Trivia - JAWS 50th Anniversary

The summer of 1975 gave us a movie that changed everything — “JAWS”!

It wasn’t just a hit — it was the blockbuster that invented the summer blockbuster! Audiences lined up around the block, popcorn in hand and nerves on edge, to experience Steven Spielberg’s terrifying tale of a small seaside town under siege by a man-eating great white shark.

Starring Roy Scheider as Police Chief Martin Brody, Richard Dreyfuss as the scrappy marine biologist Hooper, and Robert Shaw as the unforgettable shark hunter Quint, “JAWS” made movie history — becoming the highest-grossing film of all time and turning a relatively unknown young director named Steven Spielberg into a Hollywood legend.

Now, nearly 50 years later, audiences are still thrilled (and a little afraid to go back in the water).

In honor of my brand-new two-part Hollywood Obsessed podcast episodes (141 & 142) featuring actor-turned-Emmy-winning-producer Jeffrey Kramer — who played the bumbling but lovable Deputy Hendricks in “JAWS” and “JAWS 2” — I’ve put together a special dose of nostalgia: a “JAWS” Trivia List sure to challenge even the most diehard fans.

So grab your life preserver, keep an eye out for fins, and cue that iconic music… it’s time to dive back into one of cinema’s most beloved thrillers — “JAWS”!

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The film was based on the 1974 novel "Jaws" by Peter Benchley. The screenplay is credited to Benchley, who wrote the first drafts, and actor-writer Carl Gottlieb, who rewrote the script during principal photography.

Director Steven Spielberg named the shark “Bruce” after his lawyer.

Three mechanical “Bruces” were built, each with specialized functions. One shark was open on the right side, one was open on the left side, and the third was fully skinned. Each cost approximately $250,000.

Shot mostly on location at Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, from May to October 1974, Jaws was the first major motion picture to be filmed on the open ocean. As a result, the production was notoriously difficult, going over both budget and schedule.

Because the mechanical sharks frequently malfunctioned, Spielberg decided to suggest the shark’s presence rather than show it. He relied on an ominous, minimalist theme composed by John Williams to signal its approach — a technique Spielberg and others have compared to the suspenseful style of Alfred Hitchcock.

Originally, Steven Spielberg was not the first choice to direct "Jaws." The initial director, Dick Richards, was fired after telling producers his opening shot would show the camera rising out of the water to reveal the town — and then “the whale” coming out of the water. The producers quickly corrected him: they weren’t making Moby-Dick, and they refused to work with someone who didn’t know the difference between a whale and a shark.

Martha’s Vineyard was chosen as the location for Amity Island primarily because, even twelve miles out to sea, the sandy bottom was only thirty feet deep — allowing the mechanical shark to function.

Local residents were paid $64 to scream and run across the beach as extras.

Most minor roles were played by residents of Martha’s Vineyard, where the film was shot. One example: Lee Fierro portrayed Mrs. Kintner, the grieving mother of the shark’s second victim, Alex Kintner (played by Jeffrey Voorhees).

As a local theater actor on Martha’s Vineyard, Jeffrey Kramer got his big break when the "Jaws" production team began sourcing locals for roles in the film and he was cast as Deputy Hendricks. 

The first name of actor Jeffrey Kramer’s character, Deputy Hendricks, actually changes between the original and the sequel. In "Jaws," he’s called “Lenny,” while in "Jaws 2," he’s referred to as “Jeff.”

The role of Chief Brody was first offered to Robert Duvall, who was only interested in playing Quint.

Charlton Heston expressed interest in playing Brody, but Spielberg felt Heston’s larger-than-life screen persona would be too grand for a small-town police chief.

Roy Scheider became interested in the project after overhearing Spielberg describe a scene at a party where the shark jumps onto a boat. Spielberg initially hesitated to cast Scheider, fearing he might come across as too much of a “tough guy,” similar to his role in "The French Connection."

