KENNEBUNK, Maine — The sun was radiant and the air crisp as a fair number of post-Labor Day tourists strolled the main drag joining the ‘Bunk to the ‘Bunkport on Thursday afternoon. They ordered seafood at the famous Clam Shack, gazed out on the Kennebunk River and perused late-season T-shirts in tchotchke shops.
But there wasn’t a celebrity in sight.
That’s not always been the case this year in York County, the oldest and southernmost of Maine’s 16.
New England movie star royalty Matt Damon was spotted at a Kittery juice bar over the long Labor Day weekend. Pop superstar Lady Gaga showed up in York in June for a wedding, while former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson stopped at an Eliot cannabis dispensary in August.
Besides the juice, the nuptials and the pot, the famously famous are likely drawn to York County for the same reason regular out-of-state tourists flock here in droves: its proximity to bigger cities to the south, miles of sandy beaches and a well-established tourism industry boasting thousands of hotel beds, campground sites and places to eat seafood.
“Plus, Bar Harbor is a pain in the [butt] to get to right now with all the construction,” said Bangor resident Tim Harvey, who was hanging out in front of a convenience store with a fishing rod and cooler full of filets he’d just pulled from the ocean. “Last time I tried to go down there I was backed up for 45 minutes.”
Talking to most folks on the strip, the most common answer to inquiries about celebrity sightings in town was a joking, “What, you mean besides me?”
Harvey was no exception, but more interested in talking about fishing than the rich and famous.
“I’ve got 10 or 12 pounds of haddock in here,” he said, gesturing to his red cooler. “Pretty much pays for my trip down here.”
Over at The Clam Shack, which, according to Food & Wine, has the best lobster roll in the universe, a Bulgarian summer worker, who gave his name only as Nick, just shrugged.
“I think I saw some famous people this summer,” he said. “But I’m not from the States and I don’t know who they were — but people were taking selfies and videos with them.”
Farther up the street, at Guay’s Sunoco, Alex McMahon was breaking some bad news to a customer with an aging Volvo. McMahon told her the part she needed was no longer available, but he might be able to find a used one online.
“I’ve seen zero celebrities in here,” he said before getting back to work.
Another one of McMahon’s customers said the only celebrities he ever sees are members of the Bush family, who still visit their seaside mansion on Walker’s Point.
“I’m glad they still come here. George Sr. and Barbara were such nice people,” he said. “My daughter-in-law’s friend said she worked out at a gym right down the street with George W.”
When asked for his name, the man shot double finger guns and said, “No,” with a good-natured grin before jumping into his two-door Mercedes convertible and driving away.
Not far off, summer resident Nancy Allen sipped an icy drink at Ryan’s Corner House Irish Pub. Allen said seeing the Bushes was such a regular occurrence it hardly counted as a celebrity sighting.
Between serving drinks, a bartender added she once saw former New Orleans Saints football quarterback Drew Brees in town.
“And some famous rapper — but I don’t know which one,” she said.
Swirling the ice in her glass, Allen admitted celebrities didn’t excite her, anyway.
“There’s nothing special about them,” she said. “They just have more money than us.”
