Jaws (1975) - the thing about a shark …

Movies, in general, are just movies – nothing more.

You see them – you forget them.

However, some movies are so good – you never forget them; they stay with you forever and get better every time you watch them.

Jaws (1975) has always had a special place in my heart.

It was the movie that made me fall in love with movies.

During my early teens, it was the first movie I saw on rental VHS video cassette.

When I was fifteen, I bought a four-hour video cassette and recorded Rollerball and Jaws when they were screened on TV.

Already a dyed in the wool movie fanatic, it felt great to have my own copies of two movies I love, and that video cassette was like gold to me – a treasure!

Both movies were released in 1975 – a great year for movies – and I will post a blog on Rollerball in the future.

I went through the usual precautions concerning prized video cassettes: broke the small, square plastic tab on the base of the cassette, preventing accidental erasure … affixed a label to the base of the cassette, on which I wrote ROLLERBALL & JAWS in bold, felt-tip-pen capitals … then hoarded it away in my bedroom.

Unless I was watching some other late-night movie on TV, then the double-feature of Rollerball and Jaws was my late-Saturday-night-into-the-early-hours-of-Sunday-morning treat.

During that period, settling to watch movies was something of a ceremony:

More coals on the fire to keep the room temperature comfortable … check!

Draft-excluder covering the gap at the bottom of the lounge door … check!

TV angle realigned, parallel with the rug in front of the fire … check!

Seat cushions banked with my bed pillow against the base of the couch … check!

Fresh mug of coffee … check!

Snacks … check!

Me laid on rug … check!

Cushions behind my shoulders … check!

Pillow behind my head … check!

TV screen perfectly positioned with my direct line of view … check!

TV remote strategically placed to the right of my coffee mug … check!

The ceiling light and corner lamps out; room lit only by the glowing coals and TV screen … check!

My German Shepherd dog stretched out asleep on the couch behind me … check!

Yep! You read that right! I was laid on the floor; my dog was on the couch. I spoil my pets.

Over the years, I’ve watched both those movies less frequently, but each new viewing has always felt like a special event and my appreciation for them has never waned.

I’ll focus on Jaws for this blog.

Jaws was released in the United States on June 20, 1975.

The plot, based on the novel by Peter Benchley, is simple: the locals in the summer resort of Amity Island have their livelihoods – along with their lives! – threatened when a Great White Shark makes a smorgasbord of the swimmers.

Police Chief, Brody (Roy Scheider), Oceanographic expert, Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss), and shark fisherman, Quint (Robert Shaw), eventually team up and set out on Quint’s vessel, the Orca, to hunt down the shark and kill it.

There is so much to love and admire about this movie: superb script, beautiful cinematography, fully developed characters, suspense and humor.

I can’t choose one particular favorite scene – I love the entire movie and can’t find a fault with it.

From the classic opening, starting with those marine sounds, leading into John Williams’ now timeless and brilliant theme music:

Beach party tragedy:

Official report:

MAYOR VAUGHN:

Martin, it's all psychological. You yell barracuda, everybody says, "Huh? What?" You yell shark, we've got a panic on our hands on the Fourth of July.

The moment of shock, zoom shot:

HOOPER:

This was no boat accident!

Dinner conversation:

Covert autopsy:

Sunken boat:

MAYOR VAUGHN:

(pointing to the billboard as he talks to BRODY):

Brody! Sick vandalism! That is a deliberate mutilation of a public service message. Now, I want those little paint-happy bastards caught and hung up by their Buster Browns!

Author, Peter Benchley’s cameo as the news reporter:

Estuary victim:

Working out differences and setting terms:

Gone fishing:

Keeping the chum line going:

False alarm:

BRODY:

"Slow ahead." I can go slow ahead. Come on down here and chum some of this shit.

BRODY:

You’re gonna need a bigger boat.

The first barrel:

Quint’s story:

HOOPER:

You were on the Indianapolis?

BRODY:

What happened?

QUINT:

Japanese submarine slammed two torpedoes into our side, Chief. We was comin' back from the island of Tinian to Leyte. Just delivered the bomb – the Hiroshima bomb. Eleven hundred men went into the water. Vessel went down in twelve minutes. Didn't see the first shark for about a half an hour. Tiger. Thirteen-footer. You know how you know that, when you're in the water, Chief? You tell by looking from the dorsal to the tail. What we didn't know, was our bomb mission had been so secret, no distress signal had been sent. They didn't even list us overdue for a week.

