James Tate Gets Fitted For The Prom, Now That He's Going

When James Tate and his friends Andrew Boretsky (Ladder Man) and Christian Lombardi (Tape Man) agreed to post a giant prom invitation to the entrance to Shelton High School, of course they knew they’d be in trouble.

Did Boretsky know he’d get a free tuxedo rental? No.

Lombardi? No.

“I’m trying to help my friends,” Tate said Saturday, while sitting in Sabrina Style, a Sandy Hook shop offering dresses for all occasions and more. More is tuxedos, bridal gowns, prom dresses, mother of the bride dresses, designer jeans, sun dresses and tops, said owner and founder Irene Caulfield.

The problem arose, because Tate, Boretsky and Lombardi taped a 20-by-30-foot (roughly) cardboard sign to the Shelton High School entrance so Tate could ask Sonali Rodrigues to the prom in an interesting way.

“I wanted it to be funny,” Tate said.

The school suspended the seniors and barred them from the prom. School officials said they both trespassed on school property and created a safety risk. That forced Boretsky to return his tux and give up his date. Lombardi wasn’t going.

Once the school barred Tate, Ladder Man (Boretsky) and Tape Man (Lombardi) from the prom, a nationwide Twitter and Facebook following developed to overturn the school’s decision. Nationwide the Twitter and Facebook drew thousands of fans and tens of thousands of hits. It worked. School officials changed their policy.

That left both Boretsky and Lombardi short one tux each with a week to go. The pair are now going together to next weekend’s Shelton High School senior prom. Tate is short a vest, and Sabrina Style will provide that to Tate gratis.

“I posted the offer on Facebook for the free tuxedos,” Caulfield said. “It was buried by other postings within seconds.”

Caulfield said she then turned to her Shelton customers and asked them to tell Tate and his friends she would give them and their dates a tux or dress.

James Tate and his long-time friend Sonali Rodrigues are going together. The pair have known each other since they started school.

While Tate ran up and down the ladder, posting the 45-letter message, Ladder Man (Boretsky) held the ladder, and Tape Man (Lombardi) taped the back of the letters with loops of tape so they'd stick. They thought it would be amusing so they watched when their classmates arrived in the morning.

“It didn’t seem too crazy,” Caulfield said.

The controversy took over a week of Tate's life.

“But there was a week there when there was press on my lawn every day," he said. "That was weird. It was annoying actually.”