06/20/2025
In 1971, writer Peter Benchley had lunch with his editor Tom Congdon. "Ive been thinking about a novel about a great white shark that appears off a Long Island resort and afflicts it," Benchley recalled replying. Benchley proposed several titles that were dis- missed, among them The Stillness in the Water and Leviathan Rising. Mere minutes before the novel went into production, it still didn't have a name. Benchley remembered hashing the matter out at a Manhattan restaurant. "We cannot agree on a word that we like, let alone a title that we like. In fact, the only word that even says anything, is jaws." Call the book Jaws!" Said his editor. "What does it mean?" Asked Benchley. "I don't know," replied Congdon. "But its short, it fits on a jacket, and it may work." Four years later, exactly 50 years from today, Jaws the film was released in theaters to entertain and terrify generations of movie-goers. One review even said you'd never get in the bathtub again. It happens to be one of my all-time favorite films.
You can experience your own piece of Amity Island at Universal Studios Orlando this summer to commemorate the big 50th anniversary of this legendary shark movie that changed the world. 🦈 ⚓️ 🎆 🛥
Happy 50th Jaws. Thanks for making ocean swims slightly nerve-wracking.
