Americans have long wanted the perfect endless summer. Jimmy Buffett offered them one

UNDATED (AP)- It seemed wistfully appropriate that news of Jimmy Buffett’s death emerged at the beginning of the Labor Day weekend (Sept. 1, 2023), the point of every American summer’s symbolic end. Because for so many, the 76-year-old Buffett embodied something they held onto tightly. That was the promise of an eternal summer of sand, sun, blue salt water and gentle tropical winds. He was the man whose devil-may-care attitude became a lifestyle and a multimillion-dollar business. It was also a connecting filament between the suburbs and the Caribbean, via the Florida Keys. Buffett became an avatar for anyone working for the weekend and hoping to unplug.