custom House, 281 Front St., on Tuesday, July 21, and Sunday, July 26. Visitors can explore rare artifacts and memorabilia from Hemingway’s life, view a full-size bronze statue of the author, and admire 59 original illustrations by marine wildlife artist Guy Harvey for “The Old Man and the Sea.” Admission to the museum is complimentary for those who mention the Hemingway festivities.

A central event of the week is the Hemingway Look-Alike Contest, held at Sloppy Joe’s Bar, 201 Duval St. The festival also includes events honoring the writer’s talent and his connection to the island, as reported by Keys Weekly. The festival programming aims to immerse attendees in the world and works of Ernest Hemingway, celebrating his significant impact on Key West’s cultural landscape.

For those interested in the broader real estate market in the Florida Keys, trends and insights are often provided by organizations like Florida Realtors, offering data and analysis relevant to the region’s property values and sales activity.