There is a story my mother has told a million times. It was the late 1970s. I was young, probably still a toddler. She and my father had settled onto the sofa to watch Jaws on TV, steaming mugs of cocoa in their hands. The movie progressed in its slow-burn way, raising the tension. It got to that scene where Roy Scheider as Martin Brody was slopping chum over the side of Quint’s boat. As he looked away from his work, the shark burst out of the water, startling my father.The cocoa stain never did come out of his trousers.
Next year will be the 50th anniversary of Jaws, the movie that changed movies. This year, that honor goes to the novel on which it was based. The beach read of the summer of 1974, Peter Benchley’s Jaws captured “the angst of a generation.” It became a bestseller and changed the public’s attitude toward sharks, a fact that filled the conservationist Benchley with regret in later years.
Here are some of the best information sources for Jaws, sharks, and the ocean.
Book and Movie
Peter Benchley’s website
Son of novelist Nathaniel Benchley and grandson of Algonquin Round Table co-founder Robert Benchley, Peter went to Harvard, served in the Marine Corps Reserve, worked for The Washington Post and Newsweek, and was a speechwriter for President Lyndon Johnson. He also wrote novels besides Jaws. You can read some of his other writing on his website, as well as learn about his conservation work.
“‘Jaws’: 10 Facts About Peter Benchley’s Bestselling Novel for Its 50th Anniversary”
Check out this Mental Floss article to find out which of these is not a piece of Jaws-related trivia:
- More than 200 titles were considered before Jaws.
- The book was sold based on a single page.
- The first draft had too much humor.
- The cover art was made from real shark blood.
“The Making of Jaws”
There have been many making-of documentaries about Jaws over the years. A lot of them don’t include Peter Benchley, who died in 2006. This one, from 1995, does. Unfortunately, the quality is pretty low. A more high-quality film—but one that, alas, is missing Benchley—is this 2009 inside story from A&E.
“The Shark Is Still Working”
This is another great documentary that explores the legacy of the film. It includes interviews with Steven Spielberg, Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, and other cast members. It also features Peter Benchley’s final on-camera appearance.
“Exploring the Terrible Jaws Sequels”
Some people think Jaws 2 was okay. I saw Jaws 3D in the theater in 1983. At the end, when the shark exploded, pieces of its body flew out of the screen directly at me. Somehow, permission was granted to make another movie after that.
Sharks
Shark Week
First appearing in 1988, Discovery Channel’s Shark Week has become a cultural touchstone. The longest-running cable TV event ever, it has featured shows like MythBusters and Dirty Jobs. It even figured in politics. This site is a buffet of videos, podcasts, shark facts, and more.
Shark Conservation Fund
According to the Shark Conservation Fund, “37% of all shark and ray species are threatened with extinction, and scientists estimate that more than 100 million sharks are killed each year.” This organization strives to reverse those trends.
The International Shark Attack File
Jaws the novel and Jaws the film open with the same scene: the swallowing of Chrissie Watkins as she skinny dips in the moonlit sea. How likely was that scene? What are the odds at any given time of a shark attack? How many attacks are there per year? Answers can be found at this site, which includes “more than 6,800 individual investigations covering the period from the early 1500s to the present.”
“Shark Size Comparison”
This video is an animation project from Zoom Life that lines up a number of shark species from the smallest (dwarf lanternshark, 8 inches long) to the largest (megalodon, 65 feet long).
Ocean
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
This is one of the best and most comprehensive sites out there on ocean science. You can view climate data, see real-time imagery from NOAA’s satellites, and read all about sustainable seafood and the seafood industry.
National Maritime Historical Society
This New York-based nonprofit is one of the leading sites for seafaring history. One of the most useful sections is Maritime History on the Internet, maintained by Peter McCracken, a librarian and founder of the fascinating ShipIndex.org.
“What Would a Trip to the Mariana Trench Be Like?”
Like “Shark Size Comparison,” this video uses animation to simulate descent into the deepest point on Earth: the Mariana Trench, which is more than 35,000 feet deep. How deep is that? An upside-down Mount Everest could fit inside it.
Climate Change Resources
Climate change, of course, doesn’t affect just ambient temperature. It also is altering the world’s waters. This site from the University of California–San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography has an abundance of information about research and education and features other resources on the subject.
National Hurricane Center
This offers everything you ever wanted to know about hurricanes but were afraid to ask. One caveat: The last entry on the Hurricanes in History page is from 2008, which means it doesn’t include Sandy (2012), Matthew (2016), Florence (2018), Ian (2022), and other recent monster storms.
“Oh, Look. Another Doomsday Scenario to Worry About”
Ever heard of the Gulf Stream? Wonder what would happen to this planet if it got screwed up? Find out in typical dark-humor fashion from science educator and all-around nerd Joe Scott.