Very first light, Chief, sharks come cruisin', so we formed ourselves into tight groups. You know, it was kinda like old squares in the battle, like you see in the calendar named: The Battle of Waterloo, and the idea was: shark comes to the nearest man, that man he starts poundin' and hollerin' and screamin' and sometimes the shark would go away... but sometimes he wouldn't go away.

Sometimes that shark he looks right into ya, right into your eyes. You know, the thing about a shark, he's got lifeless eyes, black eyes, like a doll's eyes. When he comes at ya, doesn't seem to be living ... until he bites ya, and those black eyes roll over white and then ... ah, then you hear that terrible high-pitched screamin', the ocean turns red, and despite all the poundin' and the hollerin', they all come in and they ... rip you to pieces.

You know by the end of that first dawn, lost a hundred men. I don't know how many sharks, maybe a thousand. I know how many men, they averaged six an hour.

On Thursday morning, Chief, I bumped into a friend of mine, Herbie Robinson from Cleveland. Baseball player. Bosun’s mate. I thought he was asleep. I reached over to wake him up. He bobbed up and down in the water just like a kinda top. Upended. Well, he'd been bitten in half below the waist.

Noon, the fifth day, Mr. Hooper, a Lockheed Ventura saw us. He swung in low and he saw us ... he was a young pilot, a lot younger than Mr. Hooper. Anyway, he saw us and he come in low and three hours later a big fat PBY comes down and starts to pick us up. You know that was the time I was most frightened ... waitin' for my turn. I'll never put on a lifejacket again.

So, eleven-hundred men went into the water; three-hundred-and-sixteen men come out and the sharks took the rest, June the 29th, 1945. Anyway, we delivered the bomb.

NOTE:

Although the story of Jaws is fiction, Quint’s story of the USS Indianapolis is rooted in fact.

Stacy Keach and Richard Thomas starred in a 1991 TV movie of the story: Mission of the Shark: The Saga of the U.S.S. Indianapolis.

Jack L. Chalker’s fictionalized novel of the event: The Devil’s Voyage, was published in 1981.

In 2016, Mario Van Peebles directed USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage, starring Nicolas Cage, Thomas Jane, Tom Sizemore, and James Remar.

Shark attack:

The shooting stars in this scene were real:

Man against shark:

Final battle:

BRODY:

Smile, you son of a bitch!

For me, Jaws remains the best of the genre.

The sequels to Jaws didn’t come near the magic of the original and sank (pun intended) into the depths of the cinematic pit of movies so bad – they are woefully BAD!

There have been numerous other shark-themed movies, not connected to the Jaws franchise: Open Water … Shark Night … Deep Blue Sea … Red Water … Bait … The Reef … The Shallows …

Oh … yeah … and let’s not forget the cinematic classic that is Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus … and I still can’t believe I actually sat through it!!!

… but I have yet to see another shark-themed movie as exciting or entertaining as Steven Spielberg’s 1975 original: Jaws.

If you’re ever thinking of buying a suitable vessel for a shark fishing trip … always opt for the bigger boat!

Born on this day – Cheryl Holdridge:

Cheryl Holdridge

Actress

June 20, 1944 – January 6, 2009

Credits:

77 Sunset Strip (1963); A Summer Place (1959); Annette (1958); Archie (1964); Bachelor Father (1959–1961); Bewitched (1964); Biography (2006); Bringing Up Buddy (1961); Carousel (1956); Dennis the Menace (1962); Dr. Kildare (1964); Hawaiian Eye (1963); Insight (1964); King of Diamonds (1962); Leave It to Beaver (1959–1963); Life with Archie (1962); Mr. Novak (1964); My Three Sons (1960–1964); Ripcord (1963); Take Me to Your Leader (1964); The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1961–1962); The Bob Hope Show (1961); The Dick Van Dyke Show (1964); The Donna Reed Show (1962); The Eleventh Hour (1963–1964); The Eve Arden Show (1958); The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (2000); The Magical World of Disney (1957–1980); The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis (1962); The Mickey Mouse Club (1956–1958); The New Leave It to Beaver (1985–1987); The Rifleman (1962); Wagon Train (1964); Westinghouse Playhouse (1961); Westinghouse Preview Theatre (1961); Working with Walt (2006).