Richard Dreyfuss was suggested and ultimately cast at the recommendation of George Lucas, who had just worked with him on "American Graffiti."

Because Spielberg’s vision for the film was so different from Peter Benchley’s novel, he asked Dreyfuss not to read the book.

According to Dreyfuss, “We started filming without a script, without a cast, and without a shark.”

Producer Richard D. Zanuck wanted his then-wife, Linda Harrison, for the role of Ellen Brody, unaware that Universal head Sid Sheinberg had already promised the part to his own wife, Lorraine Gary. To ease the situation, Sheinberg arranged for Harrison to appear in "Airport 1975" instead.

Brody’s dog in the movie was actually Steven Spielberg’s real dog, Elmer.

The actors were frequently seasick during filming.

Stuntwoman-turned-actress Susan Backlinie was cast as Chrissie Watkins, the shark’s first victim, because she could swim well and was willing to perform nude.

Backlinie later recalled that, unlike most film sets where nude scenes attract large onlookers, the "Jaws" crew completely cleared the beach for her opening sequence. Only a few essential crew members remained. Her boyfriend at the time even asked Peter Benchley — the author of "Jaws" — to leave the set, much to her later embarrassment.

In a subtle homage to "The Searchers," Deputy Hendricks (Jeffrey Kramer) digs in the sand with his knife after discovering Chrissie’s remains.

On the first day the model shark was used, it sank to the bottom of the ocean. It required extensive maintenance and initially looked anything but terrifying. Spielberg recalled, “I had no choice but to figure out how to tell the story without the shark. It’s what we don’t see that’s truly frightening.”

Spielberg shot roughly 25% of the film from water level to give viewers the feeling of treading water alongside the characters.

The director’s biggest fear — aside from the mechanical shark failing — was that cameras might catch sight of land. He didn’t want the audience to feel that safety was nearby; he wanted them to feel as isolated as the characters themselves.

Roy Scheider once said that in the scene where Mrs. Kintner (Lee Fierro) slaps him, the actress actually hit him — seventeen times. She couldn’t fake a slap, and Scheider later called those takes “the most painful” of his career.

Spielberg later revealed that the prop arm used when Chrissie’s remains are discovered looked too fake, so they buried a female crew member in the sand and had her real arm sticking out instead.

Editor Verna Fields rarely had much footage to work with during production. According to Spielberg, “We would shoot five scenes on a good day, three on an average day, and none on a bad day.”

Quint’s haunting tale of the USS Indianapolis was conceived by playwright Howard Sackler, expanded by screenwriter John Milius, and rewritten by Robert Shaw following disagreements between Benchley and Gottlieb. Shaw presented his version, and both writers agreed it was perfect.

True to their on-screen rivalry, Robert Shaw frequently teased Richard Dreyfuss on set. He once bet Dreyfuss couldn’t do ten push-ups; Dreyfuss countered he could do twenty. Shaw brought in Roy Scheider, a former boxer, to verify the challenge — who told Dreyfuss, “You’re not one of the men who can do twenty push-ups.”

According to Carl Gottlieb, Roy Scheider ad-libbed the now-iconic line: “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.”

The “forward tracking, zoom-out” shot used when Brody realizes Alex Kintner has been eaten is often called “the Jaws shot.” It’s actually a reverse of the “forward zoom and reverse tracking” move — also known as the “Trombone Shot” — first used by Irmin Roberts in "Vertigo."

During the crowded beach scenes, extras weren’t told exactly what would happen. When Chief Brody shouted about a shark in the water, their panicked reactions were completely genuine — many thought there was a real shark.

The original version of Alex Kintner’s death involved a dummy floating among swimmers before being grabbed by the shark. But the mechanical shark kept missing its mark. In the final take, it finally grabbed the raft — rolling on its side like a real shark would — and that’s the shot Spielberg used. However, the producers were concerned that the image of the shark with Alex in its mouth was too disturbing and might jeopardize the film's PG rating. Therefore, Spielberg and editor Verna Fields trimmed the beginning of the shot so only the shark's fins are briefly seen as it flips over.

