Jaws [1975] (1 disc)

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• Author Peter Benchley had mentioned that if he had known about the actual behavior of sharks, he would have never written the book.
• Richard Dreyfuss initially passed on the part of Hooper, saying that Jaws (1975) was a film he would love to watch but not to make.
• Although director Steven Spielberg wanted Charlton Heston to play Brody, the main reason he decided against casting Heston was because of his "saving the day" role in his previous movies, Airport 1975 (1974) and Earthquake (1974). Spielberg reasoned that if Heston would have been cast, it signifies to the audience that the shark has virtually no chance against the hero.
• During pre-production, director Steven Spielberg, accompanied by friends Martin Scorsese, George Lucas and ^[?] John Milius, visited the effects shop where "Bruce" the shark was being constructed. Lucas stuck his head in the shark's mouth to see how it worked and, as a joke, Milius and Spielberg snuck to the controls and made the jaw clamp shut on Lucas' head. Unfortunately, and rather prophetically, considering the later technical difficulties the production would suffer, the shark malfunctioned, and Lucas got stuck in the mouth of the shark. When Spielberg and Milius were finally able to free him, the three men ran out of the workshop, afraid they had done major damage to the creature.
• Director Steven Spielberg named the shark "Bruce" after his lawyer. Three mechanical "Bruces" were made, 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 shark cost approximately $250,000. Spielberg also called the shark "the great white turd" when he became quite frustrated with the troublesome animatronic fish. The shark in Finding Nemo (2003) was named Bruce, supposedly as an homage to the mechanical shark's nickname.
• Over 67 million people in the U.S. went to see this film when it was initially released in 1975, making it the first summer "blockbuster."
• Though respected as an actor, Robert Shaw's trouble with alcohol was a frequent source of tension during filming. In later interviews, Roy Scheider described his co-star as "a perfect gentleman whenever he was sober. All he needed was one drink and then he turned into a competitive son-of-a-b!&*#." According to Carl Gottlieb's book "The Jaws Log," Shaw was having a drink between takes, at which one point he announced, "I wish I could quit drinking." Much to the surprise and horror of the crew, Richard Dreyfuss simply grabbed Shaw's glass and tossed it into the ocean. When it came time to shoot the infamous USS Indianapolis Scene, Shaw attempted to do the monologue while intoxicated as it called for the men to be drinking late at night. Nothing in the take could be used. A remorseful Shaw called Steven Spielberg late that night and asked if he could have another try. The next day of shooting, Shaw's electrifying performance was done in one take.
• When composer John Williams originally played the score for director Steven Spielberg, Spielberg laughed and said, "That's funny, John, really; but what did you really have in mind for the theme of Jaws (1975)?" Spielberg later stated that without Williams's score, the movie would only have been half as successful and according to Williams, it jumpstarted his career.
• According to writer Carl Gottlieb, the line "You're gonna need a bigger boat" was not scripted, but was ad-libbed by Roy Scheider.
• According to The Making of 'Jaws' (1995) documentary, the shooting star that appears during the night scene where Brody loads his revolver was real, not an optical effect.
• Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss could not stand each other and the two argued all the time, which resulted in some good tension between Hooper and Quint.
• According to director Steven Spielberg, the prop arm looked too fake in the scene where Chrissie's remains are discovered, so instead, they buried a female crew member in the sand with only her arm exposed.
• Several decades after the release of Jaws (1975), Lee Fierro, who played Mrs. Kintner, walked into a seafood restaurant and noticed that the menu had an "Alex Kintner Sandwich." She commented that she had played his mother so many years ago; the owner of the restaurant ran out to meet her, and he was none other than Jeffrey Voorhees, who had played her son. They had not seen each other since the original movie shoot.
• Quint's name comes from the Latin word for "fifth". Quint is the fifth person killed by the shark (after Chrissie Watkins, Alex Kintner, Ben Gardner's disembodied head in boat, and Michael's sailing teacher).