Born on this day – John Mahoney:

John Mahoney

Actor

June 20, 1940 – February 4, 2018

Olympia Dukakis (left), John Mahoney (right), in Moonstruck (1987)

Credits:

10th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2004); 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996); 50 Greatest TV Animals (2003); 50 Greatest TV Endings (2008); 50 Ways to Leave Your TV Lover (2008); 75 Seasons: The Story of the NFL (1994); A Conversation with Art Director Roy Christopher (2004); A Hard Rain (1994); Almost Salinas (2001); American Experience (1991); American Playhouse (1984–1987); An Affectionate Look at Fatherhood (1995); An Iconic Film Revisited: 'Say Anything...' 20 Years Later (2009); Antz (1998); Article 99 (1992); Atlantis: Milo's Return (2003); Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001); Barton Fink (1991); Becker (2000); Behind the Couch: The Making of 'Frasier' (2003); Betrayed (1988); Binging with Babish (2018); Biography (1995); Bulldog Crazy (2004); Burn Notice (2009–2010); Burn Notice (2011); Cheers (1992); Chicago on Stage (1995); Chicago Story (1982); Code of Silence (1985); Dan in Real Life (2007); Dinner at Eight (1989); Eight Men Out (1988); Entertainment Tonight (2002–2023); ER (2006); Fathers and Sons (2005); Favorite Son (1988); Fawlty Exclusive: Basil's Best Bits (2009); First Steps (1985); Flipped (2010); Foyle's War (2015); Frantic (1988); Frasier (1993–2023); Frasier: Analyzing the Laughter (2004); Gary the Rat (2003); Golden Globes 50th Anniversary Celebration (1994); Great TV Mistakes (2010); H.E.L.P. (1990); History of the Sitcom (2021); Hot in Cleveland (2010–2014); Hudson Taylor (1981); In the Line of Fire (1993); In Treatment (2009); Jeopardy! (1996); Just Like Family: The Making of 'Dan in Real Life' (2008); Kronk's New Groove (2005); Lady Blue (1985); Laugh? I Thought I'd Die! (1999); Listen to Your Heart (1983); Love Hurts (1990); Love. Blood. Kryptonite. (2008); Mad TV (1999–2003); Marching on to Season Two (2004); Mariette in Ecstasy (2019); Mission Hill (1982); Mobsters (2007); Moonstruck (1987); Moonstruck: At the Heart of an Italian Family (2006); My Favourite 'Frasier' (1999); Nature (2000); Nothing Sacred (1998); Primal Fear (1996); Reality Bites (1994); Saturday Night Live (1987); Say Anything (1989); Screenplay (1992); Search for Tomorrow (1985); She's the One (1996); $#*! My Dad Says (2010); Siskel & Ebert Holiday Gift Guide (1989); Star Trek: 30 Years and Beyond (1996); Steppenwolf Theatre Company: 25 Years on the Edge (2000); Streets of Gold (1986); Striking Distance (1993); Suspect (1987); TCM Remembers 2018 (2018); Teacher's Pet (2000); The 40th Annual Tony Awards (1986); The 42nd Annual Tony Awards (1988); The 50th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (1998); The 55th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2003); The 61st Annual Tony Awards (2007); The 72nd Annual Tony Awards (2018); The American President (1995); The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000); The Christmas Gift (1986); The Crane Brothers Remember Season 3 (2004); The 'Frasier' Story (1999); The Hudsucker Proxy (1994); The Human Factor (1992); The Hustler of Money (1987); The Image (1990); The Impostor (1984); The Iron Giant (1999); The Making of 'Atlantis: The Lost Empire' (2002); The Making of 'The Iron Giant' (1999); The Manhattan Project (1986); The Mystery of Maris Continues! (2004); The Mystery of Maris: The Break-Up Begins (2004); The Niles & Daphne Attraction (2004); The Russia House (1990); The Secret Passion of Robert Clayton (1992); The Simpsons (2007); The Ten Million Dollar Getaway (1991); The Ultimate Sitcom (2006); The Water Engine (1992); This Morning (1998); Through Naked Eyes (1983); Tin Men (1987); Tired of Being Funny (2009); Tracey Takes On... (1997); Trapped in Silence (1986); Unnatural Pursuits (1992); Will: The Autobiography of G. Gordon Liddy (1982); World of Discovery (1997).