Author Peter Benchley has a cameo in the film as a reporter on the beach.

Murray Hamilton was Spielberg’s first and only choice for the role of Mayor Vaughn.

Quint’s boathouse set was built on an abandoned lot in Martha’s Vineyard. The city council required the crew to demolish it after filming and restore the area to its original condition — down to the litter.

The scene where a severed head pops out from the boat hull wasn’t in the script. Spielberg added it after test audiences screamed at the shark’s sudden appearance behind Brody — he “got greedy” for one more scare.

The cage attack sequence was filmed in the “Esther Williams Tank” at MGM Studios’ Lot 3. Stuntman Dick Warlock doubled for Dreyfuss in the scene. Because Warlock’s hair was straight, he had it permed to match Dreyfuss’s curls — but it straightened out the first time he entered the water.

When composer John Williams first played his "Jaws" theme for Spielberg, the director laughed and said, “That’s funny, John — but what did you really have in mind?” Spielberg later admitted that without Williams’s score, the film would have been only half as successful. Williams said the movie’s success jump-started his career.

Film body count: eight (five people, one dog, and two sharks).

After filming wrapped, Spielberg suffered a panic attack while staying at a Boston hotel before flying home. He later had recurring nightmares of still being out at sea — made worse by the fact that he was sleeping on a waterbed.

“Jaws” remained the highest-grossing film in history until “Star Wars” was released two years later.

Following the film’s release, interest in shark fishing skyrocketed.

“Jaws” was followed by three sequels (none involving Spielberg or Benchley) and countless imitators.

Universal wanted a sequel to “Jaws” early in the success of the original film. Producers David Brown and Richard D. Zanuck realized that someone else would produce the film if they didn't, and they preferred to be in charge of the project themselves.

Steven Spielberg and Richard Dreyfuss were approached to direct and star in “Jaws 2” but production on “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” was running behind and they declined to participate.

Roy Scheider agreed to appear in "Jaws 2," which counted as one of the two remaining films on his contract with Universal, but he was resentful of his involvement from the outset and clashed frequently with director Jeannot Szwarc.

Lorraine Gary, reprised her role as Ellen Brody in "Jaws 2". Gary is one of only two actors (the other being Fritzi Jane Courtney, who plays Mrs.Taft) to appear in three of the four films in the "Jaws" series, the others being the original "Jaws" and the final film, "Jaws: The Revenge". Neither Gary nor Courtney appear in "Jaws 3-D".

The character of Police Deputy Len Hendricks (played by Jeffrey Kramer), was not in the original script for “Jaws 2”. But after Jeannot Szwarc took over as director and the film was being rewritten, he requested that the character because reinstated as he had enjoyed his performance in the first film

Universal Pictures released “Jaws” to over 450 theaters — an exceptionally wide release at the time — with a massive marketing campaign emphasizing TV spots and tie-in merchandise.

Regarded as a turning point in film history, “Jaws” became the prototype for the summer blockbuster and won several awards for its music and editing.

In 2001, the Library of Congress selected “Jaws” for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

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Some facts in this post were sourced from IMDb and Wikipedia.

Now 50 years later, “JAWS” still has audiences gripping their armrests, glancing nervously at the ocean, and humming those two unforgettable notes. So the next time you hear “Duuun dun... duuun dun...” — remember: it all started with a malfunctioning mechanical shark, a fearless young Spielberg, and a boatload of movie magic.

And the story doesn’t end here! Dive even deeper into Amity Island with my brand-new two-part interview with actor-turned–Emmy-winning producer Jeffrey Kramer — aka Deputy Hendricks himself — on the latest episodes of Hollywood Obsessed Podcast!

Packed with exclusive behind-the-scenes stories, never-before-heard memories, and plenty of “JAWS” trivia, this is one conversation no movie fan should miss.

Listen now and get hooked!

Episode 141 – HERE

Episode 142 – HERE