Man buys massive lobster to keep it from dinner plate

Don MacKenzie of Connecticut purchased the eight kg, century-old crustacean because he believed the lobster deserved to live

A massive lucky lobster has avoided the stove and received a stay of execution after a man purchased it to put it back in the ocean.

"This lobster has seen World War I, World War II, seen the landing on the moon and the Red Sox win the World Series (more than twice), he's made it this far in life," said Don MacKenzie, vice president of Boats Inc., to The Day. "He deserves to live."

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The eight-kg (17-pound) creature, believed to be about 70 to 100 years old, was caught off the New England coast and purchased by a restaurant, according to The Day.

Word got around that someone had reserved the lobster, named Larry by the children who went to visit it, for dinner so MacKenzie decided to step in.

MacKenzie won't say what he paid, but he did say, "Let's just say that it's the most expensive lobster I never ate."

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If Larry the lobster sounds familiar, it's because it is a character on SpongeBob SquarePants and the subject of a 1982 Saturday Night Live comedy routine with Eddie Murphy.

While eight kilograms is well above the less than one kg average, the crustaceans can reach a mass of 20 kg. As for it's age, MacKenzie said there is no scientific way to determine it, but one can guess based on size and how many times it has shed its shell. Larry could possibly be as old as 100. He probably didn't see much of either world war other than some sinking ships and U-boats, but he may be able to provide a first claw account of the Titanic sinking.

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Larry had the rubber bands taken off his claws and was released into the wild in an area of Long Island Sound where it's impossible for lobstermen to drop their nets. MacKenzie believes he'll be safe.

He said, "For a lobster to live this long and avoid lobster traps, nets, lobster pots...he doesn't deserve a big and butter."