SHORELINES

10 Shor e l i n e S | 2015 Vol :4 "I found a newspaper ad for it in my grandfather's wallet after he passed away," he says. "It was one of my quests to find one. I finally did, more than 25 years later, at a show in Florida." Most of Prince's collection was commercially manufactured. But he made some of it himself, using everything from metal molds sold to DIYers to shotgun shells, balsa wood (a frog designed to skim over aquatic grass), fluorescent fringe and more. In size the lures run from less than an inch (an ice-fishing jig) to more than two feet – a store-display model of a Heddon Torpedo lure (not meant for actual angling, though a fisherman might dream of the really big one it could catch). The profusion of forms and finishes attests to the endless ingenuity of makers and to anglers' eternal desire to fool fish. A manufacturer like Heddon (for whom Prince tested tackle for eight years) often made the same lure in dozens of variations – of spots, stripes, scale patterns, iridescent sparkles, etc., in a spectrum of hues – and chances are he has almost all of them. Some of his most valuable lures simulate swimming bait: clever hinge or swivel designs that shimmy or dart (one with a restless mercury blob). Some simulate schooling minnows, others emit sounds or bubbles that draw fish like moths to a flame. Still others feature spring-loaded or fish- triggered hooks or simulate mice with a gray flocked finish. Some cases hold entire choruses of one-of-a-kind frogs; others display the evolution of the humble bobber, from simple designs of wood, cork and plastic to floating Disney characters, Power Rangers and ice cream cones. The latter fall into the novelty category that Prince collects because "they make me laugh," he says. "I love my old lures but I really love novelty lures – though they've probably caught more fishermen than fish." It's hard not to smile at lures that sport miniature beer bottles or SEC logos, a rabbit's foot (the Lucky Bunny), a pair of miniature dice, or "merminnows" (half mermaid, half minnow). Or the official Chicago Police Department lure that reads "We Don't Catch And Release." Or "presidential lures" such as the peanut- with-hooks Jimmy Carter lure or the Bill Clinton one that guarantees "fish won't inhale it." Prince's prizes include a gleaming array of trophies from 17 years of fishing tournaments. Among them is a plaque with an empty stringer for placing last in a Smith Lake contest – "a reminder that you don't always win," he says. He continues to angle for additions to his museum-quality trove – and for the fish that inspired it. "The fishing is good in Alabama," he declares. "I wouldn't trade it for anywhere else." – BY JEFF BOOK Top Left: Photo by billy brown — Prince collects novelty lures, showcasing one made with a shaving brush. Top Right: Photo by billy brown — Prince holds an antique lure that dates back to the late 1800s. Opposite: Photo by billy brown — Most of Prince's collection, displayed in cases and on pegboards, manufactured; however. Prince has crafted and sold his own lures for years.

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