Story of Peabody's Frank Quirk, Boat Captain Who Died in Rescue Attempt, Gets Hollywood Interest

The story of Peabody's Frank Quirk, the captain of a pilot boat that made a doomed rescue attempt during the Blizzard of '78, is getting a read from Ben Affleck, according to the Salem News.

The book and subsequent movie "The Perfect Storm" has become etched in local memory and has special appeal in towns like Swampscott with a rich fishing heritage. Now a long-neglected story of heroism at sea during the Blizzard of '78 could be getting similar treatment. Word from the Salem News is that actor and director Ben Affleck is examining a screenplay based on the incident. Peabody's Frank Quirk captained the pilot boat "Can Do" as it tried to aid a tanker that went aground in Salem Harbor during the storm. For more on the screenplay, see the Salem News report. Here is an extended YouTube presentation about the "Can Do." A book, "Ten Hours Until Dawn: The True Story of Heroism and Tragedy About the Can Do," is also available.

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Two Longtime Swampscott Fishermen Land Monster Stripers

The two big fish weighed in as the first- and second-place catches in the Swampscott Yacht Club's season-long striped bass tournament. It ended midnight Oct. 6.

  Steve Speranza felt a light tap on his fishing line. It felt familiar. The kind of tap a striped bass makes when the bait he takes is a live eel. Steve lowered the tip of his rod and set the hook. The fight was on. Steve and fellow fisherman Capt. Norm Whitten have been fishing for striped bass in Swampscott waters for 75 years, between the two of them. Two weeks ago aboard Steve's 20-foot center-console boat the two fishermen caught two of the biggest striped bass of their lives. They caught their fish within 30 minutes of each other in different locations. The fish came in first and second in the Swampscott Yacht Club's season-long 2012 striped bass tournament. They were hung from a scale and weighed at the back of the Fish House.  …

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Swampscott Stories

The Janet Leigh Fishing Boat Gets a Shore Scrubbin'

Fisherman Ed Desrosier took advantage of Monday's May-like weather to gussy up his signature yellow fishing boat, the Janet Leigh.

  The yellow 40-foot Cape Islander fishing boat leaned on its red keel beached at the muddy shore Monday. Boat owner and fisherman Ed Desroiser scrubbed its sides and hull, did some engine maintenance and replaced zinc pieces just fore and aft of the propeller blades. The 70-degree temperature, sunshine and afternoon low tide made a perfect spring maintenance day even if the calendar still read winter. Ed, 54, fishes 800 lobster traps and has been fishing commercially since 1984. He grew up in Swampscott with sand in his shoes and fish below his feet. His first fishing job was in 1975 when he worked a fish trap for Lucky Williams, bailing mackeral by the dory load then sorting them for sale at market. These days federal and state …

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Whatcha Catch?

Whatcha Catch?

Most people head out to the supermarket to grab some dinner fixings, Gene O'Brien headed out off Egg Rock and grabbed a nice Striper to put on the grill.

Striped bass was on the menu at the O’Brien house on Fuller Avenue this past weekend. Gene O’Brien headed out off Fisherman’s Beach Sunday morning and was on the high seas for less than an hour before he landed a nice 41-inch striped bass. “I landed him right off the south side of Egg Rock,” O’Brien said. “He put up a good fight for three or four minutes, and I pulled him in.” O’Brien, a member of the Swampscott Yacht Club, wasn’t instructed to go get dinner, but that’s what he did, landing a nice fish that can feed over ten people when it’s sliced up and put on the grill. “No big deal, we’re going to grill it up, put some nice cuts together, maybe add some salad, it’s fish tonight,” O’Brien said. “Fishing is a lot of fun, this isn’t the …

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Sea Notes: Stories on the Swampscott Waterfront

Photos of the Day: A Boat Launching

Freddy Encalada launched his pleasure boat the Lina-Lu Wednesday with some help from Harris Tibbetts at Fisherman's Beach

Freddy Encalada launched his pleasure boat the Lina-Lu Wednesday with some help from Harris Tibbetts at Fisherman's Beach. Encalada got to the boat launch a little after high tide so it took some persistence to get the boat in the water, considering the ramp's design. He likes to relax on the water in his boat, named after his daughter. Fish needn't fret Freddy's line. He has tried fishing but hasn't caught any fish. He prefers to enjoy a cigar at the helm of his boat.

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