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The Real Story of Jaws
The Steven Spielberg classic terrified millions in 1975, and decades later, the film still has teeth (2:42)
Courtesy of: Smithsonian Channel
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Comments (1)
in the mid '80s I had the occasion to meet Peter Benchley personally while taking a walk in Princeton, NJ. I asked him whether he had any idea of the impact his "Jaws" book and movie would have on the American psyche. What impact would it have on economies of summer time resorts along coastal waters in the U.S. and elsewhere where tourists enjoy the oceans? More or less replied: Of course not, not a clue I just wanted to tell a story based upon what I had learned what happened in 1916 in my state of New Jersey. I told him his tale released a level of hysteria which over reacted to the point I thought such a movie may well contribute to the extinction of sharks as well as thousands of resort towns as depicted as "Amity." Today we call such a phenomenon "unintended consequences" or "collateral damage." Sharks have been around for some 400 million years and "Jaws" and the endless follow-ups movies may cause their extinction yet.
Posted by Peter M. Lutterbeck, M.D. on August 8,2012 | 02:53 PM