Born on this day – Gordon M. Williams:

Gordon M. Williams

Writer

June 20, 1934 – August 20, 2017

Credits:

Books:

Hazell and the Menacing Jester (1976); Hazell and the Three-Card Trick (1975); Hazell Plays Solomon (1974); Micronaut World (aka The Microcolony) (1979); Revolt of the Micronauts (1981); The Bornless Keeper (1974); The Camp (1966); The Man Who Had Power Over Women (1967); The Micronauts (1977); The Siege of Trencher's Farm / aka Straw Dogs (1969); The Upper Pleasure Garden (1970); Walk, Don't Walk (1980).

Movies and television:

2nd House (1973–1974); 64 Day Hero (1986); Did You See..? (1981–1982); Hazell (1978–1979); Innocent Victim (1989); Mantrap: Straw Dogs - The Final Cut (2003); Straw Dogs (1971 / 2011); The Man Who Had Power Over Women (1970); The Odd Man (1978); The South Bank Show (1979).

Born on this day – Danny Aiello:

Danny Aiello

Actor

June 20, 1933 – December 12, 2019

Born on this day – James Tolkan:

James Tolkan

Actor

June 20, 1931 – March 26, 2026

Credits:

A Nero Wolfe Mystery (2001–2002); ABC News Breakfast (2025); Abduction (1975); America Undercover (1990); American Playhouse (1983); Armed and Dangerous (1986); Armstrong Circle Theatre (1962); Author! Author! (1982); Back in Time (2015); Back to the Future (1985); Back to the Future Part II (1989); Back to the Future Part III (1990); Back to the Future Part III: Deleted Scene (2011); Beyond Betrayal (1994); Bloodfist IV: Die Trying (1992); Boiling Point (1993); Bone Tomahawk (2015); BTTF Project 85: The Back to the Future Fan Remake (2020); CBS Saturday Morning (2026); Cinemassacre's Monster Madness (2010); Cobra (1993–1994); Contrast of Evil (2013); Dick Tracy (1990); Do the Guilty Go Free? (1988); Driving Me Crazy (1991); Early Edition (1996); Expedition: Back to the Future (2021); Family Business (1989); Fan des années 80 (2010); Guns: A Day in the Death of America (1990); Hangfire (1991); Hanky Panky (1982); Heavens Fall (2006); Hill Street Blues (1985); Iceman (1984); Independence (1976); Leap of Faith (1988); Leverage (2011); Looking Back at the Future (2006); Looking Back to the Future (2009); Love and Death (1975); Love in Ambush (1997); Made in Heaven (1987); Mary (1985–1986); Masters of the Universe (1987); Metro Cafe (1994); Miami Vice (1987); Ministry of Vengeance (1989); N.Y.P.D. (1969); Naked City (1960); Nightmares / Segment: The Bishop of Battle (1983); Nowhere Man (1996); Off Beat (1986); Opportunity Knocks (1990); Ourstory (1975); Phil Spector (2013); Prince of the City (1981); Prince of the City: The Real Story (2007); Problem Child 2 (1991); Remington Steele (1985–1987); River of Stone (1994); Robo Warriors (1996); Second Sight (1989); Serpico (1973); Seven Times Lucky (2004); Sketch Artist (1992); Sketch Artist II: Hands That See (1995); Split Decisions (1988); Stiletto (1969); Sunset Beat (1990); Tales from the Crypt (1991); Tales from the Future (2010); Tequila and Bonetti (1992); The Amityville Horror (1979); The Case of the Hillside Stranglers (1989); The Equalizer (1989); The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990); The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973); The Hat Squad (1992–1993); The Magical World of Disney (1986); The Mind Reels (2013); The Pretender (1997); The River (1984); The Three Sisters (1966); The Werewolf of Washington (1973); The Wonder Years (1993); They Might Be Giants (1971); Tom Wilson: Humbly Super Famous (2024); Top Gun (1986); Top Gun: Fire at Will (1996); True Blood (1989); Turk 182 (1985); Underworld (1996); Val (2021); Viper (1988); Walls of Glass (1985); WarGames (1983); Weekend War (1988); Welcome to the Basement (2015); Wings: Thrill of Flight (1999); Wolfen (1981).

Born on this day – Olympia Dukakis:

Olympia Dukakis

Actress

June 20, 1931 – May 1, 2021